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Hello, my name is Kostas Menegakis owner and CEO of Landscape Solutions & Design inc.  And here is my story of why I do what I do.

Like many Greeks, I grew up in the restaurant business working with my family every day. I knew from a young age that wasn’t what I wanted to do with my life. But I learned a lot from it, it taught me the meaning of hard work, dedication, and gave me confidence in life. I’ve always been a people person, and really enjoy meeting new people and making friends. My older sister, Betsy, to this day, refers to me as “Mr. President” because when everyone was busy at the restaurant, I was the one making small talk with customers and asking how their meal was. Customers always referred to me by name and loved to chat with me.

In high school, I had two passions, one was landscaping and the other was working on cars. I took an automotive class which led to me becoming a certified automotive technician. After graduation, I worked part-time as a technician and full time at the restaurant. On my days off I would get up early to go outside and do our lawn maintenance. My father would always comment on how impressive our yard looked compared to the others in the neighborhood. Hearing that always sparked something inside of me, not only did I enjoy doing it, but knowing that I could do it better than most people felt really good.

A few years of working on cars, I knew it wasn’t the life I wanted. I have always been a leader with vision and working on cars didn’t allow me to pursue that passion. So I gave my boss my 2-week notice, went out and bought the top of the line Zero turn lawn mower and started out with a few accounts. My goal was to become a professional landscaper, not the average lawn boy, who does it as a summer job and only cuts grass. I had a vision, and with my perfectionist mindset and my go-getter attitude I knew big things were possible for me. I had made many friends over the years from the restaurant business and with word of mouth one customer lead to another. The business started growing quickly. My customers were very happy with their landscaping and more and more requests were being made by their friends and family members. That’s when I knew that this was my passion. My parents were sad that I was leaving the restaurant business, but happy to see that my dream of becoming a professional landscaper was coming true. I hired employees so that I could keep up with all my accounts. As the business grew and grew, I trained with professionals in hardscapes, took extra classes to make myself the absolute best I can be in my industry. I got all my certifications including my North Carolina Landscape Contractor’s license that allows us to work and any size job, no matter how big or small.

Today I am hands-on with all the projects we take on. I personally meet with all our customers and oversee all projects. From the day we meet to the design processes, to the completion of the project, I stay in communication with the customer to answer any questions or concerns along the way.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and I look forward to meeting you.

Kostas M.