More and more people in the United States population are drifting towards lawn care practices and gardening as part of home landscaping. One of the reasons this trend has exploded is the ongoing global pandemic, which has seen more people forced to stay home. People now have plenty of time to work on their hobbies and even grow new skills.
The pandemic has also led to a situation where more people are looking out for their health by making sure they can readily get organic food in their homes, thus the increase in gardening. Unfortunately, despite this increase in gardening activities geared towards self-sufficiency, the landscaping industry has seen a drop in workers in the field. The COVID-19 pandemic is partly responsible for this. Here are some of the challenges and changes taking place in the landscaping sector.
There has been a current shift in the landscaping industry to residential outdoor landscaping, especially from younger households. Research has shown an increase in the purchase of gardening and lawn care equipment in the years 2014 and 2017. The younger generation is taking part in gardening for self-sufficiency ensuring fruits and vegetables are readily available at their homes. Also, the need to look out for their health has played a significant role in this.
The pandemic has created a significant shift globally, and individuals are now more concerned about their health. With the implementation of social distance and sanitization to prevent the spread of the disease, people are now shifting to making payments online. The method prevents coming in contact with money that has passed through various people.
Landscaping companies have not been left behind and are now implementing the same aggressively. You can pay for landscaping services using Ameican Express, visa, MasterCard, among others. This trend is expected to continue growing over the coming years and may eventually kill the use of cash.
Landscaping companies have been facing a significant problem in acquiring skilled personnel to work in the industry. The slow growth in the sector is attributed to a lack of qualified employees. In 2017, the sector was estimated to have 71,000 job vacancies.
The landscaping workforce is full of foreigners who currently can't travel or acquire visas to work in the agricultural sector. The Department of Homeland Security has reduced the issuance of H2B visas, leading to a decline in the number of foreign workers available in the landscaping industry.
Given the evolving nature of the pandemic, the industry is likely to face further skilled labor problems. Luckily, the NALP launched a program to encourage American citizens to train and join the landscaping industry, and it seems to be catching on quite well.
Competition in the landscaping market has forced landscaping contractors to become innovative. Nowadays, most companies offer innovative solutions that can help improve your home's curb appeal. Some of these include concrete edging in various colors and stamp options.
It is predicted that landscaping will experience rapid growth in the residential sector but slower growth in the commercial sector this year. The projected Compound annual growth rate is 4.5% during the forecast period of 2020-2025. That is one of the reasons why landscaping companies are committed to continuously innovating, especially when it comes to lawn maintenance services. If you are looking to learn more about these innovations or to request a lawn care service, kindly call Archway Lawncare and Landscaping today.
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