ABOUT SIMÓN
Luis Simón, Owner
Simon Landscape grows through relationships, acquisition
from the SAVANNAH MORNING NEWS; by Eva Fedderly
Cuba native Luis Simón moved to Savannah in 2004 where he launched a small scale landscape design business. Today, Simón Landscape serves Savannah, Pooler, Hilton Head, and Bluffton with a full range of landscaping services for both residential and commercial properties. Simón discusses with The Savannah Morning News how he grew his business to what is today.
Where did you draw inspiration to launch your own landscaping firm?
I’m from Havana, Cuba where I studied economics. When I moved to Savannah in 2004, I didn’t speak English. I figured that a good way to a make a living was to express myself through something that I could do with my hands, so I chose landscaping and opened my own business.
How did the business begin and how did it grow?
I secured 11 residential landscape accounts in 2004 and went from there. Over the next 14 years, I increased the number of residential and commercial accounts throughout Savannah, largely by referrals and word-of-mouth. Savannah has been great to me. This country is known as the land of opportunity and to find a local community that will match that concept is special. When you come to a new country and don’t speak the language and don’t understand what the community’s needs are, but the community understands your needs and they create opportunities for you, that’s when the magic happens. I’ve also recently acquired two additional landscape companies, expanding our service areas into Pooler, Bluffton, Hilton Head, and the surrounding communities which allowed us to provide more of our services to more of the community.
What services does Simón Landscape provide?
Today, we offer landscape architectural design, irrigation installation and servicing, hardscape and lighting installation, residential and commercial landscape maintenance services, small and large-scale installations, and pest management programs. For every project, I really put my heart in every one of them. What’s cool about each project is the person behind it. I’ve developed relationships with many of our customers and our employees over the years. And I’ve learned a ton from both.
Can you describe several special projects Simón Landscape has completed?
In Savannah, we have done multiple rehabilitations, including Twelve Oaks Shopping Center and The Landmark Building. In addition, we’ve completed numerous Class-A commercial installations throughout Chatham County and provided custom home landscape architectural design and installations at Long Point, The Landings, Ford Plantation, among others. In Bluffton, we led residential rehabilitations and installations in Colleton River Plantation, Sun City and Oldfield Plantation, as well as properties in Hilton Head like Spanish Wells Plantation, Wexford Plantation, Palmetto Dunes, Long Cove and Hilton Head Plantation.
How do you invest in the community?
Yes, both personally and professionally we have contributed to local, national and international organizations, including Rambam Day School, the Jewish Educational Alliance, Children’s Cancer Recovery Foundation, American Heart Association, Susan G. Komen Foundation, the Flannery O’Connor Childhood Home, Doctors Without Borders and Immigrant Families Together.
Hispanic Heritage:
Luis Simón Celebrates 16 Years in Business in Savannah, Bluffton, Hilton Head
from the SAVANNAH CEO
In alignment with Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs from Sept. 15—Oct. 15, Simón Landscape, which serves Savannah, Pooler, Bluffton and Hilton Head with a full range of landscaping services for both residential and commercial properties, celebrates 16 years in business.
Yet, when business owner Luis Simón moved to Savannah from Havana, Cuba, in 2004, he didn’t speak a word of English. Armed with a degree in economics and a knack for improving green spaces, Simón opened a landscape company and quickly secured a handful of residential maintenance accounts.
“We were only a two-man operation at that time,” he recalls. “Over the next several years, we grew mostly by referrals and word-of-mouth. It wasn’t easy. I am grateful to the local community for so much support.”
In addition to landscape maintenance, the company offers award-winning design services, small and large-scale installations, sod, irrigation, lighting, hardscapes, tree removal and chemical treatment programs. Simón Landscape provides services throughout Long Point, Ardsley Park, The Landings, Ford Plantation, Historic Savannah, Colleton River Plantation, Oldfield Plantation, Spanish Wells Plantation, Wexford Plantation, Palmetto Dunes, Long Cove and Hilton Head Plantation, among many others. Simón Landscape has also rehabilitated Class-A commercial properties such as Twelve Oaks and The Landmark Building in Savannah.
“I’m proud of the work we provide,” said Simón. “The relationships I’ve built with clients and employees is also a huge part of the business’s success. I’ve learned so much from both.”
According to Stanford University’s recent Latino Entrepreneurship Initiative study, there are nearly 60 million Latinos in the U.S. who contribute more than $700 billion in sales to the economy annually. The U.S. Census Survey of Business Owners estimates that one in four new businesses are Latino-owned firms with more than 2.3 million employees on payroll.
For more information on Simón Landscape, call 912.247.0401 or 843.298.6877, email simonlandscape@gmail.com, or visit www.simonlandscape.com.