Quinn Childress, owner of Willow Street Lawns and founder of the digital lawn care marketplace Lawnly, joins the Startup Junkies Podcast to talk about the first-ever Lawn Care Olympics coming to Fayetteville, Arkansas on September 20th. Quinn shares how he went from experiencing homelessness as a teenager to building a lawn care business, and now a platform designed to funnel local dollars toward nonprofits and people experiencing homelessness in Northwest Arkansas.
In This Episode
- Why Quinn started Willow Street Lawns after experiencing homelessness at 15
- What the Lawn Care Olympics is and why it's coming to Fayetteville
- How Lawnly connects homeowners, lawn care pros, and nonprofits
- Why local dollars, not charity, are the key to breaking poverty cycles
- How Startup Junkie's ecosystem helped Quinn scale two ventures
- What advice Quinn would give his younger self today
⏱️ Chapters
1:01 – Welcome to the Startup Junkies Podcast
1:42 – Meet Quinn Childress: Willow Street Lawns & Lawnly
2:09 – Announcing the First-Ever Lawn Care Olympics
2:29 – The Vision: Turning Lawn Care into a Community Sport
3:23 – Partnering with Nonprofits to Fight Homelessness
4:45 – Quinn's Story: From Homelessness to Business Owner
6:30 – Lawn Care Olympics Event Details (Sept 20 at New Beginnings)
7:26 – Judges, Challenges, and Who Can Compete
11:41 – Inside Lawnly: A Two-Sided Marketplace for Lawn Care
14:06 – RISE Arkansas Sponsor Message
14:34 – Quinn's Roots in the NWA Ecosystem & Building Lawnly
19:18 – The Real Motivation: Helping the Local Economy Thrive
22:22 – Time Machine Question: Advice to His Younger Self
29:20 – How to Connect with Quinn & Support the Olympics
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Connect with Quinn
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What is The Startup Junkies Podcast?
The Startup Junkies podcast is hosted by Jeff Amerine and his team at Startup Junkie Consulting. We’ll cover topics ranging from getting started, planning, growing your business, proving your concept, leadership, marketing, exit strategies and so much more. We’ll interview business owners, entrepreneurs, experts and people we think will bring value to our audience. Subscribe and together we will move your business to the next level.