Landscaping firm which began with one wheelbarrow and £500 now has £1million turnover

Dawson Landscapes was set up by managing director Andrew Dawson with a wheelbarrow and just £500 in his pocket.

Now, it has a turnover of just under £1m and a team of 16 staff, and it has just won a national award for one of its contracts.

Andrew hopes the success at the high-profile ceremony will help raise the firm’s profile and lead to further work.

Andrew, who runs the firm from its base in Whitby Street South, added: “We pride ourselves on our service and the excellent reputation which has been built up over the years.”

The success continues a remarkable rise for the firm, which was created by Andrew in 2000.

Andrew added: “I fell into work as a boilermaker with ICI when I left school, but I’d always had a love of gardening ever since I was a young lad and used to grow dahlias and enter them into shows.

“I worked on the rig yards for 13 years, but I went to night classes to learn a few bits about horticulture as this was something I always had aspirations of getting into.

“When I was paid off, I set up this firm with just a wheelbarrow and £500 to get me up and running.”

His first job was a lawn turfing and hedge planting in Stockton, but that was the start of significant growth for Dawson Landscapes.

The Mail told last week how the firm had won the national title for the Best Use Of Drivesys category for excellence in block paving in the annual Marshalls Awards which were held in Leeds.