Jenkintown's AquaReale specializes in recycling rain water for aesthetic, practical purposes

JENKINTOWN >> Matt and Laura Reale have been in business together for about 15 years. What started out as a landscape business, which by their own admission breaks no ground unless the specific job calls for it, has morphed into an environmentally friendly venture that is quite unique.

Reale Landscape Design was created in 1999. Matt ran that company, while Laura ran her own business while helping Matt. They couldnt compete with larger companies with 30 or more employees while they had fewer than five.

I just couldnt get to that point, Matt said. It was ridiculous.

Laura also described a variety of problems the couple had with the employees they could afford to bring on board, leading them to a level of frustration that forced them to rethink what they were doing.

Turns out, it was the best rethought theyve ever had.

Since then, theyve turned their traditional landscaping and landscape design company into AquaReale. The first part of that name should make it obvious where the companys new focus is: water.

We needed to find a niche and fill it, Laura said, where could we fit in that would complement what Matt does. From there, we looked at two main areas and went to eco-friendly natural landscaping and the direction of ponds.

The pond idea went beyond digging a hole, installing a liner and filling it with water and fish, which is what countless amateurs have done to spruce up a backyard. They got in touch with a Chicago-based company, Aquascape Inc., which calls itself a franchise without a fee. AquaReale is an Aquascape certified contractor.

They started working with Aquascape and learning as much as they could about ponds. They ended up learning something that would ultimately change the course of their business.

We realized how much ponds and stormwater have in common, Laura said. And how water in general was taking over our business. Continued...

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Jenkintown's AquaReale specializes in recycling rain water for aesthetic, practical purposes