Our First Gardening Franchisee Featured in Franchise New Zealand Magazine
We’re proud to share that Paramount Gardening features in the Spring 2026 issue of Franchise New Zealand magazine. The article, titled “Fast Growth”, follows Leon Chen, our first gardening franchisee, and how he has built a successful business across both cleaning and gardening.
You can read the latest Paramount article to feature in Franchise New Zealand magazine here.
From part-time cleaner to multi-franchise owner
Leon came to Auckland from South China in 2014 to study business management. He planned to go home and start his own business. While studying, he worked part-time for a Paramount Cleaning franchise to help cover his living costs.
He went on to manage a service station in the Waikato but stayed in touch with his old Paramount boss. Two years later, he was offered the chance to buy the franchise and took it. Over the next seven years, Leon grew it into one of Paramount’s largest cleaning franchises. He added specialist services such as carpet, hard-floor and window cleaning, took on bigger commercial contracts and built a team to service them.
When Paramount expanded into gardening in 2025, Leon was the first to sign up. He now owns three franchises.
Why Paramount moved into gardening
Our customers kept asking us to look after their gardens. Hein Visser, Paramount Gardening’s Operations Manager, explains in the article that many large commercial sites have a lot of green space to maintain, including banks in Central Auckland. Customers already trusted Paramount’s standards and attention to detail, so offering garden care was a natural next step. It also gave our franchisees another way to grow their income.
A profitable niche in commercial and apartment gardens
Many of Leon’s commercial cleaning clients now use him for their gardens too. He has also found steady work providing commercial gardening for apartment buildings across Auckland. These sites can be tricky to access, but Paramount’s preferred supplier agreement with Stihl means franchisees work with reliable, high-quality battery-powered equipment.
Because most lawns and gardens in New Zealand keep growing all year, commercial properties need regular maintenance to stay tidy. A Paramount Gardening franchise can offer:
- Lawn mowing
- Tree pruning
- Pest control
- Hedge care
- Edge trimming
- Shrub and flower care
Having several services to offer is one of the things that makes a lawn mowing franchise profitable.
You don’t need green fingers to get started
Before starting, Leon spent time working alongside a hospital gardening team to build his practical skills. Our training is now so thorough that you don’t need a gardening background to succeed. What you do need is a good level of fitness and the commitment to complete training towards NZQA Level 2 in Horticulture.
Support that lets you focus on growth
Leon credits Paramount’s support with making it easier to run and grow three franchises. Our team takes care of invoicing and fees, so franchisees can spend their time on the work and their customers. We also find new clients and pass them on as confirmed work, leads and referrals. This backing is a big part of the difference between a franchise and an independent business.
How the Paramount Gardening franchise works
- Franchise fee of $10,000 + GST
- A Revenue Guarantee may be purchased at 35% of the guaranteed annual revenue providing a 12-month revenue guarantee, starting two months after your franchise begins
- Finance available to approved franchisees with a deposit contributed from your own funds
- Extensive training to ensure you can successfully manage your new business
- Equipment and a signwritten van or ute, bought or leased, which doubles as mobile advertising for your business
If you’d rather take over an established round, see our gardening franchises for sale.
Building a business and a life in New Zealand
Leon’s success hasn’t come at the cost of family life. He and his wife Bella have bought a home in Botany and are raising their young son. Bella helps with the admin and sometimes lends a hand with cleaning and gardening jobs. With several income streams, Leon is earning well beyond what he expected.
Start your own Paramount Gardening franchise
We’re looking for motivated people throughout New Zealand who want to build a business with a trusted brand behind them. If Leon’s story has you thinking about your own future, Hein Visser would love to talk to you about Paramount Gardening franchise opportunities.
Call Hein on 021 314 193 or 0800 158 158, email hvisser@paramount.co.nz, or contact our team to find out how a Paramount Gardening franchise could work for you.
For more advice on buying a franchise, get your free copy of Franchise New Zealand magazine.
