# Brickman and Lowes



## MatthewG (Jun 16, 2009)

I spoke with a Brickman rep yesterday for a brand new store opening late Sept around here. I gave her the whole run down about our snow operation and I'm bidding it, seasonal is the method for this location. I have been calling vendors for weeks about this site and it just turned out I called the right lady on the right day...

She emailed and I read the paperwork and it is really quite reasonable. I measured the lot last night, (by hand since its so new its not on google earth) and its 7.1 acres

She also needs a landscape co. and although I'm not in sweeping and mowing I am also bidding it. It only makes sense, year round maintenance if that's what I have to do to get the snow work. I can easily sub it out or put together a crew for end of Sept.

Wish me luck, I know other guys have their eye on this place. I already have the seasonal number worked up, just getting my paperwork checklist in order.

Lets hear your thoughts and feedback


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## CGM Inc. (Dec 15, 2008)

MatthewG;1301186 said:


> I have been calling vendors for weeks about this site and it just turned out I called the right lady on the right day...


 that is key! Well done! I have places I try to get in for couple years now without a chance, others you call and they fly! All about timing if you ask me payup


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## Mick76 (Aug 2, 2009)

Whatever your seasonal # is, take half off of it and thats whats it'll go for


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## Longae29 (Feb 15, 2008)

Almost worked for brickman last year on a per occurrence basis, for several properties.... the price wasn't bad...... until I read the part where it was capped......at way too low of a # of occurrences, at which point they don't pay anymore.


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## lilweeds (Aug 3, 2007)

Matt, Don't waste your time with BFS. They mess around and it's not worth the headache. Now if you can get some work from the local Brickman office, that's a different story. They are very good to work with. Lowes is BFS though.


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## MatthewG (Jun 16, 2009)

lilweeds;1301238 said:


> Matt, Don't waste your time with BFS. They mess around and it's not worth the headache. Now if you can get some work from the local Brickman office, that's a different story. They are very good to work with. Lowes is BFS though.


Help me out Rich, whats the difference between Local Brickman branches and BFS?


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## wseal (Oct 22, 2008)

They tried to have us do a lowes in michigan, and its seasonal price was figured by them at 7 plows for the year. We have that in two weeks some years. what a joke.


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## framer1901 (Dec 18, 2005)

They should change their name to Bait and Switch.

Personal experience with them, never again.


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## White Gardens (Oct 29, 2008)

I've worked with BFS in the past and I will say that it wasn't a bad experience.

Yes the contract is lower than what you think it should be, but it isn't the worst price in the world of nationals.

My contact rep is easy to get a hold of, billing is easy, and payments were always on time. Even with the wording in the contracts to not be liable for accidents, they still don't leave me high and dry if there is any issues and will give you the support you need.

Again as for pricing, it's not horrible, but not the greatest. But, there has been a bunch of local companies scrambling for winter/summer commercial work around here and driving down local prices, and it makes nationals look like a gold-mine.


.....


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## MatthewG (Jun 16, 2009)

So.............

Got an email today from BFS about my sweeping proopsal.

The facts: 
Lot is 7 acres
sweeping twice a week year round
sweep/empty outdoor trash bins/blow/etc
My price $150 a sweep x 2 per week = $300 a week x 52 weeks = $15600

Their budget $275 a month or about $3300 OR about $34 a sweep

:salute: cya later


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## wseal (Oct 22, 2008)

that sounds just like them, there good to work for if you are looking to go out of business within a year.


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## alsam116 (Jan 10, 2009)

matthewg i found a deal on a sweeper truck...then i found out that you have to have damn good accts to make $$$on them so no go. did you still get the snow or are you forgetting the whole sitiation?


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## ryde307 (Dec 3, 2009)

I was just reading your thread and funny thing about your sweeping numbers and the budget.
I dont do sweeping anyways I would bid it double what you did just because well I know about nothing in the sweeping world. 
we do all the summer work for a grocery store here. ok size account and we are working on the snow its just over 3.5 acres. I was talking to the GM that I have a great relationship with and he told me about the sweeping prices they pay. They pay $39 a time to be swept. This is from a large reputable company here. They do proce snow on the low end but not to bad. I dont understand how sweeping goes that cheap am I missing something?


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## MatthewG (Jun 16, 2009)

We didn't have the snow removal chat yet, although after the sweeping situation I doubt it will work out. I also got a price from a reputable sweeping company. Get ready, they quoted me $40 for the lot sweeping! That's how I based my price, I of course do the hand blowing and trash pickup which is how I came up with 150.


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## NorthernSvc's (Mar 12, 2006)

so instead of doing it 2 times per week every week... just do it 2 times a month....


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## Superior L & L (Oct 6, 2006)

Sweeping in the large retail is not worth playing anymore. Sweeper trucks are not cheap and take lots of maintenance. The guys we hired used to spend 20-25 mins on a 5-6 acre lot. They would do the front every time and a quarter of the lot every visit. That's the only way we could play.


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## MatthewG (Jun 16, 2009)

NorthernSvc's;1302420 said:


> so instead of doing it 2 times per week every week... just do it 2 times a month....


Impossible, as per contract in order to be paid you must dial the IVR phone system you we arrive so the store security camera can take a picture of the sweeper. Sounds like guys already tried this


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## jvm81 (Jan 4, 2005)

I had no idea you had to call a number for the them to take a picture - ride around in circles and call it good!


