Profile · Local Business
From the Ground Up
How one high schooler balances school, sports, and a growing landscaping business — and what he's building next
By Ethan Hall
Jack Cote grew up with a work ethic unlike other children his age with being on a soccer team for 13 years. Then switching over to competitive biking, where he ended up ranked 13th in the world for his age group. Somewhere between the early practices and the long rides, he picked up a habit of just showing up and doing the work, even when he didn't feel like it. That dedication and effort carried over to where he is now, running and managing a full landscaping business before even graduating high school.
Jack calls his business Jaxe Outdoor. He started it after a few summers working construction with his dad and clearing brush for a local tree company. He noticed something pretty quickly on those job sites — most of the crews doing brush work were rolling in with big equipment that tore up the lawns and driveways on the way to the trees. So he figured out how to do the same job, brush removal, without leaving damage to the property. That became his thing.
"Sometimes — probably not smart of me — I put my business first."
He's honest about how it goes with school. "Sometimes — probably not smart of me — I put my business first," (Cote) he says. The way he puts it, he tries to get as much homework done during the school day as he can, so he can come home and actually work. A normal week, when he has jobs lined up, looks like this: wake up, school, pick up his little brother, get home, hook up the trailers, load the equipment, and be out the door by 3:30 or 4. He tries to wrap up the job by 6 if he can. "I try not to ruin people's nights." Some jobs take more than one day, and that's just how it goes.
Jack gives a lot of the credit to his dad, who got him started, taught him valuable skills, and helps him on the job site. He also gives credit to his boss at the tree company, who helped him figure out how to quote jobs without lowballing himself, and ultimately get the business side of things up and running. He talks about ads going out, equipment being ready, breakdowns being fixed before the next job, small details, but he keeps track of all of it himself. He doesn't think a lot of kids his age would want to manage a business like this, or even could. "Especially having the specific skill sets it takes to run the equipment, work on it, and know how to use it" (Cote).
After high school he's headed to lineman school in New York. He doesn't plan on shutting Jaxe Outdoor down — he wants to keep it running on the side. "There's great money in it," he says. Down the road he'd like to pick up bigger equipment, maybe a mowing head for the skid steer, a dedicated truck, a better dump trailer. But he's not in a rush. For now the plan is the same as it's been: keep the impact low, keep the work clean, and keep going.
Work Cited
Cote, Jack. Personal interview. 1 June 2026.
Q:What were your interests as a child and how have they changed over time?
A:I was a soccer player when I was young — played for 13 years. I ended up quitting that and became an avid cyclist. I was internationally ranked 13th in my age category.
Q:How do you think those interests have shaped you today?
A:Doing soccer and biking and all that kept me in really good shape for doing my work. I work in construction, I own my own brush company, and I work for a tree company as well.
Q:How do you manage running a business while keeping up with schoolwork?
A:Sometimes — probably not smart of me — I put my business first. I make sure I get all my advertisements out, make sure the work comes out good and how I want it to. I'm always looking for other jobs, making sure equipment's ready and fixed. If there's any breakdowns, I make sure it's fixed before the next job.
Q:How did you first get into the landscaping business?
A:I worked in construction with my dad for many years. Over the last two to three summers, I started working for a tree company. While doing that, I found a niche market for low-impact brush removal. A lot of the tree guys that do brush removal use heavy equipment that comes in and destroys properties while trying to make them look nice. I found I could go into a property and make it look really nice with no damage to lawns or driveways.
Q:Do you feel that running a business at such a young age has set you apart in terms of work ethic and maturity?
A:Personally, I do — because I don't know many other people my age that would want to do it or could do it, especially having the specific skill sets it takes to run the equipment, work on it, and know how to use it.
Q:Who has been a big help and influence on your success?
A:Mainly my dad, because he helped me get everything started. And my boss from the tree company — he's been a big help finding jobs and helping me quote jobs since I'm starting out.
Q:How does schoolwork tend to interfere with your business?
A:I try not to let schoolwork interfere as much as I can. I try to get a lot done at school so that when I'm home, I have all the time to get equipment ready, work on stuff, or leave school and go straight to a job and make sure everything comes out at the highest quality I can.
Q:What does a typical work week look like for you, juggling both client work and school?
A:When I have jobs, a typical week looks like: wake up, go to school, after school pick up my brother, go home, hook up all the trailers, get all the equipment ready, and leave around 3:30 or 4 o'clock to try to get a job done. Sometimes it takes multiple days. I try not to work past 6 — I try not to ruin people's nights.
Q:You're going to a lineman school after high school. Do you plan on pursuing that and setting aside your landscaping business?
A:I plan on going to a lineman school up in New York. Hopefully I'll be able to keep this brush company going on the side as a nice little extra money for odds and ends. I definitely want to keep it going as a side business — there's great money in it.
Q:What are your plans to scale your business?
A:I'd like to possibly buy some bigger equipment — a mowing head for my skid steer, stuff like that. Possibly buy a truck just for the company, and upgrade dump trailers.
Q:What are your next steps for your business?
A:Definitely keep going as I am right now — staying low impact.