Matthew Richmond is the owner of Rent a Goat, which is a company that lets you rent a goat to clear away landscapes to make the land fit for inhabitation.
The company offers a unique service that caters to a specific target market, and the goats you can rent can clear just about any vegetation, like poison ivy, kudzu, wild berries, and more.
You may choose to hire a landscaping company or rent a goat to meet your landscaping needs, and the services are similarly priced, making Rent a Goat a fun option to consider.
The company wouldn’t be relevant if the goats did not provide the results people were looking for. However, it’s still a strange and unusual service for people to seriously consider, especially since it’s not cheaper than landscaping companies.
Rent a Goat offers customers a chance to bring a herd of goats on their property, and the company erects a fence around the animals to keep them within a certain perimeter.
Goats generally eat about 8 pounds of vegetation per day, and several goats can quickly clear up lands with even the densest vegetation.
The business idea is certainly unique and offers an advantageous by-product, which is fertilizer.
Matthew Richmond and Mike Canaday entered Shark Tank as partners seeking to receive 150,000 USD in funding for a 25% stake in their business.
Their pitch involves a demonstration of the goats clearing away difficult terrain, and the demand for their unique services is quite high already, which they explain to the sharks.
After informing the sharks about the details of the business and what the goats can achieve in one day, the sharks are left curious.
It costs about 2700 USD to clear away a single acre of land and about 400-1200 USD to rent a herd of goats.
Mark, Barbara, and Lori expressed some of their concerns and quickly backed out of the deal, thinking the business was in its early stages.
Kevin and Robert expressed some remarks that made it seem like they were considering the deal, but they also backed out, leading to no deal.
Our Review of Rent a Goat
Matthew and Mike were quite enthusiastic about growing and expanding their business by making their services available to people throughout the United States, but it seems like they faced some challenges they could not overcome, and the expansion stalled.
The company website shows that the services are provided in San Francisco and California, which means they could not capitalize on their expansion plans despite having a few years to do so.
Rent a Goat is an appealing idea because it is environmentally friendly and fertilizes the land, but the owners could not spread the business into other markets.
There are other goat rental businesses throughout the world, but the owners haven’t created a network of communication with others to expand the business.
Customers have an extensive process to follow if they decide to rent a herd of goats for landscaping purposes, which has potentially deterred them from showing interest.
In 2022, Matt and Mike have not given up on their business idea and have 3500 goats to their name, which they rent out to other companies and federal lands for grazing purposes.
The annual revenue is 2 million USD, which is pretty decent, and the company seems to be doing quite well despite some of the limitations they have faced.
Pros of Rent a Goat
There are many pros to Rent a Goat, which might appeal to many people who want their landscapes cleared away for habitation purposes.
Since the idea is a bit unusual, people are eager to try it for themselves since the results are pretty much guaranteed.
Let’s explore some of the pros of Rent a Goat.
- The company offers people a chance to hire goats to clear away their lands, providing an excellent service that promises results.
- The services are eco-friendly and fertilize the land, which is a bonus for people who want fertilized land.
- The company offers cheaper services compared to other landscaping companies, which is enticing to land owners.
Cons of Rent a Goat
Like any other company, Rent a Goat has some cons that have made it difficult for the business to expand into new markets.
Let’s explore some of them below.
- The goats can create a mess that some landowners might not want, which means they will seek out alternative options.
- The services aren’t much cheaper than traditional landscaping options, which means people might not bother trying something new.
Who is Rent a Goat For?
Rent a Goat offers landscaping services by letting people rent goats to clear away their lands of all kinds of vegetation.
This kind of service appeals to all types of landowners and lands owned by the government which need to be cleared away.
Are There Any Alternatives?
Landowners can choose comparatively priced alternatives because renting goats to clear away land is an unusual concept that many may not be eager to try.
If the pricing were cheaper, people would be open to renting a herd of goats, especially since results are guaranteed, and it’s a fun experience for landowners who have not heard of such services.
However, people might choose traditional landscaping services involving the use of special equipment by company-trained professionals since the prices are similar.
Our Final Thoughts
Rent a Goat is an amazing business idea that provides exceptional results for affordable prices, and many people are becoming aware of this service, which has a list of advantages that traditional options don’t.
Goats can clear away dense vegetation within a day and fertilize the land as a by-product, which sets it apart from conventional landscaping options that might leave the land and soil somewhat barren.
The company founders are generating 2 million USD annually, which means their business is doing quite well despite facing some limitations.
If they manage to expand into international markets and create a network with other similar businesses, they will likely succeed in the long run.
