Shifting perceptions of culture and design within the landscape industry

Feature Landscapes was born out a desire for improvement. Owner and direction Todd Millar had been working for another landscaping company that didn’t provide him with the opportunity to learn or develop his skills – so he created that opportunity for himself, and others like him. 

“For a person that’s driven and striving for a high standard of achievement, there needs to be a recognition of this, and it needs to be fostered within the business environment,” says Todd. “People are the biggest asset to a business, yet most businesses tend to focus on profit or day-to-day business concerns.”

Feature Landscapes was registered as a company in 2014 with the goal to establish a structure that focuses on people first, and facilitates a connection with nature, says Todd. “I wanted to give people the opportunity I wish I’d had – to grow and develop – and I think we’ve achieved that.” Feature Landscapes is now a modern, youthful and dynamic company that provides an opportunity for all to grow and develop.

Feature Landscapes’ style of landscaping sits between modern and classic hardscape elements, softened with purposeful planting and careful thought given to the way people interact with nature. 

“We’re focused on the 'cutting-edge’ of landscaping, pushing ourselves and our clients to use innovative materials in new and exciting ways,” says Todd, who considers ‘culture’ to be the core pillar on which his brand is built, followed closely by ‘quality’.

“Quality is placed above profit,” says Todd. “It’s paramount to our brand, and our expectations of who we are and the style of work we do – our aim is to work with and attract New Zealand's best landscape designers and architects.”

Todd also says good culture is the key to attracting and retaining the right people, as enthusiastic, positive and driven people exude positivity, confidence and work ethic. “This is the repayment for investing in culture and it filters through the whole business and onto our clients,” says Todd. 

“We tend to hire and attract like-minded people and focus on attitude as the main characteristic we look for – skill and experience can be learned and trained, but it all starts with a great attitude.”

“In the past, there’s been a 'tradie' mentality where the younger guys get given the ‘bad’ jobs or are treated poorly on site. We want to be the antithesis to this, do things a different way and offer an attractive work environment,” says Todd. 

“I think this shows other businesses we all need to step up our game – there’s a major labour shortage of skilled landscapers and builders, and people are crying out for staff.”

This approach extends to the carefully curated community of landscapers, designers and builders that Feature Landscapes partner with, which produces bespoke design solutions that have minimal impact upon the environment, are cost effective and beautiful – all while facilitating further education for everyone on the team.

“We don't pretend to know everything, or be the best in every specific area of landscaping. We’re open-minded and willing to learn and grow, and this is best done by sharing ideas and working with others,” says Todd. “Maintaining quality is vital to a successful outcome, so we often tie-in with another professional or tradesman to get the best result for our clients.”

The next five years look bright for Feature Landscapes. The business is currently building a dedicated gardening and maintenance team to service their existing clients, and are looking to expand further into design-led landscaping. 

“Guiding the client from concept through to implementation and maintenance,” says Todd. "Large-scale projects such as lifestyle blocks and golf courses are all on the cards, as is research into natural construction methods for feature walls, natural pools and new ways of reducing environmental impact, the use of concrete and plastics.

“I’d like to see less concrete-based products in landscaping, rethink the use of plastic such as artificial turf products, and avoid glyphosate and other similar chemicals we keep pouring into the earth,” says Todd. 

“It surprises me that New Zealand is considered clean and green, yet we’re far behind other countries in many ways. I think as a collective industry we can all take a better approach to this.”

See projects by Feature Landscapes on ArchiPro.