Matthew Olson grew up amid a pine and cedar forest that his grandfather planted about 70 years ago in Elysian. Olson found he enjoyed doing the endless landscaping and forestry projects on the land.

Now at 28 years old, Olson started his own landscaping company with 25-year-old Tiffany Bengtson this year. They live and operate their business, Cedar Point Tree and Landscape, in the log home where Olson grew up on Cedar Point Lane in Elysian.

While it may seem crazy to start a business in this economy, the couple is confident they can set themselves apart by focusing on quality, customer service and versatility.

“Every time our work phone rings, it’s just like Christmas to me. I can’t wait to find out who it is and what they want,” Olson said.

With more than 20 clients to date, Cedar Point Tree and Landscape is branding itself as “one company for all your outdoor work.”

Olson is a one-man crew who can do seasonal outdoor projects year-round. Services include tree and shrub work, gardens, patios, retaining walls, yard and waterfront property maintenance, gutter cleaning, roof raking, snowplowing and more.

Since the company is new, Bengtson can schedule projects promptly.

“We could be there right away. People don’t like to wait,” Bengtson said.

Tonya Sturdivant of Waterville contracted Olson to landscape around two large pine trees and shrubs in her yard. The project was done more quickly than Sturdivant expected.

“I had no idea how to fix it up. He came up with the idea and it looked really nice. I was completely amazed by it,” Sturdivant said.

Olson installed edging around the trees and brought in red cedar mulch to fill in the area where grass didn’t grow well. He worked in the rain and finished the project in one day.

“It’s almost like being an artist. I don’t play an instrument or push a pen around paper. To me it’s an expression,” Olson said.

A business plan

In January, they started talking about opening a landscaping company, so Bengtson began developing a business plan.

“It’s been both of our dreams to own our own company. We’re motivated and we feed off each other,” Bengtson said.

Brian Stading, small-business facilitator for the Riverbend Center for Entrepreneurial Facilitation in Mankato, recommended a book to guide them through the start-up process.

“The book asked every question to give you a clear idea on what your business is going to be like,” Bengtson said.

Start-ups in down economies are often the result of unemployment, but Bengtson and Olson were gainfully employed. Olson was a lawn care specialist for Spring Touch in North Mankato and Bengtson was executive assistant at Open Door Health Center in Mankato.

“It’s more rewarding to do work for yourself than someone else. It’s given me a whole new drive,” Olson said.

In February, Bengtson and Olson traveled to Idaho to brainstorm with a friend who had started a similar company. He advised them to keep their overhead low and debts down.

In fact, their equipment is already paid for — a one-ton pick-up truck, a skid loader, a dump trailer, four-wheelers to spray weeds and fertilizers, and a lawn mower. Plus, Olson fixed up his grandfather’s tree spade.

By March, Bengtson created business cards, brochures and promotional items to enter the Southern Minnesota Home and Builders Show at the Verizon Wireless Center.

There Olson impressed Doug Berghorst, who was looking for someone to landscape his newly constructed home in North Mankato. In the spring, Berghorst requested a bid and contracted Olson for the job.

“He did the work he said he would do in a timely fashion for the price he said he would do it. That’s my experience with Matt Olson,” said Berghorst.  “His work showed a professionalism that was way beyond his years.”

Bengtson is channeling her organizational and administrative skills into the company. She also has taken on marketing, sales and accounting.

Firmly planted

Both Bengtson and Olson grew up in Elysian and even went to the same day care. They also come from a line of local business owners, including Bengtson’s father, who operates Bengtson Construction.

“We have a lot of connections in the area and a strong network around us. The opportunity was available,” Olson said.

Yet Olson also has an adventurous spirit that he credits to his grandfather, who planted the woods where he lives. His grandfather is Buzz Kaplan, an adventurer, bush pilot and businessman. One of his legacies is spurring Cabela’s to build a store in Owatonna.

Olson’s adventurous spirit led him to Colorado in his early 20s, where he snowboarded in the winter and landscaped in the summer. By age 25, he was ready to focus on his career and build a life with Bengtson in Elysian.

“My goal is to create the next generation of landscape — landscape from different parts of the United States,” Olson said.