Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Joshua Delozier. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Joshua, appreciate you joining us today. Risking taking is a huge part of most people’s story but too often society overlooks those risks and only focuses on where you are today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – it could be a big risk or a small one – but walk us through the backstory.

My wife Sam and I laugh when we look back at where we were in life when we established Grounded because in retrospect, the timing seems almost laughable.

In 2017 we officially decided to wrap on my previous company- Goat Guys LLC. My business partner had been the one to put forward the investment, so it looked like I would be wrapping up this first venture in debt- newly married, fresh off of buying a house and unsure of what to do next. Toward the end of that year I was given the opportunity to clear the farm we had been keeping our animals on. The money made from that job is what got me out of the red, and what later planted the seed for alternative methods of land clearing.

It was time to decide on a new career. My dream as a kid was to become a pilot like my dad, so that was the natural next step. I joined the Air National Guard, began getting flight hours and ultimately had to commit to serve in another way due to a failed colorblindness test. I felt completely lost. In the span of one year I committed to the military, began work for a construction company and got my real estate license- still not feeling fulfilled or challenged like I had in previous years. At the end of a testing season, I came home from basic training in December of 2017- just in time for Christmas. Soon after an opportunity came up through a previous client’s connection. I was asked to clear a large property in Franklin, a job that could eventually lead to months worth of work, and I could start as soon as possible.

Here’s where it gets risky. When I said yes to this job, we didn’t even own a lawn mower- much less a skid steer. I had years of land clearing experience, but managing 200 goats and sheep didn’t exactly require the same skillset as operating heavy equipment. If that wasn’t enough- I knew I could be getting orders to go to military training any day that would take me away for nearly a year. I poured days of research into what the right next step was- how to get a machine, what machine, what to charge, what method of land clearing was most efficient, what insurance was needed, etc. We had a few weeks to get everything in order, and decided there was enough opportunity to just go for it. Sitting on our bed with my wife (who didn’t yet know she was pregnant at the time) we formed our LLC, Grounded Land Solutions- with ONE client.

To keep pushing our luck- we went ahead and bought our very first skid steer and forestry mulcher. The machine was used, blacked out and looked like the bat-mobile of the woods. It was perfect. Within days of our skid steer purchase and establishing our business, my wife found out we were expecting our first child. Lastly, just to make things more interesting…she quit her job to help get the business up and running. We were all in.

That first year was successful, almost entirely thanks to the quality relationships formed earlier in my career. We welcomed our baby girl in October of 2019 and were grateful to be self-employed so that I could choose to work a lighter load and take time home to be with my little family. Then, that December our world was rocked when the time had finally come to get the military orders I’d been waiting on- the training that would take me out of state for the bulk of the following year.

Almost exactly one year after we had started Grounded, we were again in a position where we had a few weeks to essentially decide whether or not this business should exist.

I left in the winter of 2020 and was finally able to come home for a few weeks that April to see my wife and daughter, and help them pack to move with me. We left Tennessee for a 23 hour “essential travel” road trip with our 7 month old and headed west.

We didn’t operate in 2020 while I was gone, but we did stay in touch with our clients via email newsletters. At the end of the year after coming back to Tennessee, we risked the biscuit again and bought brand new equipment. By February of 2021, Grounded Land Solutions was up and running again, and as busy as ever.

Anyone who starts their own business is taking a risk. I wouldn’t necessarily take the decisions we made as advice (which any MBA would absolutely confirm) but despite how un-calculated these steps sound, nothing about the past 6 years was a fluke. We’ve worked incredibly hard, made sacrifices and ultimately care a ton about the people we serve and this community! Owning this business is a constant learning experience, and I am excited to keep taking risks as we grow because life is boring otherwise.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’ve been in the clearing industry for about a decade- only in the beginning of my career we cleared with goats instead of equipment! I co-owned Goat Guys LLC, alongside my then business partner and mentor, David. We did jobs for the state, were in the Tennesseean and got to meet some really cool people- even Doug the Pug! Though I went to school for Animal Science, ultimately the cost, time and headspace it took taking care of all of the animals and bringing them from site to site just didn’t make sense for us anymore.

I still had great connections and relationships I had built from my experience, and wanted to stay in the industry. An opportunity came up for me to clear a lot of acreage after we had wrapped on Goat Guys and I immediately agreed, figuring out costs, time, etc. along the way. My wife quit her job in February of 2018 (just a few days after we found out she was pregnant with our first child!) to help establish Grounded LLC. We made mailers, a website, a monthly newsletter to reach out to our old clients, and quickly became fully booked.

In 2020, military orders took us away from Tennessee, forcing us to put a pause on Grounded. While in our temporary home, we still worked on monthly newsletters to update our mail list on our journey- trying to book jobs for when we got back later in the year. It was entirely thanks to our amazing and loyal clients that Grounded is still here today. We booked a few jobs once we came back- all from recurring customers or word of mouth referrals, and bought new equipment in another leap of faith.

Now, both our family and business have grown. We get to work with the most amazing locals like our friends at Radnor Lake State Park, TN Department of Environment & Conservation, and Tennessee State Parks to name a few along with our awesome residential clients. Our offering has expanded from solely forestry mulching to full land clearing, bush hogging, trail creation and land management. I think my relationship and discretion with our clients is what sets us apart. We have exclusively positive reviews, and I won’t leave a property unless I get the owner’s sign off. My years of experience help me to not only execute our client’s wishes, but show them what’s possible!

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

Our best source for new clients has 100% been OTHER clients, or word of mouth.

I’ve learned that every single job needs to be treated with the same weight- our number one client that made up about 50% of our business in 2023 was referred to us by their neighbor, who was one of our smallest projects earlier that year. This has proven true time and time again, especially if you have a few good clients that check all the boxes of your target market.

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

We keep in touch with clients through email newsletters and follow up texts and emails. We don’t send newsletters monthly, but when we do we make sure they feel personal and not “sales-y”.

I’ve found that establishing a great relationship while you’re on the job and paying close attention to detail builds a ton of trust- which brings people back. There have been many times I’ve lost money on the front end going above and beyond- which later becomes more than worth it when they ask me work on additional projects.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://groundedlandsolutions.com/
• Instagram: @groundedland
• Youtube: @groundedlandsolutions3889