In the rolling hills of a suburban valley in Pennsylvania, 13-year-old Chase Gallagher navigated several miles in Chester County, advertising his lawn care business and distributing thousands of flyers.
After endless knocking on doors every evening, the phone finally rang: Mr. Gallagher, you’re hired!
Soon, this young man’s business took off like wildfire, much like his self-propelled lawnmower, earning him $35 per hour. With more aggressive flyer distribution, his business grew rapidly.
At 23 years old, Gallagher embraced the mindset of being his own boss and the freedom it brought. Today, he runs CMG Landscaping, owning multiple properties and heavy equipment, and employing 9 workers. The hard work paid off as he became one of the top 1% income earners.
“I never imagined in the beginning that I could make this much money in this business,” Gallagher told Epoch Times, “When I was young, my assumption was that I had to go to college.”
Today, many students think the same way. According to a survey by Jobber, 74% of respondents believe going to trade school is a disgrace compared to traditional four-year universities.
However, data from the National Student Clearinghouse shows that more students are breaking this mold. The number of people choosing to study in the construction industry in 2023 increased by an impressive 23% from the previous year.
His early college plans were instilled by his teachers and parents, preparing him for Penn State University. His mother helped him prepare for dorm life and paid his tuition. At that time, he was already a internationally competitive trap shooter, and all his teammates went on to college.
But by then, his business had become a passion. He kept distributing flyers until he had 10 clients, earning $12,000. He pushed on for two more years. 18 clients, $20,000 earned, surpassing milestone after milestone. He then got his driver’s license. “I shot up like a rocket,” he said. His mom had him take online high school courses. “I was free,” he said, “I could go estimate jobs whenever, go to work whenever.”
At 17, he finally found the courage to say he wasn’t going to college. “I want to do my business!” he declared. “My mom was upset because she put in a lot of effort for it, she had Penn State accept me.”
He said it was a bold move but based on “simple math.” With roughly $50,000 in college costs per year for four years, he would have had a total of $200,000 in debt, plus the time he could have used to earn money. Now, hard work paid off with a lot of wealth, and he stood firm, his decision crystal clear.
“I got that money and then slowly but surely I was just like, ‘yeah, no way I’m going to college,'” he told Epoch Times, “That was just a waste of my time.”
Over the years, his business served as a stepping stone for him to take a giant leap. At 18, he heeded the advice of industry peers, realizing that “mowing lawns doesn’t make money,” and the path to wealth lies in project-based landscaping.
“I sold my lawn care equipment and bought John Deere equipment and dump trailers. That’s when my company changed from Lawn Care to CMG Landscaping,” he said. “I basically revolutionized my entire business model.”
As reported by Fortune magazine, CMG deals with patios, drainage, landscaping, lighting, planting, design, concrete installation, and retaining walls, generating over $1 million in revenue last year.
Psychologist Tobba Vigfusdottir told Fortune that Gen Z individuals like Gallagher “may be the most educated generation in history,” adding that entering trade school (instead of college) used to be taboo but those beliefs have faded. Young people now envy their peers who are their own bosses more than ever.
When we spoke with Mr. Gallagher, he was still living with his mom, but soon moved into his new house. He owns three properties and a 32-acre equipment yard: four dump trucks, a tractor, trailers, and hand tools.
A day in the life of Chase Gallagher goes like this:
He wakes up at 5:30 a.m., makes calls, then heads to the gym for coffee. The day includes banking, meeting clients, office management, and site inspections. He mostly doesn’t get his hands dirty anymore as he has his former employer, his “friend Mike,” as project manager. Gallagher handles marketing on social media and hosts social events. He spends winter in Florida.
As the sun rises on the horizon, Mr. Gallagher hopes to help newcomers expand their business through investments, making his private equity projects possible. He believes merging small businesses and increasing their value, doubling or tripling it, could open doors for real estate acquisitions.
Or maybe even other assets.
Gallagher says next, he’s saving up to “buy a jet.”
The original article titled “13-Year-Old Starts Mowing Lawns for $35, Bails College—Now 23, Owns $1 Million Landscape Business” was published on the English Epoch Times website.