By Priya Thoppil
Efren Loyola Jr. owns Native Scenery Landscapes, a landscaping business, where he oversees everything from customer service, to equipment and vehicle maintenance. Taking over the business from his dad, Efren Loyola Sr. realized his company wasn’t growing as well as other businesses were, and has been working full-time with Native Scenery Landscapes LLC since 2018.
His father didn’t set out to own a landscaping business, but began out of necessity to support his family. As he found steady work at a landscaping company, it was exactly what he needed at the time according to Jr., a “consistent paycheck and reliable hours, perfect for a young man
with a wife and kids on the way.” Years later Sr. took a leap of faith and began working for himself after one of his former clients offered him a chance to maintain her property, and began building a loyal clientele through word
of mouth. His job was for his kids to have more options than him, and so Jr. was able to be the first college graduate student in his family, from Texas A&M in Corpus Christi.
Working at Breckenridge Hospital in Austin for 2 years, Loyola Jr. became a travel nurse, where his assignments took him to Colorado Springs, Tucson, and then eventually back to San Antonio with his last contract.
After traveling, he felt lost in his career and wasn’t sure he wanted to pursue nursing, so he moved home to regroup, and began helping his dad in the field like he did growing up.
“He used to take my brother and I to job sites, so being outside and working with my hands always felt familiar,” he said. “But now as an adult I started to see things differently.” He noticed how other companies had newer equipment, and branded trucks, and wondered how they were thriving while his father was still using tools from 20 years ago, and wanted to know how these businesses were scaling so quickly while his dad’s wasn’t.
“It became clear to me that unless we modernized and adopted new technology, better branding, and more strategic business practices, my father’s business would eventually be left behind,” Loyola Jr. said. “I didn’t plan on taking over the business, but I couldn’t ignore what I saw and felt. I felt a responsibility to build on what my dad started, not just to honor his hard work, but to give it the structure and potential it always had.“
In 2018 he made the decision to establish Native Scenery Landscapes, LLC, with an initial client base made up entirely of his fathers longtime clients, which has been growing over the past years. Loyola Jr. Never had a thought in his mind that he would go into business.
“Growing up my parents always encouraged my siblings and me to focus on school so we could get good jobs and avoid the hard physical labor they had to endure,” he said. “I’m proud to say I followed that path, did well in school, and built a great career as a registered nurse. Now, I’ve taken everything I’ve learned and shifted my focus to building a successful business.”
“One of his biggest challenges so far has been taking on too much responsibility and never delegating tasks. Over the years, I kept adding to my plate but didn’t take the time to delegate, train, or empower my team properly. This led to a culture of micromanagement where nothing moved forward unless I gave the green light,” he said. “About two years ago, I realized how unsustainable that
was, not just for the business, but for me personally.”
He also notes that his entire life had revolved around the business, and despite the years of sacrifice it wasn’t paying off financially in the way he thought it would. Since then, Loyola Jr. has been focused on letting go of control and shifting responsibilities to his team, to build a team that feels capable and empowered.
“I’ve come to understand that my fear of letting go was holding the business back and eroding the life I wanted to build,” he said. “That shift in mindset has been huge for both my personal growth and the company’s.”
Since recently attending EGBI events, Loyola Jr. is now at a point in his business where he can step away to attend classes in public speaking and business strategy. He has learned and worked on removing his limiting beliefs. Currently he is a part of EGBI’s 60 day to business success with Nina Choi, noting it has been the catalyst he needed to take him to the next level of
business.
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