In the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, Marty Shaw grew up in the sleepy little Appalachian town of Bristol, TN, a small city that rests on the boundary between the two states of Tennessee and Virginia. Upon graduation from Bristol Tennessee High School, Marty enlisted in the United States Navy where he served as ships baker aboard the USS Shark (a fast attack submarine) for 4 years. When his enlistment came to an end he took a job selling lawn care service to residential owners in Milwaukee, WI, and later, moved to Knoxville, TN where he worked as general manager of a landscape contracting company while attending the University of Tennessee for Ornamental Horticulture and Landscape Design.

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Eventually, Marty took over as president of a wholesale tree care supply business and built the company from $70,000 in sales to over $1.2 million in just seven years. During that time, he married his wife Kristin and they had two children together. With encouragement from Kristin he also developed an interest in arboricultural consulting, and on May 11th, 1999 he became the first American Society of Consulting Arborist (ASCA) member in Middle Tennessee. From 1998 to 2003, Marty also served on the Tennessee Urban Forestry Council. He has since consulted with private land owners, insurance companies, attorneys, tree companies, cooperative extension service agents, country clubs, state urban forestry organizations, universities, and colleges. He has worked on some of the most challenging, difficult and highest profile cases across the United States. 

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Marty Shaw was the first Academy Registered Consulting Arborist, and one of only a handful of arborists worldwide who consult full-time. Marty is a UAS pilot, a real estate appraisal instructor, a real estate broker instructor and he brings a broad range of skills from a variety of scientific and professional disciplines. An autodidact, Marty brings a unique perspective and a talent for learning to any project. He has developed authoritative expertise to create a greater understanding in tree related matter.

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Since 2005, Marty and his wife Kristin have resided in Franklin, TN.