Wirtschaftsforum: Mr. Krehe, about three years ago you and your partner Alexander Rohlmann took over Gartengestaltung Lonnemann GmbH & Co. KG in Haselünne – what motivated you to take this step?

Tobias Krehe: At that time, the company had already existed for about 30 years and had established itself here in Emsland as a skilled garden and landscape construction business – a great foundation that one could continue to build on. Particularly, the high competence of the individual employees as well as the family-like coexistence within the staff were especially appealing to us. At the same time, I saw that the company had numerous opportunities for further development that we wanted to consistently utilize in order to be able to operate even more efficiently in the coming years.

Wirtschaftsforum: What measures did you have in mind?

Tobias Krehe: Not only in the office but also in our nursery and on construction sites, we have now been able to create much clearer structures that have greatly improved our daily business processes. Implementing this step with such broad consequences admittedly took much longer than we initially thought. However, we have now succeeded in establishing dedicated contacts for individual areas where the information flows converge – we have grown together internally to the point where everyone knows what needs to be done on which topic. In addition, we have also created a new technical infrastructure in our office, with new basic PC equipment, a new modern telephone system, and the outsourcing of our server to enable working from home – this was also an important step towards a consistent modernization of the company.

Wirtschaftsforum: What, in your opinion, has been the biggest change in the landscaping industry over the past 30 years?

Tobias Krehe: Definitely the quality expectation, which has been increasing among customers due to inflation over the years. I also imagine that it was significantly easier to recruit qualified and motivated employees in this industry in the past.

Wirtschaftsforum: Why should young people consider a career in landscaping?

Tobias Krehe: Because it offers a beautiful and diverse occupation. Working outdoors and with nature is likely to be particularly appealing to many people. Additionally, the exciting variety offered in our company, with its broad range of services, exposes employees to a vast array of materials like natural stone, ceramics, concrete, plants, soils, and many other complex substances, tools, and machinery, requiring the full use of their acquired know-how. Naturally, this work is physically demanding – as are most craft trades – but few are as varied as our trade. Lastly, the career advancement opportunities are particularly enticing. With good craftsmanship, commitment, and experience, one can quickly become a foreman managing their own construction sites at our company.

Wirtschaftsforum: What challenges does your company face from a future perspective?

Tobias Krehe: It bothers me that more and more landscape gardeners are starting their own businesses without ever having obtained a master's title or attended a technical college or university of engineering - because now the legal barriers to entry are very low. Unfortunately, this massively distorts competition, because in the current price-sensitive market environment, many providers attract customers with dumping prices, without any certified quality promise behind it. I would like fairer framework conditions here, so that in our trade only those who have obtained a corresponding title are allowed to start their businesses - because only then would a reliable quality promise for customers be given.