Lake Forester Executive Spotlight: Wacker helps Mariani Landscape flourish

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"Frank and I are very proud of our leadership team," says Fred Wacker (right), president of Mariani Landscape, shown with Frank Mariani.whose father Vito founded the firm in 1958.

Updated: March 10, 2012 8:29AM

Four public garden areas built by Lake Bluff’s Mariani Landscape top Fred Wacker’s list of its work he thinks is special.

President of Mariani Landscape since 2002, Wacker, 52, of Lake Forest cites the Evening Island area at the Chicago Botanic Garden, the Children’s Garden at Morton Arboretum, the Hugh Falls Healing Garden at Northwestern Lake Forest Hospital and Market Square in Lake Forest as favorites.

“Frank Mariani worked on this garden as a young man with his grandfather,” Wacker said of Market Square, “and then the firm was awarded the planting renovation of it anew during the Market Square 2000 renovation. I pass through it almost every day, and whether the maples are ablaze in the fall, or the spring planters and serviceberries are blooming in May, I feel lucky to be a part of Mariani.”

Wacker grew up in Lake Bluff, graduated from Princeton University, and received graduate management degrees from the Lake Forest Graduate School of Management and from Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. Prior to Mariani Landscape, Wacker served 14 years as president of his family’s business, Liquid Controls Corp., until it was sold. He is also president of the board of trustees at Lake Forest Country Day School -- his alma mater -- and was president of the Village of Lake Bluff.

Wacker talked with the Lake Forester about the company’s goals, how it’s survived in a poor economy and the toughest landscaping obstacle the firm has overcome.

How does Mariani Landscape stand apart from other firms doing designs, installation and maintenance of landscapes?

At Mariani, we are relentless in the pursuit of client satisfaction and uncompromising excellence. Whether it is delivering one small Christmas tree or designing, installing, and maintaining a magnificent award-winning garden, we are always proud to work at either end of the spectrum, and all points in between. We also treat the design, installation, and maintenance segments of our business as three distinct, yet interrelated, crafts. If we fall short once in a while, we always do what it takes to make things right.

What are your company’s goals for this year, and how do they change over the years?

Our primary goal is to be the best landscape firm in the country! I believe we get closer to that goal every year. As we treat our clients, so we treat our associates. We operate as a team of professionals, and do not use the words employee or employer as a rule.

Practicing the golden rule has been a formula for success. Our two primary financial goals, consistent earnings and sales growth, always trend in the right direction over time, and we believe this is because we do the work necessary to achieve results.

What is the toughest landscaping obstacle you’ve overcome as a firm?

The single biggest challenge we face is attracting qualified labor to support our growth. The government’s immigration policy is broken, and we have to work harder and harder each season to recruit incremental associates to our labor pool. We are blessed with one of the best retention rates in the industry, but it is a logistical undertaking to get the staffing up to speed each year, particularly since many firms in our industry take risks with hiring illegal workers and skirt regulations, things which we simply will not do.

Is it helpful for a landscaping design firm to be located in Lake Bluff?

Our location is ideal for the regional markets we serve. We travel south all along the North Shore and into the city proper, out to the western suburbs, and north to Lake Geneva. We are close to the major road arteries of the metro area. We route for efficiency and have a deliberate strategy to grow in all of these territories. We also do work outside the local area -- for example in recent years we have designed gardens in Long Island, Connecticut, Florida, and Saudi Arabia.

How is managing a company in a tough economy different than when the economy was stronger?

This economy has been kind to few businesses. We have been working harder than ever to operate as efficiently and as lean as possible without sacrificing our high touch service level or our product quality. To do so takes a strong management team, and, as owners, Frank and I are very proud of our leadership team. They look at company resources as if they were their own, and we never rest until the Christmas holiday comes.

Is this what you expected to be doing when you graduated from school and started a career?

I have always enjoyed working, and when one can work in an industry that is challenging and fun, each day at work is in my view a blessing. I feel incredibly fortunate that I have always been employed and always in a business that fulfills a positive mission. At Mariani, we leave the world neater and more beautiful than when we found it, and we provide beauty and enjoyment for people -- it’s a simple but gratifying endeavor.