Distributors who made it through 2009 can congratulate themselves on surviving one of the most difficult years that HVACR wholesale distribution has endured in a long time. And while business is not back to pre-recession levels, the outlook is definitely improving.

Emerson Climate Technologies Inc. recently acknowledged its top-performing wholesalers for outstanding sales performance in 2010. Exceptional wholesalers were presented awards in four different sales categories: Peak Performance, Summit, Signature, and Center Stage. The awards were handed out during the company’s annual National Wholesaler Conference, which was held in Tucson, Ariz.

The NEWS met with Talbot Gee, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Heating, Airconditioning and Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI). Gee recently assumed his new responsibilities while Don Frendberg has elected to transition to chairman of the association.

The theme of the 2010 Annual Fall Conference of the Heating, Airconditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) association was Forging New Frontiers: Sales/Growth/Profit. There was much talk among attendees about the expected slow recovery from the Great Recession, and the general mood was upbeat.

When Dana Marr graduated from college, she agreed to work temporarily as a service dispatcher in her family’s business - Wooldridge Heating, Air & Electrical - as she prepared for what she thought would be a career in banking. Twenty-four years later she’s still there, having carved out a career in a male-dominated industry.