Garrett Riley has always had a passion for sports, which eventually translated into a desire to follow an entrepreneurial path.
Riley, who is well-known for his success on the ice as a Para hockey star, and in 2024 was inducted into the Brantford and Area Sports Hall of Recognition in 2024 for his accomplishments, started to look for opportunities to start a business and gravitated to landscaping. That culminated in the founding Riley Landscaping in 2025.
“A few years ago, I worked for someone who had started their own landscaping company. I got connected to him as his son was a teammate of mine when I played hockey. It was just really something I enjoyed doing. And seeing how far he’s come with his business was also very inspiring. And just all the different properties he has done through the years and getting repeat customers because of his great service. I also liked the idea of helping people in the community,” he said. “Another appealing thing is seeing the transformation of someone’s property after putting in the hard work behind the scenes. It is very satisfying. Although I don’t really tell my customers about my athletic background…I have used those traits that made me successful in sports to help me become the best business owner I could be.”
However, Riley got to work immediately,helping those closest to him while working with his fiancé, who is a real estate agent.
“I started helping friends and family members with their gardens and properties and have been steadily getting other customers. I also went out with my fiancé…to showings and picking up jobs that way. Sometimes I would find one of her clients wasn’t too happy with their current landscaper…so, I would offer my services and have developed some great relationships from that,” explained Riley.
Although his business is based in the County of Brant, he has been growing it across different cities.
“Every time I go for a drive, I’m looking at random gardens and working out in my head how I could make them better and more appealing. And of course, I do approach some people and give them my suggestions and some have been very receptive to my input…and giving me a chance to work on their properties [but] there are others who are a bit on the fence because of my disability…[and] it doesn’t take long for them to see that once I start on something, the results are great,” he stated. “Along with Brantford and Brant County, I’ve had work out in Port Dover and Hamilton…and because I offer so many different services ranging from lawn care and maintenance to planting to landscaping design…customers are happy to get options to beautify and professionally maintain their gardens especially if they don’t have the time to do it on their own.”
However, one of the cornerstones of his success has been truly learning the ins and outs of his trade.
“I have really got into learning all about landscaping and gardening on the job as well as on my own time. For example, I have been learning how to find the best flowers for a specific garden while keeping the customer’s vision front and centre. I look at aspects of how easy a certain flower can be maintained, while properly landscaping specific flowers or plants to make the property more visually appealing and keeping in mind factors like sunlight (are the plants getting enough)?” he noted.
Nevertheless, Riley has enjoyed building relationships with customers, one of the key reasons he decided to pursue this line of work.
“I’ve met quite a few nice people who are open to my ideas and giving a chance in helping them transform their properties and gardens…as a small business owner, I have learned that you have to do everything including finding customers…it’s been a bit difficult coming in new to owning a business…but, I have quickly learned when you do a good job, word gets around. The people I’ve helped talk to other neighbors about my work which grows my reputation and brings in new business,” he said. “What makes me a bit different is that customers talk to me directly. They see me and I do the work. There is no middleman and that really helps in building a good rapport with them right off the bat. That has also helped me build trust with them which I think is important when owning your own business.”
As Riley grows his business, he’s very much about remaining close to the community with his passion for Para hockey as well and inspiring others.
“Unfortunately, I suffered a concussion this past May, so it was a bit of a setback for me in getting out and connecting with up-and-coming athletes, especially in Para hockey. But I do have aspirations in doing some coaching and even playing again. And I have worked with Team Ontario over the past few years… to support these athletes as best I can and help them realize their dreams…like playing for Team Canada and going to Paralympics,” he said. “I have enjoyed sharing my knowledge of the game…and helping them in other ways like giving them sticks or offering them tips to strengthen their game, or helping them to build their confidence. It’s an amazing feeling to contribute to their growth and, in some cases, helping them on their journey to becoming an elite athlete one day.”
Riley, who captured a silver medal with Team Canada at the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games, explained that doing something that you love makes things that much better.
“Finding what you love to do and something that you have a lot of passion for is important. And when you do, that becomes your anchor and you need to put all your energy into it. I will definitely help wherever I can…whether it’s supporting young athletes or making a customer happy….I want to continue to give back to the community that gave me everything,” he said.
