Company Story: Canopy Lawn Care, Raleigh NC

Canopy Lawn Care was started in 2015 with a vision of re-engineering the industry approach to residential lawn care.

A full-service residential lawn care and landscaping company, headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, their innovative approach has quickly set them apart from the competition. Their business utilizes cutting edge technology and eco-friendly practices, but what they’re most proud of is their team.

Canopy flipped the typical org chart on its head, believing that valued employees would provide valuable service to their customers. And it’s working.

“The top of our org chart is our field team,” their website shares. “The rest of us are their support team… We serve them, and they in turn serve you. That’s how it works. We invite you to experience what a difference this makes.”

The benefits are clear—not only did Canopy triple in size in 2017, but they’ve managed to overcome of one of the industry’s most common problems: high turnover.

“Recruiting and [retaining employees] is the number one pain point for most growing companies in the service industry,” Director of Operations, Ben Wright, explains. “Canopy has been able to solve this in multiple ways including diversifying our efforts in recruiting, training, and overall employee care.”

Amplio, he says, has played a big role in that.

Connected through their local Jobs for Life chapter in Research Triangle, Canopy was drawn to Amplio’s mission: to connect Raleigh-Durham businesses to the dependable refugee workforce, in turn connecting refugees with opportunity to earn a livable wage and re-establish their shaken lives.

Raleigh-Durham Managing Director Tucker Stevens began working with the Canopy team to find candidates who would make a great fit at the growing company. In a month’s time they hired six refugees—five from the war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo.

“We’re happy to be contributing to a solution to this terrible problem,” said Canopy CEO Hunt Davis in a recent blog post. “This is a win-win, we are growing and need new members on our team, and there are a lot of people displaced by this and other crises that need opportunities.”

The opportunity to make an income and rebuild has been life-changing to these individuals, who repay the investment with their loyalty and ambition.

“We taught one guy how to edge a sidewalk,” Ben shares. “The next day we let him loose edging and he didn’t stop. His supervisor [found him] five houses down, still edging!”

In the midst of high tensions regarding refugee resettlement, Ben challenges other businesses and individuals to consider the value in hiring the displaced:

“They are people. They have a unique, personal story—stories that give perspective of a broader worldview. There is a great need and they are capable, able and ample to be meaningful members of any society they find themselves in.”

We are proud to partner with Canopy to provide exceptional service to the Raleigh community through the dependable refugee workforce.

If you’re a business owner or manager in the Research Triangle area looking to reduce turnover while making a social impact for good, we invite you to give us a call or visit our website to learn more about our services.