The majority of this article was originally published in June 2008 profiling Jeff and Cheryl Armstrong and NutriLawn, Inc. their lawn care business based in Chico. I am re-publishing this with updated information about the company’s California Small Business of the Year 2008 award.

Jeff and Cheryl Armstrong founded Chico’s NutriLawn, a company specializing in lawn and shrub fertilization and recreational lake management, 20 years ago. They currently care for over 2000 lawns in the Chico area and they employ 18 people. In the last three years the Armstrongs have moved their business away from the chemically dependent mainstream and toward a more sustainable future through what they term “biological” lawn care. Photo above: Jeff Armstrong at a ground breaking ceremony for the Northern California Natural History Museum.

Jeff and his wife are a complete team, and Cheryl runs the business side of NutriLawn, Inc. About four year’s ago, the Armstrong’s went to the Small Business Development Center at Butte College for help appraising their company in order to sell it. As fate would have it, the SBDC actually showed them how to fine-tune their business model and demonstrated what a strong company they had. The Armstrong’s did not retire, and thank the SBDC and Cheryl’s business head for the financial viability of his business. In March, the Armstrong’s were told they were to be awarded the 2008 Small Business Person of Year for Northern California (a district from Stockton to Oregon). They then learned that they had also been chosen as the Small Business of the year for the entire state of California. As such, Jeff and Cheryl are traveling to Washington DC in mid-May to attend the 2009 National Small Business Week award events, where only 100 or so small businesses from around the nation will be celebrated. “We really won when we first went to see the people at the Small Business Development Center at Butte College,” said Jeff. “Their help transformed our business.” According to Butte College Small Business Development Center newsletter: “The U.S. SBA Sacramento District 2009/2010 Small Business of the Year Award is awarded to Jeff & Cheryl Armstrong for “Staying Power,” innovation, uniqueness of products and services, identifying a niche to compete competitively, responding to adversity during economic downturn,
continuous growth and financial stability, community contribution and “green’ business.” This is a couple who travel together, hunt and fish together, garden together and do good business together.
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