Marc Barnes

For Patrick Connor, co-owner of Backyard Living in Ridgewood, New Jersey, the biggest challenge has been customers who want it. Right now. “Really, as an independent retailer, we struggle to keep enough stock to quick-fill orders,” he said. “We recently upsized our warehouse, and we are opening a second retail location, both of which will help us stock more items.

For landscape designer Steve Schumacher, who founded Boston Landscape Co. in 1991, the beauty in the outdoors can be found in carrying out the wishes of the client. “I enjoy creating beautiful and functional outdoor environments tailored to clients’ needs,” says Schumacher. He says that since the firm’s founding, the biggest challenges are in managing projects that require civil engineering and permit approvals, especially in urban areas like Boston.

Sometimes, you find what you are looking for almost by accident. What Larry and Erma Pettis were looking for was a way to supplement their teacher’s salaries during the summer. What they found, in the business classifieds, was an ad for a Fox Inground Pool dealership. Never mind that they knew next to nothing about pools. Never mind that they were in rural Hilton, New York. And never mind that in the summer of 1962, inground swimming pools were reserved for the rich and famous.