Stronger Together

Busy season is finally here and so are our chapter awards! After taking a year off due to the pandemic, our Chapter Beautification Awards competition is back thanks to our hard-working awards committee. Start thinking about what projects you will be entering. The deadline to enter is June 9. Judging will take place June 24-26. You should have already received emails with the entry information. If you haven’t, or need more information, make sure to reach out to Bronwyn Miller or Dave Horton.

We had a fantastic golf tournament last week! It was a fun event with a great turnout. I am thankful that we are able to start enjoying some in-person events. Almost feels normal again. I want to give a shout out to all our sponsors who helped make this happen! Thank you CLCA Insurance Solutions, DM Color Express, MWDOC, Orco Block & Hardscape, Jain Irrigation, Everde Growers, Marina Landscape, Easy Fleet GPS, Ewing Irrigation, OxyTurf, Sullivan & Mann, Imperial Sprinkler Supply, Rainbow Treecare Scientific Advancements, Sonsray Machinery, and West Coast Turf. We appreciate your support!

I also want to give a shout out to our new CLCA OC Chapter members:

• Brian Spiridonoff from Park West Landscape Maintenance

• Alexander Figueroa from the City of Anaheim

• Milton Earls from Evercrest Landscape Design, Inc.

With housekeeping out of the way, I want to talk about some things affecting your bottom line. We’ve seen increasing costs lately. Material costs have gone up drastically and we’re also seeing increases in gas and grocery costs. Make sure you start adjusting your prices so that you do not lose on your profit margins. You should also consider giving raises to your employees to help them with this increased cost of living. Otherwise, you may find yourself with a manpower shortage.

All in all, this should not be a burden on you. The increase in costs should get absorbed by your clients. Be sure you’re pricing your projects with this in mind. It’s not easy to stay on top of everything all the time. CLCA has your back. Together, we are stronger. I hope you all have success this spring and summer. Keep moving forward and feel free to reach out.

For this month’s book, I recommend Brain Rules by John Medina.

~Sincerely, Sal Hernandez, 2021 CLCA OC President