Terren Landscapes Anchors New MRE Capital Residential Landscaping Platform

What happened

MRE Capital announced on October 19, 2026, that it has invested in Terren Landscapes, a high-end residential landscaping company headquartered in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. The transaction establishes Terren as MRE's newest platform company and, in MRE's words, "creates a foundation for building a scaled, market-leading residential landscaping services platform." Co-founder John McCaughey will continue to lead the business as founder and CEO. The announcement did not disclose financial terms or the size of MRE's stake.

The company

John McCaughey and his brother Jim founded Terren in 1983, and John became sole owner in 2005. The company now has over 120 employees serving homeowners across Philadelphia's Main Line and greater Philadelphia, in towns from Ardmore and Bryn Mawr out to Malvern and West Chester. Its work covers landscape design, installation, maintenance, enhancement, and snow removal, along with hardscapes, outdoor lighting, outdoor kitchens, and stormwater work. Terren has 20 masons, each with more than 25 years of masonry experience.

Ken Geis began working with Terren as a consultant in 2023 and joined as general manager at the end of 2024. He becomes chief operating officer following the transaction. Geis spent more than two decades in leadership at Merkle and dentsu, where he scaled agency operations. Terren is the second time Geis has worked with MRE founder David Williams, having joined Merkle in 2007.

"It was important to us to find a partner who respects what we've built and is committed for the long term, and we found that in MRE," McCaughey said. "Our clients and our team can count on the same care and quality they've always known."

The investor

MRE Capital was formed as the family office of David Williams, its founder, chairman, and CEO. Williams spent more than 30 years building Merkle as its CEO before selling it to Dentsu in 2020. MRE invests with a long-term horizon and a hands-on approach, and it puts its model plainly: "We are not a private equity firm. We are operators with capital." Its 12 portfolio companies span landscaping, fire protection, home services, marketing services, event rentals, restaurants, and real estate.

Williams said MRE sees "a real opportunity to build on that foundation and grow Terren into the leading residential landscaping platform in the region and beyond, through new markets and complementary services."

Where Terren sits next to DJ's Landscape Management

Terren is the second landscaping company in MRE's portfolio. The first, DJ's Landscape Management, is a commercial grounds management company in landscaping and snow services, and MRE invested in it in 2024. In May 2026, DJ's climbed 20 spots to No. 32 on Lawn & Landscape's Top 100 list. On July 1, 2026, it acquired Greenscape and Meadow Green Landscaping, its fifth and sixth add-ons since the partnership with MRE began. DJ's now reports more than 1,200 full-time employees across the Midwest, Northeast, and Mid-Atlantic. Owners weighing a family office against other kinds of outside capital can start with our guide on selling a landscaping business to private equity.

What this means for landscaping owners

This is an investor already running a commercial grounds platform that made a residential company a platform of its own, not an add-on to the commercial business. For owners of high-end residential firms, that means a design-build company built around homeowners and hardscaping does not have to fit a commercial operator's model to draw this kind of buyer: it can be the base the buyer builds on.

OffDeal is an advisory firm that helps lower-middle-market business owners sell with confidence. Reach out to learn more about our expertise with landscaping businesses in Pennsylvania.

Own a landscaping business with $5M–$100M in revenue? We’re glad to give you an honest read on what it’s worth and who would buy it — no pitch, no pressure. Get a free valuation.

Source: MRE Capital - https://www.mre-capital.com/news-stories/mre-capital-partners-with-terren-landscapes