“I want my customers to be as proud of the work as I am,” says Dane Sweetman, 40-year Noosa local, father of three and owner of newly formed business City Coastal Rural (CCR Landcare) Pty Ltd, a gardening and landcare business focused on the Noosa region.
Sweetman has been in the landcare business for 20 years, working in lead-hand roles for large companies that hold council and local government contracts. This year, he started his own landcare service for residential, industrial and rural properties.
A strong work ethic and caring for the community is embodied in his approach to both life and business, something he attributes to two formative influences: growing up in Noosa with his mum Moy, and his experiences living and working for over a decade in Japan.
Single-parent Moy, who fell ill with renal failure early in his childhood then had a life-saving kidney transplant, made it her mission in life to help others. In the early 2000s, she started well-known local charity Frangipani Dreams.
The fast-growing charity attracted the support of people such as Richard Branson, motor-racing driver Peter Brock, and pro-surfers Tom Carroll and Layne Beachley.
“One night we literally had Richard Branson sitting at our dining table,” recalls Sweetman.
Helping others has become a core driver of Sweetman’s own philosophy – something he knows made his late mother proud.
“My childhood experiences in Noosa have instilled a deep desire to help others and this is core to my approach to my business,” he says.
An avid surfer from childhood, joining Noosa Boardriders at a young age, Sweetman worked in local surf shops, Impact Surf and Classic Malibu. His love of surfing eventually took him searching for waves in Japan.
“I had a lot of mates who had gone to the UK and Europe in their 20s, but I wanted more of a cultural challenge and to keep surfing, so I decided to go to Japan to explore the surf culture there.”
He ended up spending 11 years in Japan, an experience he values highly for teaching him to be proud of any job he does.
“Japan taught me to listen and show respect to others and I believe it does come back to you.”
Sweetman says he tries to go above and beyond for his customers, which sometimes means accommodating non-gardening requests.
“Last week we helped a 75-year-old lady gain back access to her clothes line. We cleared the path and laid pavers down to reduce the chances of a fall.
“And tomorrow I’m removing a rusty old swing set from a rental property after mowing and trimming.”
Sweetman believes a willingness to tackle these kinds of extra tasks, his long-standing connection to the community and his friendly demeanour help set him apart from other companies in the same line of work.
The CCR company mantra is: Keep it clean. Keep it green.
To book Dane in for a job, call: 0422 812 731.
