The Chronicle Herald (Provincial)
A 20th anniversary they’ll never forget
Kings Refrigeration grateful for loyal customers, suppliers, staff
While other businesses will be closing down temporarily over the holidays, Kings Refrigeration & Air Conditioning will continue to provide 24-hour emergency service to make sure no one’s stuck with a cold house or a warm commercial cooler.
It’s a fairly typical end to a year that’s been anything but normal. Kings Refrigeration & Air Conditioning controller and operations manager Jeanette Joudrey had spent months planning a full year of 20th anniversary celebrations for 2020, but almost everything had to be scrapped when the pandemic began in March.
“COVID put a damper on a lot of things, like the barbeques we had planned to show appreciation for our customers, suppliers and staff,” admits Jeanette. “But we made do with what we could, and it was a success either way.”
Luckily, Kings Refrigeration & Air Conditioning didn’t have to cancel the big prize giveaway they’d planned: two brand-new heat pumps. They gave away the first heat pump in June, and Jeanette says it wound up being very heartwarming for everyone.
“Our winner was an elderly woman on a fixed budget, and her spouse had just passed away,” says Jeanette. “Winning the heat pump literally made her year. It was so nice.”
The winner of the second heat pump will be drawn live on Avr/magic 94.9 at 8:45 a.m. on Christmas Eve, and anyone who’s been a customer of Kings Refrigeration & Air Conditioning during 2020 is automatically in the running. It’s a high-quality prize that’s going to make the holidays especially merry for one lucky winner!
20 YEARS STRONG
Wally Myalls started Kings Refrigeration & Air Conditioning in Cambridge back in 2000 as a one-person operation. Twenty years later, his company has grown to include three individual trades, with a team that is 23 members strong — serving homes and businesses halfway across Nova Scotia. Kings Refrigeration & Air Conditioning also has 14 service vehicles on the road each day, all based out of the Cambridge office but servicing customers across the South Shore, Digby, Annapolis Valley and Halifax.
Even during the intense portion of the pandemic back in the spring, Kings Refrigeration didn’t need to shut down completely. But they made it through April through June with about 75 per cent of their staff temporarily laid off, which wasn’t easy.
“We’re considered essential trades, so we needed to remain open to provide emergency services to people without heat or electricity,” says Jeanette. “It was a tough few months, but we were committed to still being there for our customers when they needed us.”
As provincial restrictions loosened in June, Kings Refrigeration & Air Conditioning was able to bring back their full team and resume non-essential services — like routine cleanings of refrigeration equipment and heat pumps and installation of new equipment — while continuing to follow all safety precautions.
Jeanette says gloves, masks, hand sanitizer and disinfectant spray are now just regular items stocked in the Kings Refrigeration & Air Conditioning office and vehicles. Staff members even have their temperature taken every morning before they head out onto the road, to make sure anyone with a fever or other symptoms is immediately sent home.
“We do everything in our power to make sure everybody is protected from start to finish, and that we’ve eliminated as much risk as possible for our customers, staff and suppliers,” says Wally. “We’re taking all necessary precautions because everyone’s safety is the most important thing.”
They also carry out weekly safety meetings to update staffers and developed a COVID emergency preparedness plan that goes into detail on the various precautions they have in place — like what happens when someone needs to stay home with a cold, and how protocols have adapted to when employees are stuck without childcare.
‘AS BUSY AS EVER’
The fall has been especially busy for the Kings Refrigeration & Air Conditioning team, which Jeanette says is possibly because people are feeling an increased urgency to get everything sorted — installations, cleanings, repairs — before the coldest months of the year and/or another potential lock-down.
“It seemed like as soon as everything opened back up again, it was full throttle and we were as busy as ever,” says Jeanette. “We’re glad our customers know that we’re here, we’re safe and we’re open — and we’ll continue to be open into the new year.”
As Kings Refrigeration & Air Conditioning prepares to move into 2021, Jeanette and Wally want to wish everyone Happy Holidays and remind them to “stay safe and keep positive during these trying times.”
“We’re so grateful to everyone for continuing to support local businesses like ours. It’s been the key to our success,” says Wally. “Thank you for getting us to 20 years, and we hope we have at least another 20 years ahead of us.”
Kings Refrigeration & Air Conditioning is wrapping up the year-long celebration of their 20th anniversary. To learn more about the services their team can provide, please visit kingsrefrigeration.com or call 902-678-5314.