Summary
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
Connect with Quinn
🔗https://www.willowstlawns.com/
🔗https://www.linkedin.com/in/quinn-childress-9a2065155/
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The Startup Junkies Podcast is brought to you in part by RISE, helping Arkansas tech and tech-enabled startups grow with no-cost coaching, capital navigation, and expert connections. Learn more at RiseArkansas.org.
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