Readylawn Industries, Ltd. In late 2017, current TPI member Roger Morgan, one of Barbara and Alan’s sons, is now the Managing Director of Readylawn Industries, Ltd. He confirmed that in 1980, his parents were the only turfgrass growers in New Zealand. He says, “Tey were marketing the product under the brand name “Readylawn.” Tis proved to be a very successful marketing strategy as in New Zealand instant turf/sod is now commonly referred to as “ready lawn.” Alan Morgan and his business partner, Roger Pollard, created a successful landscaping company that included a big tree nursery, a full landscape design and construction service, indoor plant rental and sales, sports field construction, irrigation, and of course Readylawn.
“In the late 1990s, the Morgan and Pollard business empire was separated from “divisions” of one company into separate business entities. One of the primary reasons for this was the Pollard’s four children and the Morgan’s three children were getting involved in the company. Te potential for management challenges with so many individuals involved made the formation of separate business entities the easiest solution. All the ‘kids’ went off and did other things in the early days—from banking to construction training, university degrees, teaching and travelling—all of which gave them a good grounding for the management challenges we all face daily.”
Te separation ultimately resulted in the seven business entities listed below:
1, Readylawn Industries Ltd., which is focused on turfgrass production and turf construction and sports field/golf course work. It is owned by Roger Morgan.
2, Morgan and Pollard Landscape Architecture, a landscape architecture and design service, co-owned by Roger Pollard and Adam Pollard.
3, Morgan and Pollard Landscapes, an award-winning landscape construction company, owned by Adam Pollard.
4, Morgan and Pollard Grounds Maintenance, which provides grounds and facilities maintenance, and is owned by Adam Pollard.
5, Readytree Nurseries, a wholesale and retail nursery that provides trees, shrubs and other landscape plantings, “to create established gardens ready instantly.” It is owned by Adam Pollard.
6, Morgan and Pollard Indoor is an indoor plant rental and maintenance company that provides services for
TPI Turf News January/February 2018
corporate business and mall clients and for special events. It was owned by Leah (Pollard) and Grant Carr, but has now been sold to a corporate facilities management organization.
7, Virtual View Ltd, which is a computer-based, three- dimensional imaging company that interprets two- dimensional designs into a three-dimension format, “using unparalleled realism to create compelling interactive experiences.” It is owned by Emma Pollard,
Roger Morgan says, “Even though the main businesses are separated, they still work closely together.”
Roger Morgan bought the Readylawn Christchurch business in 2003. He says, “Sod production was a growing market, but still small in Christchurch. In 2003, we had 32 hectares (about 75 acres) in production. We only sold turf. All the installation work was done by Morgan and Pollard Landscapes. Design services were provided by Morgan and Pollard Landscape Architecture. But the turf and all the services a customer needed were run through the project management team, so they were only dealing with a single source.”
In addition to the turfgrass production and sales, the Readylawn company was operating a retail shop that stocked a broad assortment of lawn care products, including bark, compost, mulch, potting soil, top soil, rock and stone. As owner, Roger was the day-to-day manager of all Readylawn operations. Alan Morgan’s main role at that point was taking care of the weekend sales. Roger reports, “Tat allowed me and my wife, Serina, to take our kids to weekend sports and have some family time!!”
Tis pallet of standard roll turf is ready for delivery. 37
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