Ferncroft Business Loans, a small-business funding service in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, helps landscaping and lawn care companies in Sheboygan County request equipment financing, lines of credit and working capital from lending partners. This page covers financing zero-turn mowers and trailers, payroll when a crew ramps up, uneven months, what partners review, and county landscaping figures.
| Landscaping employers, county | 61 (CBP 2023) |
|---|---|
| Share under five employees | 73.8% (CBP 2023) |
| Landscaping businesses without payroll | 137 (NES 2024, broader code) |
| Annual payroll | About $14.3 million (CBP 2023) |
The Landscaping Cash Cycle
Landscaping revenue depends on when customers want the work, and every company's calendar is different. Costs do not wait: equipment has to be ready, crews hired and trained, and fuel, mulch and plant material bought before the first invoices go out. We have not collected local data on which months are strongest, so the guide is your own records.
Commercial maintenance contracts paid monthly help even this out; one-time installs and hardscape projects pay in larger, less regular amounts.
Financing Zero-Turn Mowers, Trailers and Trucks
Financing for zero-turn lawn mowers is one use of equipment financing in lawn care. Commercial mowers, stand-on units, enclosed trailers, skid steers, aerators and dump trucks are all financed through equipment financing, new or used. Dealers sometimes offer their own promotional financing; compare it with a partner's offer by total cost, not by payment.
For a full walk-through of mower and trailer financing, see our post on lawn care equipment financing in Sheboygan, WI.
Uneven Months and a Line of Credit
For companies whose revenue rises and falls through the year, a line of credit lets you draw while costs run ahead of sales and repay when the invoices are paid. Partners will want twelve months of bank statements to see the pattern for themselves.
Working Capital for a Landscaping Business Adding a Crew
Adding a crew means a truck, a trailer, a mower package and several weeks of wages before the new routes pay. Equipment can go on equipment financing; the wages are a working capital question.
Illustrative only. A three-person crew at $20 an hour for 40 hours costs $2,400 a week in gross wages. If new routes bill monthly and pay 30 days later, the company carries roughly eight weeks of that crew, about $19,200, before the first payment arrives. That figure, not a round number, is what to bring to the call.
What Partners Review
- Twelve or more months of bank statements, to show the full-year pattern
- Commercial contracts or recurring route lists
- Equipment quotes with make, model and hours for used units
- Existing equipment loans, including dealer financing
- The owner's credit
Hardscape and Install Projects
Patios, retaining walls and full landscape installs work more like construction than maintenance: stone, block and plant material are bought up front, a crew spends days on one site, and the customer pays a deposit and a final balance. A company adding install work is adding a construction-style cash gap to a route-style business. The draw-and-retainage notes on funding for contractors and builders apply, and a line of credit can cover the materials.
Dealer Promotions vs a Partner's Offer
Equipment dealers may advertise their own financing on mowers and compact equipment. Those offers can be good, but they are tied to one brand and sometimes to buying at list price. A partner's equipment financing can be used at any dealer or for a used unit from a private seller. Put both offers side by side: the price of the machine, the total of all payments, any fees, and what happens if you pay early.
Landscaping in Sheboygan County, WI by the Numbers
Sheboygan County had 61 landscaping services employers in 2023, with 291 employees and about $14.3 million in payroll (CBP 2023, NAICS 561730). Most are small: 45 of them, or 73.8%, had fewer than five employees, a higher share than the county's all-industry 46.9%. Thirteen had a ZIP 53081 address (ZBP 2023).
A further 137 landscaping businesses had no payroll in 2024 (NES, NAICS 56173, a slightly broader code). Those are owner-operators; they are counted separately and not added to the employer total.
Lawn care sits with the trades on the industries hub; contractors who also do grading or hardscape can read funding for contractors and builders. Countywide numbers for every sector sit on the Sheboygan, WI page.
By Ferncroft Business Loans · Updated