The Grounds Guys : President Lori Johnson on the 250+ Owner Grounds Guys Network

"This video features Lori Johnson, Brand President of the Grounds Guys. Johnson lays out the operating model the brand has built and walks through the structural advantages a new franchise owner inherits when they sign onto the system — and what she sees as the next five years of evolution. The business model is built around two interlocking choices. The Grounds Guys targets a higher-end customer base and operates on a recurring service model, which gives owners consistent business they can pull from rather than chasing one-off transactional jobs. Johnson positions this combination as proven across the network — more than 250 owners across the U.S. and Canada — and supported by best-in-class technology hand-tailored for the lawn and landscape category. Corporate support and the Neighborly umbrella add the second layer. Owners join not just the Grounds Guys but the broader Neighborly family of home services brands, which Johnson describes as a built-in referral system. Owners can tap fellow Grounds Guys franchisees across North America and also reach into other Neighborly concepts in their local market — giving them a peer network and a structural lead source that independent landscaping operators do not have. Five-year priorities center on technology and owner profitability. Johnson frames the next phase as keeping pace with economic and technology advancements — particularly automation that creates a seamless customer experience — while continually refining the business model so owner profitability remains the brand's anchor metric. Owner stories she returns to — financial freedom, vacations they had always wanted, becoming better leaders at home and on the team, lifelong business and personal relationships — describe what the brand has built across 250+ operators. And the closing line is the franchising principle she keeps coming back to: in business for yourself, but not by yourself."