South Baldwin Chamber recently recognized 5 Star Air Conditioning as the Business of the Month. Chamber Membership Director, Travis Valentine, along with WHEP Radio owner Clark Stewart, sat down with owner Tyler Higginbotham to learn more about his business.

Travis: Your business has grown in the last year; tell me about what you have added and how you have expanded your business?

Tyler: We added another truck on the road along with 2 apprentices: a veteran from the Army and a young guy from Indiana. We are teaching them from the ground up what the HVAC world is, how to make people happy and complete the repairs you need to. The Veteran has been to HVAC School and accompanies me to installs and repairs. I always said I needed someone like me so I also hired a guy named Tyler. We looked really hard deciding how to grow and when to grow, we wanted to make sure we would be keeping the company culture that we started with.

Travis: Your vehicles sure catch the eye, I don’t think I ever miss when you drive by. What type of vehicles does 5 Star Air Conditioning have and what sold you on their unique features?

Tyler: We have 2 of the Nissan Envy, the big boxy vans. They are more squared then some of the other trucks. The other thing that is different is we have black vehicles, which means I really have to go through Bebo’s Carwash a lot.

I think our logo stands out; we want people to know who we are when we’re coming and who we were when we pass by.

Travis: Many people know you not only for your eye-catching van but from your experience in the HVAC service industry. How long have you been doing HVAC work?

Tyler: We got here in 2002. Cindy and I were sitting around; I was thinking ‘what am I going do for a job,’ we had just built a house and I actually saw a job in the paper for an air conditioning installer. Somehow I talked the guy into hiring me, even with no experience; in fact I think I told the guy if I couldn’t do the job I would go home and he didn’t have to pay me. I just moved up from there, kept learning. We went through the storms Ivan and then Katrina. We went over to help the guys in Mississippi and Louisiana so I got a lot of experience doing a lot of quick installs.

Travis: What are the first 3 things you do when you wake up in the morning?

Tyler: I would love to tell you that I get up and run 5 miles, meditate and then have a large breakfast. Normally I get up and drink a cup of coffee if I can. Cindy and I do talk about the day, spend a little bit of time making sure our plans are right; then we prepare the vans.

Travis: Do you have any habits or routines that you believe help you and your business?

Tyler: I do. When we are driving around, I love to jump in the truck after a call and take a break from reality, maybe listen to some 70s or 80s music. I also like to listen to a podcast like Dave Ramsey or some instructional videos. American Standard has a lot of windshield wisdom we listen to with up to date service features that are happening with the air conditioning systems. Other companies do it as well and I also listen to all of them. We are an American Standard dealer but also service Carrier and Rheem, Goodman, and all of those companies have podcast or learning centers that we follow.

Travis: Any habits or routines you would like to develop in the next year?

Tyler: I have been eating better and that is probably one of the bigger habits that I would love to maintain, and I would love to get back in the water at the Y. Cindy makes a lot of the meals for me, we have a lot of tuna fish and chicken salad. I have not had fast food or soda in about a year and a half.

Travis: Tell us about 5 Star Air Conditioning's Energy Saving Maintenance Program, Comfort Club?

Tyler: Yes, the Comfort Club is our bi-annual maintenance program, we come service your air conditioner twice a year. We check everything on your system, making sure that it is running at its peak and giving you the best performance. We want to make sure it is as energy efficient as possible, coils are clean, the filters are clean and the drain is clean; some of the things that would normally give you a little hiccup. We are looking at all the little components that can go wrong and just making sure we stop a problem before it surfaces.

Congratulations to 5 Star Air Conditioning for being the South Baldwin Chamber Business of the Month. To hear more of the interview and learn about Tyler’s most interesting call in the last year, his Foley ties and his favorite Chamber events, visit www.whep1310.com/listen.html and click on the On-Demand section, then look for SBCC radio under 5-02-17. Or be on the lookout for Tyler’s interview in the Chamber’s weekly email. To learn more about 5 Star Air Conditioning and the services they provide, call them at 251-223-2010, visit their website at www.5starair.net, or visit them on Facebook under 5 Star Air Conditioning.