Ruppert has added two branches in Richmond, VA, and Raleigh, NC, with the rehiring of two former employees who are leaders in those landscape markets.
The company is re-entering the Richmond market, where it had a branch in the late 90s prior to the sale of the company. Kevin Hazelgrove, a Mechanicsville, VA, resident who was Ruppert's Richmond branch manager beginning in 1997 and continued to work for the company to whom the business was sold for 13 years, returns to lead the new branch. Ruppert worked on notable Richmond projects in the late 1990’s, which garnered both national and local landscape awards including Philip Morris headquarters and West Creek Development.
In the Raleigh market, a landscape management branch has been added to the existing landscape construction branch to enable the company to provide full service capabilities in this market. Eric Blevins, a Raleigh, NC, resident, will head the Raleigh branch. Also a former employee of Ruppert Landscape prior to its sale, Blevins continued to work for the company to whom the business was sold for the past 13 years. Ruppert has been in the North Carolina market for the past two years working on notable projects such as Duke University, Lowe’s Corporate Headquarters, the expansion at the Time-Warner headquarters, and the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
“These markets (Richmond and Raleigh) are both vibrant and growing areas with a lot of great customers,” said Ruppert president Chris Davitt. "We are fortunate, in this down market, to be in a position where we can be more proactive about our long-term staffing needs and take advantage of quality people who are available. Entering new markets with talented leadership who we have a history with makes this the right decision for us.”
These two branches join 13 existing branch offices that are located in Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Georgia and North Carolina, supporting both the landscape construction and landscape management divisions of the company. These two branch managers will be developing their branches with philosophies that are consistent with the Ruppert mission, which is to provide high-quality landscaping to customers while building an organization where employees play a leadership role and are proud of where they work.
