September 10, 2024
Happiness is a winning formula at Gardenzilla
By Ryan O'Connor
Ask Michael Chudy to describe the key ingredient to the success of his East York, Ont., landscaping company and he can chalk it up to one simple factor.
“The focus really has been the staff, from the very beginning,” says Chudy, owner and head gardener at Gardenzilla. “We’ve really prioritized employee morale and work-life balance from the beginning, and the rest has fallen into place.”
Chudy founded Gardenzilla in 2014 after a decade-long detour from the green trades into web-development and managerial work. He says a conversation with his mom and sister helped him make the permanent transition back into the trade by starting his own company.
“I found that my career became a lot of managerial and administrative work, and that’s not satisfying to me,” says Chudy. “One day my mom said to me, ‘You’ve seemed a lot less happy since you last left landscaping.’ I agreed immediately and really haven’t looked back since.”
Since its inception, Gardenzilla has offered a wide range of landscaping services in the East York community, starting off with seasonal property maintenance and cleanup and growing over the years to offer additional services such as scheduled lawn mowing and garden installation.
Originally, the company was composed of Chudy and a few workers carrying out jobs in a smattering of locations across the city. Now, it has grown into a full-fledged landscaping operation that has operated in its community for over a decade.
“Yes, we are known for doing great jobs and being reliable and that is crucial,” says Chudy. “But that’s really a product of having happy staff. When staff are happy, business will follow.”
Workers at Gardenzilla split into separate teams at the start of each workday to provide seasonal landscaping services in the East York area. “One group could be doing a garden pest control job in The Beaches,” says Chudy, “and another could be doing weed pruning in Leaside. We’re on [the] go, all day, every day.”
Alongside Gardenzilla’s growth, Chudy has introduced company programs such as mandatory sick days and generous health benefits to help keep his staff happy throughout the year. An affinity towards the often physically demanding work also plays a role in employee satisfaction.
“To work this job, you’ve got to love being outside,” says Chudy. “Heaven to me means I come home at the end of the day and I can’t wash the dirt out from the grooves of my fingers. To some degree, I think every longtime employee here feels the same way. You gotta love it.”
Chudy finds having love for the job at hand translates to positive customer interactions. With an average review score of 4.9 stars on Google with over 350 reviews, Chudy may have found the key to ensuring his customers receive top-notch service with every job.
“A lot of the positive reviews I read online mention the cheerful service we give, always willing to answer questions or lend a hand where needed,” says Chudy. “We’re well-liked in our community and I fully believe our happy people are the reason.”
“As a young guy with no business background, I took a big roll of the dice and bought a very large property in Leaside in 2020, way larger than what we needed,” says Chudy, “with my thought process being, ‘The only way this company will grow is if we're all together.’”
Chudy has made it a central hub for his team to meet in the morning and hang out when they have a few extra minutes in the day. As his team disperses into groups at the start of the day, he believes that one central space has a gravitational effect, drawing the team back together later on.
“We’ve always been locally operated, so it’s important for me to keep it close,” says Chudy. “My staff live in the area, and we’ve made great relationships with people in this part of Toronto. We aim to be the absolute gold standard in this area.”
Chudy has set up boardrooms, an off-the-clock lounge and a patio area at the Leaside property to maintain that level of closeness that he sees as essential to the success of Gardenzilla. He says the camaraderie of his team goes hand in hand with Gardenzilla’s close relationship to the community it serves.
“When we get together in the morning, it’s all smiles,” says Chudy, “And from there on out, the staff are sort of free to build their own schedule with the demands of the day. That gives a level of control over their day that I think they appreciate.”
“There’s no pressure for us to expand,” he says. “We’re a local landscaping company, and that’s who we’ll continue to be. In terms of long-term growth, I think we’re going to look at the services we already provide and improve on them on the same scale.”
The landscaping business has seen an exponential increase in demand following the COVID-19 pandemic, matched annually by the increasing number of houses built in Ontario since that time. Knowing this, Chudy explains how there is no pressure to grapple with other landscaping companies in the East York area to remain competitive or gain an advantage.
“There's a near infinite supply of work within the relatively small community we operate in,” says Chudy. “Our competition isn’t really competition. That’s why we can just focus on offering the best services we can.”
Though he still views Gardenzilla as a small business, it requires all hands on deck to make Michael Chudy’s company run smoothly. From the staff at headquarters answering the phones to the landscapers working on-site year-round, everyone plays a role.
“It feels silly to single out any one person who has made Gardenzilla what it is today,” says Chudy. “We’ve always loved the work we do and the community we serve sees that.”
By continuing to focus on employee happiness, Chudy can maintain the high standard that his company has already set for itself in the East York community. It's worked out well for him so far.
“Supporting the team, pulling people together, making them feel like they have a home and that they’re enjoying themselves is the most important thing to me.”
Ask Michael Chudy to describe the key ingredient to the success of his East York, Ont., landscaping company and he can chalk it up to one simple factor.
“The focus really has been the staff, from the very beginning,” says Chudy, owner and head gardener at Gardenzilla. “We’ve really prioritized employee morale and work-life balance from the beginning, and the rest has fallen into place.”
