By Christine Graf
Thirty-year-old Broadalbin native Amanda Triolo was managing the accounting department at Chris’ Coffee Service when she started flipping houses in her free time. It was a risky proposition but one she thrived on.
“I realized I liked rolling the dice to see what I’m made of,” said Triolo. “So, when I got some money under my belt and got the opportunity to take over a commercial install only HVAC company, I decided to give it a shot.”
Triolo purchased PMA Mechanical LLC in 2016, relocating the business from Broadalbin to Albany. Almost immediately, she recognized the company would have more growth opportunities if she expanded into the residential market.
“From 2016 until COVID happened, I was trying to figure out how to go from the commercial industry to the residential industry,” she said. “I couldn’t figure out how to do it without going bankrupt. I didn’t have the cash flow to be able to hire residential employees and also pay for the commercial employees and wait for the money to come in from commercial jobs.”
In March 2020, while Triolo was still trying to come up with a plan, construction sites were shut down because of the COVID pandemic.
“In the snap of a finger, I had no business at all,” said Triolo. “I had 12 employees at the time, and I had to lay off all but 4.”
Triolo transitioned her remaining employees to residential work, relying on Google ads to market their services. As the phone started ringing, she was able to bring her laid off employees back to work.
“That’s when I started looking around at my competitors—the large companies that have been around for many, many years,” she said. “I knew I had to be able to do something different in order to survive in the residential world because I was competing against companies that have reputations that are longstanding.”
Triolo began researching the home service industry and ultimately connected with successful business owners from throughout the United States.
“What I found is that they all had really great branding,” she said.
After reaching out to the branding company, New Jersey-based KickCharge Creative, Triolo realized she would have to risk everything in order to proceed with the rebranding.
“I used the last $20,000 I had in the bank,” she said.
As part of the rebranding process, KickCharge conducted a complete market analysis and presented Triolo with a list of choices for renaming her company.
“They gave me a few options, but I didn’t like any of them,” she said.
One of the names on the list was Grasshopper, and it wasn’t until Triolo spent some time learning about grasshoppers that she chose Grasshopper Heating & Cooling as the name for her company.
“Grasshoppers only move in a forward direction, and that is the story of who I am and the story of my company. It was very easy to build a brand and a purpose off something that I am passionate about,” said Triolo. “It’s more than just a company name. It’s part of who we are and our purpose that we live out every day.”
After having the company’s four service vehicles wrapped with the distinctive Grasshopper logo, Triolo launched the Grasshopper brand on Feb. 1, 2021. With her bank account depleted, her company was on the verge of going under.
“As we were figuring out Google Ads and how to get the phone ringing, we had enough money come in to cover our expenses and payroll. It was really week by week,” she said.
According to Triolo, after the fleet of vehicles hit the road, the phone did start ringing. Once it did, it didn’t stop.
“I knew within the first three weeks that the branding was working,” she said.
Two-and-a-half years later, Grasshopper Heating & Cooling has 63 employees and a fleet of 38 vehicles. The company sells and services HVAC systems and is currently in the process of expanding into different home service verticals.
“We just launched into plumbing—water leaks, water quality, water treatment, water heaters—and now have a licensed plumber on staff,” said Triolo.
Grasshopper also sells and services air scrubbers, air purifiers, dehumidifiers, humidifiers, and UV lights.
As Triolo continues to build her business, she said she is focused on providing opportunities to her employees.
“We focus on our employees and treat them so well that our hope is that they treat our customers even better. I attribute a lot of our growth to our culture and to our people who are committed to our brand.”
She said her company takes a unique approach to home services. Their techs have a maximum of four service calls a day. As a result, they are able to spend more time with each customer.
“We tailor every single customer experience to the person,” said Triolo. “We are also taking care of the system as a whole, not just the problem.”
Despite the skilled labor shortage, Grasshopper has had no trouble hiring employees.
“That’s the beautiful thing about our brand,” said Triolo. “We have people applying every day.”
For more information, visit www.gograsshopper.com