The Ingredients Of Success

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The Ingredients Of Success

Read About The Values That Laid The Foundation For Innovative Air

Michael Carlo and his brother Matthew built Innovative Air from the ground up. They started out with NO formal training and NO leg up in the business.

What they did have was a set of values — that they stuck with NO MATTER WHAT.

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No One Ever Died Of Hard Work

Michael wasn’t afraid of hard work. His experience with the HVAC industry started way back in high school when he was a gofer for an HVAC contractor during the summer.

“I spent 12 to 14 hours a day working for the HVAC contractor,” Michael said.

It was the ultimate on the job training — day after day of being on his own, figuring out how to fend for himself, and learning the ins and outs of the industry.

But Michael’s training didn’t stop there. It was only after successfully completing graduate school that he started Innovative Air, in 2000.

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Always Take That Extra Step

“We didn’t make money for the first 5 years.”

Michael and Matthew were hyper-focused on treating customers and their homes with respect and presenting a professional and cleancut impression. So much so, that they often focused on that more than making a profit.

One of their “ride or die” rules was to always leave a customers home in BETTER condition than they found it. This meant that they always had the right tools, drop cloths, booties, and plenty of plastic tarps.

Something that separates Michael and his brother from other contractors and business owners is that they always took that extra step even when the customer HAD NO IDEA. And the customer often had no idea what lengths the brothers went to because Michael and Matthew did the right thing for themselves, not for accolades from others.

This was apparent when it came to change orders. More often than not, the brothers ended up doing work that the customer didn’t even pay for — and very often, didn’t even know about.

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Get It RIGHT, No Matter How Long It Takes

Overall, Michael and Matthew were always careful about taking the time to do everything 100% CORRECTLY.

They kept their van in shipshape, both inside and out. They completed every job they did precisely, no matter how hard it was or how long it took.

They took the time to make sure they did everything RIGHT, from customer interaction to obtaining the necessary permits and licenses.

“That’s just how we were raised and how we wanted to be.”

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HVACR Business Interview

Read this article to find out more about Michael Carlo’s HVAC journey, and how he built Innovative Air from scratch.