Mankato Landshapes has been in the business of shaping people’s yards for two and a half decades; this year being the company’s 25th anniversary.
Founded in 1999, Mankato Landshapes began as a home operation and continued as one until 2017, establishing itself at a facility just outside Eagle Lake, MN.
The well-shaped nursery and yard maintained on sight is an example of their landscaping skills. Todd Rieck, the owner and first employee, had a decade worth of landscaping experience and enjoyment of the work when founding the company.
Mankato Landshapes was focused on landscaping alone, but their employment growth and operation expansion has allowed them to add more services to their list, fencing and tree maintenance among them.
For the first fifteen years, and now, Rieck was the driving force behind Mankato Landshapes. He committed most of his days to installing landscapes and
evenings to completing office work. Most of his contracts came to him through word-of-mouth promotion or advertisements in the yellow pages.
Part of his success comes from the repeat business of satisfied customers. Mankato Landshapes is capable of softscape services but focuses more on hardscapes, retaining walls, patios, etc. Their projects can be completed in just a couple days, but some projects can take a month or more.
In either case, Mankato Landshapes employs a landscape designer who assists clients throughout the planning process. A shovel won’t touch the dirt until the client and themselves are satisfied with the results of the planning process. Rieck believes that the quality of their product is part of why customers return to them for future projects.
The quality cannot only be found in their hardscape constructions, it can also be seen in their tree maintenance services. Mankato Landshapes has access to climbers that allow them to tackle any tree job. “We do a lot of tree maintenance for people. We go back and trim the same trees for years, about every five to seven. They need a good trim to keep them healthy,” says Rieck.
The company now has over a half-dozen workers who have helped lessen Rieck’s workload, but being the owner will always keep him busy.
Eventually, by its nature, a landscaping project will eventually be weathered, or
considered, out of style; a process that can take over a decade. Mankato Landshapes has been around long enough for their past clients to return with remodels for remodels the company has done for them in the past. Rieck remarked that “We’re at the point in our company where were seeing a lot of those same customers, that maybe we did the initial instillation for, coming back and reusing our services… It’s nice to be able to work with those same clients year after year. They like the quality we provide, so its nice to see them come back to us again and again.”
Mankato Landshapes also take on public work contracts. They’re one of the main fencing contractors in the area and have been contracted by nearby communities for that service; most recently completing a baseball field fence in Lake Crystal.
Mankato Landshapes has not faced too much difficulty in its life, but it has noticed a lack in worker interest. About fifteen years ago, says Rieck, finding people interested in working for a landscaping company was easily done, but that is no longer the case. Finding workers has been an increasing challenge as interest in working in the field declines.
The company has a good staff behind it now, but as their business reaches its busy season, the lack of workers could be an inconvenience. Mankato Landshapes won’t slow down, however, as the industry has grown far too much to be inconvenienced. Their catalog of fencing options has quadrupled in size over the years. Allowing them to offer clients a myriad of fencing styles. Rieck is excited by the amount of variety he can offer his customers now, saying that in the past “You could have any fence you want as long as it was a white picket fence.”
The company has experienced a lot of growth in the post-covid years, and is likely to continue that upward trend. Mankato Landshapes is mindful of the changing markets and customer wants so that they can be prepared to fit any need. Their dedication to quality and service is why Mankato
Landshapes can celebrate 25 years of business.
