Jason Bermingham
Owner, Maple Leaf Lawns

A minor league hockey player for 10 years and lifelong summer-time landscaper, Jason Bermingham never imagined he’d be a business owner in Little Rock. During a stint with the Arkansas RiverBlades, the Canadian met his wife, an Arkansas native. After retiring from the sport, he took on a few odd jobs, and as word spread (as it quickly does here), Maple Leaf Lawns was born.

How did your business evolve here? I started out doing maintenance work for people and year after year, I got bigger. I’ve only really been in business since 2005. Now we do complete landscaping jobs, sprinklers, patios – I’m very lucky.

How have your customers and colleagues helped you grow? The people here are very fair and easy to work with. They want someone to be honest and work hard. That’s how we’ve been successful – show up when you say you’re going to and get the job done; that’s what people expect.