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From A Wayward Teen To An HVAC Extraordinaire

How Priority Heating & Cooling Started From The Ground Up
To Become Twin Cities East Metro’s Go-To HVAC Company

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Sure, a lot of other local Twin Cities East Metro HVAC companies have been passed down from generation to generation. But what does this really mean? Chances are not all of those generations have been thrilled to be handed the torch.

But at Priority Heating & Cooling, we started in 2000 and have built our business from the ground up. Nothing was handed to us on a silver platter.

Instead, we pulled ourselves up by our bootstraps and turned a pipe dream into something extraordinary – a local heating and cooling company that CARES about its customers.

And we didn’t do this because we had to – we did it (and still do it every day) because we WANT to. Here’s the story of Priority Heating & Cooling…

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A Lost Teen Finds His Way

Like many 18-year-olds, our owner, James Haugen, found himself at a crossroads when he was fresh out of high school. You see, he went the traditional college route, but nothing of interest really struck him that first year.

Without a major declared and without any prospects of choosing one soon, James’ dad gave him an ultimatum. Having recently discovered an HVAC program nearby, James’ dad said he could join the program or be cut off from the family funds.

At that point, James thought, “What do I have to lose?”

So, he left his college and signed up for the HVAC program.

It wasn’t long before he realized this was his calling. He loved working with furnaces and air conditioning systems, learning all the machinery parts, and putting all the pieces back together again. But most of all, he loved coming up with solutions to problems – something technicians in the HVAC industry have to do every day.

James had finally found his passion.

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1993-1999: James Learns The Value Of
Good Service The Hard Way

After graduating from the HVAC program, James quickly found a job in the heating and cooling industry. But though he loved what he did, he found it difficult working for the other guys. The issue was that James became known as “the problem solver.” He was smart and knew how to quickly and accurately diagnose an HVAC issue.

The problem with that?

Well, it meant he got taken advantage of and sent out on almost every call. After all, if there was a smart guy willing to do the work, why wouldn’t they send him out on the call?

But it didn’t take James long to get burnt out and realize that he wasn’t getting the fairness and respect he deserved.

The solution?

James started his own business.

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2000 – Present: Priority Heating & Cooling Opens
Its Doors And Is STILL Going Strong

In June of 2000, Priority Heating & Cooling opened its doors for the first time. And it was immediately clear to James that he’d made the right decision.

He could FINALLY put everything together that he’d learned over the years – his problem-solving skills, his HVAC expertise, and his years of experience in the field.

But most importantly, James could build a company on one of his core values – caring, attentive customer service. He could finally dictate how his customers were to be treated – respectfully and with kindness.

Twenty-five years later and Priority Heating & Cooling is still going strong. Today, homeowners in the Twin Cities East Metro get to benefit from James’ hard-won experience and see how HVAC should be done.

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