Let’s dig into the real strategies, systems, and financial insights that turn dirt and concrete into generational wealth.
In this post, we’ll show you how Neil and Keith Eneix grew their family’s hardscape company, New Life Rockeries, from a paper-based $600K business into a multi-million-dollar operation doing over $2.5M annually — without burning out or relying on luck.
If you’re a landscaper or hardscaper stuck in the trenches, wondering how to break past the $500K or $1M ceiling, this is your roadmap.
The Starting Point: A Business Built on Paper and Gut Feelings
Back in 2010, New Life Rockeries was doing okay. The business was bringing in between $600K and $800K per year. The company was run entirely by the owner — Keith and Neil’s father — who knew the work, had decades of experience, and could turn a solid profit.
But here’s the catch: everything lived in his head.
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Sales were tracked on paper.
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Leads came from seasonal contractor calls.
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No CRM, no job tracking software.
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Crew knowledge passed down by word of mouth.
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Marketing? Just word of mouth and gut instinct.
The moment he stepped away due to health issues, the entire business began to falter.
“When I came in, we had crews running and jobs going, but under the surface, everything was unraveling. Nothing was systematized. It was all tribal knowledge.” – Neil Eneix
The business couldn’t survive without the owner present. And that, Neil realized, was the first major problem to solve.
Identifying the Bottlenecks That Keep Small Businesses Stuck
What separates a $500K business from a $2M one? It’s not the talent, the tools, or even the client base.
It’s the systems — or lack thereof.
When Neil took over day-to-day operations, here were the most painful gaps:
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No production data or job costing systems
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No CRM usage accountability
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Sales depended on one estimator’s memory
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Training was informal and undocumented
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The owner was the only one who knew “how we do things”
This wasn’t just a problem — it was a liability.
“The company was being run on intuition, not information. That worked… until it didn’t.”
The business needed structure, delegation, and clear systems to survive and scale.
Mindset Shift: Stop Being the Operator, Start Being the Visionary
Here’s the hard truth: many small business owners build themselves into a job they can’t escape.
Keith referenced Dan Martell’s Buy Back Your Time, where Martell explains how entrepreneurs sabotage growth by staying trapped in low-value roles. They do the admin, answer the phones, even pick up a shovel — because no one else “does it like them.”
Sound familiar?
“If you’re still proud of doing the lowest-paid job in your company, you’re probably the one holding it back.” — Keith Eneix
The first real step in scaling? Step back from the day-to-day and build systems that don’t rely on you.
The Numbers That Matter: How to Track Profit, Growth, and Efficiency
Let’s get into the numbers that moved the needle for New Life Rockeries.
Marketing Metrics
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Cost per estimate: $220–$260 (varies by platform)
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Lead sources: Google Local Ads, Facebook, SEO, Google PPC
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Average job size: Increased from ~$15K to $25K
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Close rate: ~21.4%
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Marketing ROI: $1,200 in ad spend generates ~$3,800 in profit
“SEO got us cheap leads. But paid ads got us targeted, scalable growth — and control over where and when jobs came in.”
Profit Margins
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Gross Profit Goal: 45%–55%
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Net Profit: 18%–25%
Neil emphasizes quoting ranges in estimates to protect against unpredictable variables like site conditions or demo work. This small tweak has had a major impact on preserving margin.
Production Pacing
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Crew size: 3–4 members (machine-led crews)
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Revenue per employee/day: $1,200+
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Red flags: Delays, excessive material use, over-budget labor time
Knowing these metrics lets you make data-driven decisions, not emotional ones. If you don’t know your numbers, you’re flying blind — and growth will always feel like a gamble.
Systematizing Everything: Meetings, Teams, and Accountability
The key to scaling beyond $1M? Weekly discipline.
Neil runs structured meetings with:
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Leadership (for strategic and financial decisions)
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Sales (to track conversion rates and job sizes)
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Marketing (for cost per lead, platform effectiveness)
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Production (to identify delays and efficiency problems)
“You can’t lead with one-off conversations. You need real systems and regular rhythms. Otherwise, you’ll stall out — or worse, burn out.”
The biggest mistake Neil sees? Business owners expect outside marketing help or staff to “just figure it out.” In reality, they need feedback from the owner to succeed. No one knows your business like you do.
Focused Services = Faster Growth
At one point, New Life Rockeries did everything — maintenance, installs, retaining walls, cleanups.
That stopped when they chose to own their niche: rockeries.
“When you niche down, your team gets faster, your marketing gets easier, and your reputation becomes unbeatable.”
Focusing on 1–3 core services:
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Streamlines training and onboarding
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Speeds up job completion
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Improves profit margins
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Builds brand recognition
Trying to do “everything” confuses customers and clogs your operations. Instead, win the first job in one niche — then upsell other services once you’re already in the backyard.
Sales and Marketing Discipline: How Much Time Should You Spend?
As your company scales, your time should shift dramatically toward sales, marketing, and systems building — not job site labor.
Neil recommends:
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3–4 structured weekly meetings
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Defined KPIs for each team
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Clear SOPs for quoting, scheduling, and estimating
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Delegation plans for everything outside your zone of genius
“You don’t scale by doing more. You scale by enabling more.”
If you’re still taking calls on the job site and answering leads at night, it’s time to build a sales engine and step out of the weeds.
Building a Crew That Can Actually Scale
For residential hardscape work, Neil recommends:
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3–4 person crews
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Machine-led installations (not labor-led)
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$6,000/day minimum revenue per crew
How do you know if you’re losing money on a job? Watch for:
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Production falling behind schedule
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Excess materials used
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Crews missing daily targets
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Unclear leadership or planning
If you’re constantly “saving the day” with your presence on-site, your systems aren’t working — your business is still just you.
Final Mindset Shift: From Craftsman to CEO
So what’s the most important mindset shift to grow past $500K?
“Stop doing everything yourself. Build systems. Hire roles. Replace yourself — one hat at a time.”
Neil recommends mapping out what your $2.5M business needs:
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Who runs marketing?
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Who runs sales?
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Who runs crews?
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What does the owner actually do?
Then, step-by-step, fire yourself from the $15/hour jobs and replace yourself with people or systems. It’s not just more efficient — it’s essential to growing a sustainable, profitable company.
Ready to Grow? Join the Community
If you’ve made it this far, you’re serious about scaling. And we’ve got the tools to help.
Join our Facebook Group: Landscape Millionaire
You’ll get access to:
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Weekly insights from Keith and Neil
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Free tools and calculators
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Real stories from owners scaling past 7 figures
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A tribe of other serious landscapers leveling up
And don’t forget to subscribe to the Millionaire Landscaper Podcast so you don’t miss the next episode.
Final Thought
If you don’t know your numbers, you can’t grow. And if you’re stuck doing everything, your business will stay stuck too.
But if you shift your mindset, install systems, and lead like a CEO, you can take your business to heights you never imagined — and build real wealth that lasts.
Thanks for reading. Now go build something that outlives you.
