5 Questions: Mike McCarron

(Photo: Jim Folliard Photography)

Mike McCarron

Owner, Image Works Landscaping, Fairfax Station, Va.

1.  How did you get into the industry?  

I started Image Works Landscaping in 1998. I was working at UPS, in the process of going back to school to get my second degree in accounting, after my first degree in business management. I realized I needed to be stronger on the accounting side to get a better job. I started doing some landscape work on the side and I fell in love with it. I realized I didn’t want to be stuck in a cubicle every day. I love people. I like being outside. So, I made the transition over, and I’m very glad I did it. No turning back. This year we celebrate 25 years of Image Works. It’s been a great run.

2.  How is business in your area?  

It’s going to take a while to get back to the levels that we were at in 2020, 2021 and 2022. We did see a little bit of pullback at the end of ’22 and the beginning of ’23. Money is starting to break loose a little bit now, so bigger projects are starting to come back in the queue. The third and fourth quarter of ’23 looks great. The beginning of ’24 is also looking really strong too. There was a little dip there in the middle. There was just a little bit of uncertainty that seems to be settling off now. Both 2023 and 2024 look good.

3.  Do you have a day at work that is especially memorable?  

We had a lady come into our office, our shop’s kind of on a main road, and asked for directions. ‘I’m lost, can you get me here?’ We gave her the directions and talked for a couple of minutes. And then she said, ‘Hey, can I use your restroom?’ And we said, ‘Yeah, down the hallway.’ She came out, said thank you and left. Little did we know she was a prospective client and she was field testing us. She came into our office to see how our staff was, how clean our office was, saw how clean our bathroom was and whether we were polite and nice. She called us back later and she ended up doing a $60,000 project with us. The lesson is, you never know who is looking … you have to operate at the highest level of professionalism at all times.

4.  What is the best thing about having your job?  

I’ve been able to have a lot of freedom to do a lot of things, like helping my dad at the end of his life. I was able to go there and deal with that as best I could. My mother still lives in town. I’ve been able to get lunch with her and do a lot of things you normally wouldn’t be able to do if you were locked in a 9-to-5 job. It’s provided a lot of flexibility to see a lot of my children’s accomplishments through all the sports that they’ve done and their graduations.

5.  How many kids do you have and what do you do for fun?  

I have two daughters and I have two stepsons with my wife, Cathy. They’re in various stages from ages 21 to 27. Now they’re at the age where we can go to nice restaurants, we can go places and have fun and do events. We’re trying to do one big event every year. Last year we went to Ireland. We were there for 12 days. It was incredible. We saw some great stuff. I was really shocked at how beautiful and how unique Ireland was. My family is from there. We went back to the original family piece of land and took a picture of all of us there