Smart Equipment Decisions Help This Startup Grow

Horizon Landscape Services started in 2007 as three guys cutting grass four days a week. Today, the Charleston, South Carolina-based company includes four divisions, 50 employees and a load of compact equipment. 

For owner Gary Thorpe, the company is a dream come true. Gary always wanted to be his own boss. He spent 27 years working five jobs – seven days a week – on four to five hours of sleep a night before finally deciding to take a leap of faith in starting his own business. That risk turned into a successful company that’s grown by leaps and bounds. 

Soon after starting the landscaping company with his son Joey and friend Dennis Snyder, Gary added a construction division that performs rough and finish grading for large land-development companies in the area. From there, the company added an irrigation crew, and in 2016, expanded into a cement division that includes brickwork, stucco, concrete driveways and foundations.