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## iceman1 (Aug 10, 2011)

sweeping is not what you think. My wife owns a sweeping company and we do OK. you need to understand that if you are getting $40 to sweep a place all that you are doing is going in at night and picking up what litter you see. Maybe once a week you detail up a area, but you are not sweeping the whole lot. You are just sweeping were you see trash. This service should take 25 minutes at a average Lowes with a new T-500 sweeper. And a T-500 is only $10,000 new. Sweeping is all about building good routes. If you have no travel time you would make a ton of money. So if you can get the mall next to the lowes and the walmart down the street and the costco down the street and the target on the next treet over and than go to the home Depot 1 mile away and do the office depot next to that now you are talking $350+- a night in 4-5 hours. Its not great but it steady


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## MatthewG (Jun 16, 2009)

I made the call today to BFS. I did not get the work. She had a "limited budget" The contract was awarded for an amount very close to $22,000 for the season. She called this particular snow removal contractor who came recommended to her.

What? Wow!


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## mullis56 (Jul 12, 2005)

$22,000 a season for sweeping or snow?


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## MatthewG (Jun 16, 2009)

mullis56;1307820 said:


> $22,000 a season for sweeping or snow?


22 for just snow, I was in the 30s and that was cheap, however for the critics, my costs for the season were about 19k


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## Snow Picasso (Dec 15, 2004)

Longae29;1301213 said:


> Almost worked for brickman last year on a per occurrence basis, for several properties.... the price wasn't bad...... until I read the part where it was capped......at way too low of a # of occurrences, at which point they don't pay anymore.


That's easy enough....... You stop plowing!


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## Camden (Mar 10, 2007)

ryde307;1302364 said:


> I was just reading your thread and funny thing about your sweeping numbers and the budget.
> I dont do sweeping anyways I would bid it double what you did just because well I know about nothing in the sweeping world.
> we do all the summer work for a grocery store here. ok size account and we are working on the snow its just over 3.5 acres. I was talking to the GM that I have a great relationship with and he told me about the sweeping prices they pay. They pay $39 a time to be swept. This is from a large reputable company here. They do proce snow on the low end but not to bad. I dont understand how sweeping goes that cheap am I missing something?


What you're "missing" is that the entire lot is not being swept for $39. They're probably running around the curbed areas since that's where a lot of trash collects and then they probably do in front of the store. After they're done with that they may run around the lot and collect any loose trash but a lot of places don't even do that.

SMS Assist out of Chicago asked if I could sweep some Best Buy locations and when I looked at their prices I thought they forgot a 1 in front of all the numbers. I wouldn't even put the key in my sweeper for the prices they proposed.


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## elite1msmith (Sep 10, 2007)

MatthewG;1307836 said:


> 22 for just snow, I was in the 30s and that was cheap, however for the critics, my costs for the season were about 19k


19 k cost sounds right for 7 acres...how can anyone really do it for 22k? do they get salt for 20 per ton??


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## dmax07 (Oct 18, 2010)

Our local lowes is about same size and was told the contract was awarded for about the same money 26k... I came in about the same as you in cost and bid price oh well someone else can do it for nothing


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## Brant'sLawnCare (Jun 29, 2007)

They are fricken cheapo's. They just called me for mowing. They wanted me to work for $20/hr. Told them double that and we can start talking. They take advantage of guys that don't know their costs... Stay away from them.


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## snobgone (Feb 2, 2010)

They are offering 20k for 7 acre lots here in CT. They some how get guys to do it. These guys can price that way because the market adjusts around them. They are driving the market price down and can still make money doing it because of their massive scale and cheap labor costs. Can you blame them for steamrolling? I hate it but it is what it is, the Walmart of landscaping snow removal. 

I do not and will not work for them. There is plenty of work without having a middle man to shift risk and minimize profits. I can understand why some guys would do it though.


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## Panna (Sep 20, 2011)

If Everybody I MEAN Everybody didnt work for Brickman, we all would get the snow $$$$ we should get.... I worked for them for a year... never again...


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## Ramairfreak98ss (Aug 17, 2005)

framer1901;1301445 said:


> They should change their name to Bait and Switch.
> 
> Personal experience with them, never again.


lol yeah, and then they'll try to salt your sites your contracted to salt and tell you that you don't need to do it that morning, or they arnt being salted, then you see the poop brown brickman trucks laying salt down on your site.... yeah, ive gone out myself just to watch sites brickman contracted us to do a few years back after we salted every one of our other sites inthe area.... luckily i didnt murder them, guys spoke no english anyway and had no clue why i was gonna flip.


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## jerrydean (Dec 23, 2009)

You have to be crazy to work for BFS and Lowes. I had three of them and a Sports Authority. I got cheated over $20K two years ago. Impossible to work for. Screwed us over at every opportunity.


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## lilweeds (Aug 3, 2007)

Brickman and Lipinski are two of my best customers. If you guys don't want the work let me know. I love people that pay like clockwork in 30 or 45 days.


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## xtreem3d (Nov 26, 2005)

what does your hourly rate work out to be? with what type of equip?


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## RLM (Jan 12, 2006)

We did two Lowes last year for another national, the rate was about what has been mentioned above, was supposed to be a three year contract, I emailed in June to confirm, been getting the run around, but no cancelation letter either. So at a loss as to what to do. I was talking to another national we did work for in the past, he shared some numbers for a Target, all Incan say is LOW, for plowing only about 1K per acre for the season, salt was add on.


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## gallden (Dec 25, 2010)

What kind of vendors are you guys calling?


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## lilweeds (Aug 3, 2007)

xtreem3d;1320731 said:


> what does your hourly rate work out to be? with what type of equip?


If you were asking me I get around $200 an hour for my truck, with the nationals. My big thing is small lots close together, the big lots suck.


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