Branching Out in the Triangle

Because Rantos Maintenance continues to thrive and grow, so must its range of equipment and trailer inventory.

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Company Name: Rantos Maintenance

Owner: Corey Yarborough

Location: Durham, North Carolina

Years in Business: Over 35 years

Geographical Coverage: Durham, Chapel Hill, Raleigh, Pittsboro, Apex, Cary, Hillsborough and Knightdale, North Carolina

Type of Clients: Homeowners’ associations and commercial properties

Services Rendered: Landscape management, hardscaping, irrigation and snow removal

Current owner Corey Yarborough purchased Rantos Maintenance from his grandfather Bennie Torian in 2015 after realizing they shared the same passion for business ownership and delivering quality service. Although Torian established the company more than 35 years ago to primarily focus on the triangle area of North Carolina—which includes Durham, Chapel Hill and Raleigh—the landscaping company is growing and covering more ground, including smaller towns and suburbs surrounding the triangle.

Rantos is also diversifying its clientele from a focus on homeowners’ associations to other types of commercial properties. With its continued growth, the company is offering its customers more options to suit their landscaping needs as well, such as landscape management, hardscaping, irrigation, drainage, snow removal and holiday décor installations. According to Yarborough, “My viewpoint is to master what you do best, then use that knowledge and experience to diversify thereafter.”

When it comes to servicing all these new areas and customers, Yarborough insists on equipping his trailers with John Deere zero-turn mowers and stand-on mowers for reliability. He says he appreciates John Deere’s commitment to standing behind its equipment. Plus, he says, “The 54-inch zero-turns allow the crews to get a lot of square footage done fast, while giving them the ability to get in and out of some tight spaces.”

In addition to the zero-turn and stand-on mowers, each of Rantos’ trailers hold a 22-inch Honda push mower, two string trimmers, one stick edger, two sets of pruners, three backpack blowers and a chainsaw. The company mainly runs STIHL handheld equipment. Yarborough admits that his grandfather raised him on the brand, but he also finds the equipment “strong and dependable. Nothing runs like a STIHL.”

Although he stocks both, Yarborough prefers stand-on mowers to walk-behinds not only because he thinks they’re more productive, but also because a stand-on mower can function as a walk-behind if the situation calls for it. Regardless, Yarborough says of his trailer inventory, “We found this equipment lineup to best suit the different array of properties we service.”

He concludes, “All of the equipment I mentioned is essential to the equation. That’s what is beautiful about the green industry: it’s a collection of people with different skill sets working together to create beautiful scenery. It’s the same with the equipment. A mower is just a mower, but when an edger, weed trimmer and blower are introduced to the equation, then you make your customers’ vision become a reality.”  

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