Looking Back: What We Learned About Quality Landscaping with Leigh Harker

Yeah, which is sort of like a bit of a natural step onto the next thing.

It's sort of like, what would you do? You obviously do things to the best of your ability, to the highest standards.

Are there things within the industry which you find are shortcuts which are acceptable? I'm not saying that we're going to sit here and totally slate what other people do, but are there things that frustrate you within the

industry? Just not acceptable in your trade.

Oh,

there's a whole long list of things here.

How long have we got? Whilst trying to remain humble as possible.

I think, first and foremost, the industry should certainly be regulated.

And that's not just a small amount of regulation.

It should be quite a high standard of regulation.

Because, obviously, products have to be regulated.

Components have to be regulated.

Lighting, electrical, plumbing, all the rest of it has to be regulated.

But the actual fitting of a project doesn't have to be regulated.

And that's what sees a massive windfall of underskilled companies chances people having a go at doing gardens and it's a shame on some customers for example who get shortchanged by employing a tradesman whether it's the cheapest quote most expensive quote one in the middle a recommendation Quite often people have underperformed in the skill set and leave people with a project that has not much longevity to it.

And that's usually down to skill set, choice of products...

And the whole how they fit the project together, it's some people are not bothered how they fit it together.

As long as they get the project done, they get it done as quick as they can, they get paid as quick as they can, and then they leave.

But I think our ethos in what we do with regard to it, it doesn't matter how long it takes, as long as it's perfect at the end.

And that's not, it just looks perfect.

As long as it's practical... as long as the aesthetics are good and as long as there's going to be longevity in the project.

That's what we pride ourselves on.

But with regards to things that I think are a little bit annoying in the industry, I'd say when you try to raise the game and it's...

You want higher standards, but you want everybody to achieve higher standards.

I don't just want higher standards for myself because we try to build those high standards, but I'd like everybody to obtain high standards and then the landscaping sector would just be at a higher place individually, but predominantly we've got a bad name and that bad name comes from the people who... who are the chances, who try having a go, who try making money, but they don't really have a clue about what it is that they're doing and they're installing.