The Sprinkler Nerd Show
#215 - Going All In with Dean Ricci
What does it really take to go all in on a landscape business? Dean Ricci started mowing lawns at just 10 years old, pulling his mower behind a bicycle with a homemade trailer built by his dad. By high school, he had trucks, trailers, equipment, and employees. More than 30 years later, Ricci's Landscape Management has grown into a multimillion-dollar company with more than 65 employees. But this conversation isn't really about landscaping. It's about building a business. Dean and I talk about the transition from doing the work yourself to building a team that can operate without you, creating systems and SOPs, developing leaders, adopting technology, making mistakes, letting go of control, and surviving the growing pains that come with scaling a company. We also talk about something every contractor eventually has to confront: At some point, working harder stops working. If you're an irrigation contractor, landscaper, plumber, electrician, HVAC contractor—or anyone trying to turn a trade into a real business—there's a lot to learn from Dean's journey. From a lawn mower behind a bicycle to more than three decades in business. Dean Ricci went all in.