Chudy founded Gardenzilla in 2014 after a decade-long detour from the green trades into web-development and managerial work. He says a conversation with his mom and sister helped him make the permanent transition back into the trade by starting his own company.
“I found that my career became a lot of managerial and administrative work, and that’s not satisfying to me,” says Chudy. “One day my mom said to me, ‘You’ve seemed a lot less happy since you last left landscaping.’ I agreed immediately and really haven’t looked back since.”
Since its inception, Gardenzilla has offered a wide range of landscaping services in the East York community, starting off with seasonal property maintenance and cleanup and growing over the years to offer additional services such as scheduled lawn mowing and garden installation.
Originally, the company was composed of Chudy and a few workers carrying out jobs in a smattering of locations across the city. Now, it has grown into a full-fledged landscaping operation that has operated in its community for over a decade.
High morale pays off
After driving over 10 years of success and growth, Chudy believes that holding a high level of respect and appreciation for his staff has been instrumental to high customer satisfaction. In his eyes, keeping employee morale high is the ultimate payoff.“Yes, we are known for doing great jobs and being reliable and that is crucial,” says Chudy. “But that’s really a product of having happy staff. When staff are happy, business will follow.”
Workers at Gardenzilla split into separate teams at the start of each workday to provide seasonal landscaping services in the East York area. “One group could be doing a garden pest control job in The Beaches,” says Chudy, “and another could be doing weed pruning in Leaside. We’re on [the] go, all day, every day.”
Alongside Gardenzilla’s growth, Chudy has introduced company programs such as mandatory sick days and generous health benefits to help keep his staff happy throughout the year. An affinity towards the often physically demanding work also plays a role in employee satisfaction.
“To work this job, you’ve got to love being outside,” says Chudy. “Heaven to me means I come home at the end of the day and I can’t wash the dirt out from the grooves of my fingers. To some degree, I think every longtime employee here feels the same way. You gotta love it.”
Chudy finds having love for the job at hand translates to positive customer interactions. With an average review score of 4.9 stars on Google with over 350 reviews, Chudy may have found the key to ensuring his customers receive top-notch service with every job.
“A lot of the positive reviews I read online mention the cheerful service we give, always willing to answer questions or lend a hand where needed,” says Chudy. “We’re well-liked in our community and I fully believe our happy people are the reason.”
Back at the ranch
Nestled neatly in the community that it serves, Gardenzilla’s main headquarters is located in Leaside Industrial Park, in the East York neighbourhood of Leaside. Acquiring this property was a gamble, says Chudy, but it has paid itself off by helping keep his staff close-knit.“As a young guy with no business background, I took a big roll of the dice and bought a very large property in Leaside in 2020, way larger than what we needed,” says Chudy, “with my thought process being, ‘The only way this company will grow is if we're all together.’”
Chudy has made it a central hub for his team to meet in the morning and hang out when they have a few extra minutes in the day. As his team disperses into groups at the start of the day, he believes that one central space has a gravitational effect, drawing the team back together later on.
“We’ve always been locally operated, so it’s important for me to keep it close,” says Chudy. “My staff live in the area, and we’ve made great relationships with people in this part of Toronto. We aim to be the absolute gold standard in this area.”
Chudy has set up boardrooms, an off-the-clock lounge and a patio area at the Leaside property to maintain that level of closeness that he sees as essential to the success of Gardenzilla. He says the camaraderie of his team goes hand in hand with Gardenzilla’s close relationship to the community it serves.
“When we get together in the morning, it’s all smiles,” says Chudy, “And from there on out, the staff are sort of free to build their own schedule with the demands of the day. That gives a level of control over their day that I think they appreciate.”
Planting seeds for long-term success
When asked if there are any future plans for expansion, Chudy remains confident that by focusing on employee satisfaction and keeping things local, Gardenzilla will continue to thrive.“There’s no pressure for us to expand,” he says. “We’re a local landscaping company, and that’s who we’ll continue to be. In terms of long-term growth, I think we’re going to look at the services we already provide and improve on them on the same scale.”
The landscaping business has seen an exponential increase in demand following the COVID-19 pandemic, matched annually by the increasing number of houses built in Ontario since that time. Knowing this, Chudy explains how there is no pressure to grapple with other landscaping companies in the East York area to remain competitive or gain an advantage.
“There's a near infinite supply of work within the relatively small community we operate in,” says Chudy. “Our competition isn’t really competition. That’s why we can just focus on offering the best services we can.”
Though he still views Gardenzilla as a small business, it requires all hands on deck to make Michael Chudy’s company run smoothly. From the staff at headquarters answering the phones to the landscapers working on-site year-round, everyone plays a role.
“It feels silly to single out any one person who has made Gardenzilla what it is today,” says Chudy. “We’ve always loved the work we do and the community we serve sees that.”
By continuing to focus on employee happiness, Chudy can maintain the high standard that his company has already set for itself in the East York community. It's worked out well for him so far.
“Supporting the team, pulling people together, making them feel like they have a home and that they’re enjoying themselves is the most important thing to me.”