Wachtel Tree Science

I read a couple of dozen trade and business journals a month.  I also have a file on my computer labeled, “Sayings.”  Whenever I read a one or two line quote that I feel has significance with respect to how I would like to manage my personal and/or business life, I add it to my Sayings list.

 Several months ago I added the following quote of Chris Coswell’s.  “With any service-oriented business, length in business is generally synonymous with quality of service:  the good companies survive while the bad ones fail.”  This struck a chord with me since Wachtel Tree Science & Service was founded in 1935 and is now in its 73^rd year.

 Last week as I was going through some old files I came across a few old Metro-Milwaukee Yellow Pages with notes on prices, ad size, etc.  I thought of Coswell’s quote and decided to examine the ads and see who was still in business.

 Under the heading of Tree Service there were 27 companies listed in the 1949 directory.  Of these twenty-seven companies, five are still in business today, 60 years later.  And of these five, three of them are mainly nursery/garden center type businesses today.  In 1949, Wachtel was the second to last in the listings.

 Move ahead to the 1960 yellow pages and there are 40 companies listed.  Of these forty, only the same five from 1949 are still around.  Wachtel is still the second to last listing.

 Ten years later in 1970 there are now 51 tree service companies listed in the Yellow Pages.  Of these, nine are in business today, with four of those being more nursery/garden center type businesses.  Wachtel is still the second to last listing.

 Last year there were 91 companies listed under Tree Service and we are now the seventh from the last listing.  When we are celebrating our 100^th anniversary in 2035, I wonder how many of these 91 companies will still be in business.  One thing is for sure; You can depend on us for quality and knowledgeable care of your trees.

Paul Markworth, Board Certified Master Arborist

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 4th, 2010 at 2:50 pm and is filed under Healthy Tree Science News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.