Article provided courtesy of Colorbiotics
As the number of landscapers and do-it-yourselfers using colored mulch continues to grow, an increasing number of mulch providers are adding this popular landscaping material to their line of product offerings. Coloring mulch is an effective means of diversifying your product line, while helping to meet the growing demand for an ever-growing popular landscaping application that has become so popular. A few tips are worthy of discussion to help get your mulch coloring operation started on the right foot.
Markets
There are two primary markets for colored mulch; wholesale and retail. Wholesale customers generally work with higher volumes and will likely prefer to receive bulk shipments while retail outlets will likely specify the mulch be delivered already bagged. Determining which of these two markets will serve as your primary customer will dictate the size and type of equipment you’ll need to most efficiently meet customer needs.
Process and product
The amount of capital you choose to invest and anticipated colored mulch production volume will certainly play a role in determining the type of coloring process used in your operation. There are freestanding units and several configurations of pump units that attach directly to grinders.
Several colorant options exist; yet, as Kent Rotert, director of marketing and sales for Colorbiotics, a leading supplier of mulch colorant and equipment headquartered in Ames, Iowa, explains, color-enriched mulch providers should research the colors most popular in their trade territories.
“Colored mulch options are numerous,” says Rotert. “Our experience at Colorbiotics has shown that brown, tan and black are most popular, although brighter colors like red and yellow are also widely used. Mulch providers should be diligent in researching the demand for the colors most popular with their customers, as this will vary by region.”
Equipment
The most important consideration for buying any equipment is to accurately assess needs. Once you have projected the volume of colored mulch you expect to produce, either monthly or annually, a more precise determination of the type and size of colorant equipment can be made. The range of available sizes and levels of automation is greater with baggers and colorizers.
Technological capability and sophistication of equipment will vary based on the coloring approach; ranging from the fairly simple, e.g.,compact color pumps that attach to an existing grinder or screen; to more elaborate, freestanding units. “Efficiency is the most important factor to evaluate when buying a colorizer,” says Rotert. “The customer buys the machine one time, but has to buy colorant for every yard they make, so maximizing efficiency of the colorant is the most important factor. Water efficiency is critical. Some systems require more water than others; but the more water, the more a producer will pay for shipping costs.”
Bagging equipment, too, will vary, from small manual models that can be transported from site to site easily, to elaborate indoor bagging lines that have the capacity to package and move huge amounts of bulk material. This approach may also require the purchase of a hopper, form-fill seal bagger, flattener, palletizer and stretch wrapper. “Efficiency is the most important factor to evaluate when buying a colorizer.”
Pricing
Although color-enriched mulch involves more steps to produce, it also will yield significantly more profit than selling natural mulch only. Generally, retailers sell much less volume than wholesalers but at a higher markup. Your profitability will be determined based on an honest, thorough evaluation of cost to produce, then establishing a price point that allows you to realize the greatest profit. The trick, however, is to accurately determine and continuously monitor costs.There is no shortage of demand for color-enriched mulch, and the production process can be highly predictable, ensuring another means to help increase revenues and enhance your company’s bottom line.
Colorbiotics offers everything you need to meet the rising demand for colorful landscapes. We deliver technology you can depend on every day: coloring systems, metering systems, conveyors, and more, all built for reliable operation. On the colorant side, we offer the most advanced range of vibrant, long-lasting colored mulch, rock, sand and rubber.