AG VanGundy Blog » Gift Ideas

Keeping America Working

admin — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 16:58:57 +0000

I recently heard that the average person spends approx. $700.00 this time of year on Christmas presents. The report also went on to state that if each person spent about $65.00 on merchandise that was made in the United States as many as 200,000 jobs could be created.

Of course, this started me thinking about my own business. An American owned business, whose suppliers are all here in the in the United States. Most of my firewood suppliers are right here in the suburbs of Chicago. How does this relate to the topic at hand? Well….think about a gift of firewood. We’ve delivered several already and a few orders on our delivery board for later this month. Our firewood is from trees grown in the U.S., split by U.S. owned companies, delivered to us by U.S. owned companies and delivered/sold to you by my U.S. owned company. How many people could we keep employed just by purchasing firewood?

I know you’re probably thinking “Firewood as a gift? Really?” I know it may not be as exciting as some gifts, but I also know that in today’s economy, more and more people appreciate the practical gifts. Not only that, but it sure is a more personal gift than a gift certificate to a box store or a department store. Also, each time the recipient lights/starts a fire they’ll think of you.

We deliver to most of the Chicago-land area. We stock Mixed Wood and Oak Firewood. We can still deliver before Christmas, and we can even tarp the firewood and place a bow on it. You can always stop in our material yard and pick up the firewood, too. Go to our website at www.agvangundy.com for more information. You can also like us on Facebook at A.G. Landscape Materials, Inc. or follow us on Twitter at agvangundy.

I hope you all are enjoying this holiday season.

One Year of Blogs

admin — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 18:20:20 +0000

It’s been approximately 1 year since I’ve started blogging about various aspects of landscaping and landscape materials. Hopefully, many of you have found the information useful.

Some of our most popular blogs have been about Topsoil, Firewood, and Planning for Spring. Other blogs have been about Permit Processes, Sales Processes, Lawn Renovation, Snow Plowing, and Mulching, just to name a few.

Today I just wanted to let you know about some blogs that I’ll be posting in the future:

Cleaning & Sealing of your brick pavers
Polymeric Sand vs. Fine Sand
Building your own retreat space
Permits & the many new regulations for a lot of the villages in the Chicagoland area

I’m looking forward to continuing posting blogs.

If you have a topic or subject you’d like me to discuss regarding landscaping or landscape materials, please don’t hesitate to submit it to me via my web site at www.agvangundy.com.

Gift Ideas

admin — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 17:03:32 +0000

As we are all aware of, we are in the full swing of the holiday season. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and/or another Holiday, this is the time of year for giving. There are many different schools of thought regarding the idea of giving (“it’s better to give than to receive”, “it’s the thought that counts”, “good things come in small packages”…) but no matter what you think, it can be a source a stress. I know a lot of people are against giving gift cards or gift certificates, they believe that they are not personable, or that they don’t take a lot of thought in purchasing; however I think that they can be an ideal gift, especially if the gift certificate is a little unique and is something the recipient will use. Department stores, electronic stores, and restaurants are probably the most common source of gift cards/certificates, but consider this for the homeowner on your list: A certificate for Landscaping Services, Landscape Materials, or even Firewood. This is a most unique gift that most homeowners will use. Gift certificates can be purchased from Landscape Companies or Landscape Material Yards. A.G. VanGundy Landscape, Inc. and A.G. Landscape Materials, Inc. have sold several certificates in the past few years. The certificates have been for several different things, depending on the needs/wants of the recipient. They have been for Landscaping, Spring Clean Ups, Delivery and/or Installation of Materials (i.e. Mulch, Topsoil, Gravels…) and Firewood. Each time the recipient has indeed used it and was excited about it.

But, no matter how you feel about the holidays or about finding that “perfect” gift, remember to take time for yourself, find a couple minutes to relax, rejuvenate, and enjoy this time of year. Get back to basics. Look forward to going into the New Year on a positive note.