Hiatt’s Landscaping

Owner Talks Services and Longevity

Photographer / Jubilee Edgell

Hiatt’s Landscaping has been adding curb appeal to homes and businesses for 28 years. Goose Hiatt, the company’s proprietor, began his journey in 1993.

In the spring of 1992 Hiatt had just graduated from Taylor University with a business degree. Unsure of his next move, he followed his father’s advice and decided to work on the family farm for a year. One day during a lunch run, he observed a mowing crew at a local restaurant and thought, “I could do that.” 

The following year, Hiatt’s Landscaping became a reality. Hiatt began with just a mowing crew, eventually adding landscaping services and rounding out the business with hardscaping services as well.

Today, Hiatt’s Landscaping offers three facets of outdoor care – maintenance, which includes mowing, bush trimming, spring and fall cleanup, and winter sidewalk shoveling; landscaping, which includes designing and implementing plants, rock, mulch and sod; and finally, hardscaping, which includes patios, walkways, retaining walls, fireplaces, outdoor kitchens, pergolas and pavilions.

Hiatt fell in love with hardscaping in 2005 when a client asked him to build a patio. Hardscaping now comprises 50% of his business. To perfect his hardscaping craft, Hiatt obtained Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute and National Concrete Masonry Association certificates, and is an authorized Unilock contractor.

In 2018 Hiatt had a life-changing moment. He was asked to design and build a patio – not just any patio, but a patio everyone would see, as the request came from Rochester Bagel and Coffee House Owner Pia Cannedy. Since patios are typically in homeowners’ backyards, the opportunity was a defining moment for Hiatt. His work would forever be on display for locals to enjoy.

“For the rest of my life, I’m going to be known as the one who did the bagel shop,” Hiatt says. “It has been two years and people still compliment me on the job we did.”

Hiatt’s eye for hardscaping, and his drive to learn everything there is to know about the craft, has proven to be a successful combination.

“Whenever I get into something, I really get into it,” he says. “I’ve done every seminar possible on hardscaping.”

Hiatt has been involved in hardscaping for 13 years, and he attends at least ten seminars on the topic per year.

“If I learn one thing that I can incorporate into my business, my business gets better,” he says.

For Hiatt, being a business owner isn’t just about the services provided, or the eye-catching curb appeal that enhances a home or a building – it’s also about the people his business revolves around.

It’s about his wife Amy, and their infant son Shepherd Maverick. It’s about the hard-working employees he fondly refers to as his family. It’s about the loyal customers who have been with him for many years, and the new customer relationships yet to be formed.

“We may not be the fastest in town, but we do quality work – we do it the right way and we take great pride in the finished result,” Hiatt says. “I feel blessed to have such a great group of employees.”

Twenty-eight years of owning a business has taught Hiatt many lessons. He has enjoyed passing on his extensive knowledge to others in the business, and sharing his insight through landscaping seminars is a more recent endeavor.

The seminars Hiatt has decided to offer will take place in the landscaping off-season, and will cover two topics – the business side of owning a Landscape company, and the construction aspects of landscaping. One portion of the training will cover best business practices, and how to optimize profits. Another portion will include hands-on training. Participants will learn to construct a demo patio from start to finish.

Hiatt’s Landscaping continues to leave its mark on northern Indiana. The company specializes in quality, high-end, outdoor living spaces, and the staff handles small jobs, large projects and all sizes in between. Hiatt’s continues to beautify and add curb appeal to homes and businesses in multiple communities throughout the area.

Hiatt’s Landscaping is located at 1015 East 4^th Street in Rochester. For more information, call 574-223-7515.