FRANKFORT, Ky. (Aug. 31, 2023) – Today, Gov. Andy Beshear announced HVAC Distributing LLC, a national wholesale distributor of heating and air conditioning equipment, plans to expand its Graves County operations for a second time, with a $5.35 million investment creating 40 full-time jobs.
“Kentucky’s economy is strong, and the proof is in the companies that continue to invest and believe in what we have to offer,” said Gov. Beshear. “HVAC Distributing has been part of the commonwealth’s expansive logistics and distribution sector for 10 years, and I’m excited to see them continue to grow here. I want to thank the company’s leadership for their continued investment in Graves County and look forward to their success in Hickory in the years to come.”
HVAC Distributing’s expansion provides growth space to form the Hickory headquarters for MRCOOL as well as provide space for its recent launch, MRCOOL Franchising LLC. For this expansion, the teams plan to build out 22,000 square feet of office space at the Remington Way location in the Hickory Industrial Park (HIP). The expansion will bring the facility’s total to 120,750 square feet and complement the 100,000-square-foot distribution site up the hill as part of the HIP campus. The expanded operation will include two floors of office space; a large showroom; a video graphics area for marketing; a technical, customer service and warranty teams call center; and a training facility for employees, dealers and franchisees.
In August 2020, Gov. Beshear announced the company’s plans to open a second operation in the Hickory Industrial Park, a $7 million investment that created 175 jobs.
“I’m so proud we’ve made a big impact in our community and across the country with what’s really a simple idea: HVAC should be accessible and affordable for everybody,” said Jason Ingram, managing member of HVAC Distributing. “Apparently a lot of people like that idea, because we’ve seen exponential growth year after year, which has required us to expand our operating space significantly beyond what we ever thought we would need. This new expansion will let us do a lot more, and provide a headquarters for MRCOOL Franchising LLC that was launched earlier this year. We’re so proud to be a part of Graves County, we're proud to be able to provide employment to so many families, and we’re honored to be recognized by the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority and the Governor’s Office. It really means a lot to us.”
Founded in Hickory in 2013, HVAC Distributing is a national wholesale distributor of heating and air conditioning equipment. The next year, the MRCOOL brand came to life and MRCOOL LLC was established. Their most recent development, MRCOOL Franchising LLC, launched in 2023 to foster growth throughout the U.S. and Canada with the promise to deliver quality HVAC products faster and establish MRCOOL as a household name. The family-owned business provides logistics support to MRCOOL, its vast product line including DIY mini splits, GEOCOOL and a long list of contractor grade products, all backed by MRCOOL’s technical and warranty support in Hickory.
Graves County Judge/Executive Jesse Perry highlighted the company’s substantial growth over the years: “When the Ingrams first arrived back in Hickory in 2017, they had no operation center or warehouse space to grow this miraculous enterprise. Since then, they have built over 200,000 square feet and employed over 200 families in Graves County. This home-grown business is what Graves County really enjoys. Seeing the success of families from here is one of the greatest opportunities of being in Graves County.”
Mayfield Mayor Kathy O’Nan spoke on HVAC Distributing’s impact on the community: “Since 2017, HVAC Distributing, in partnership with MRCOOL LLC, have invested millions into their business and into our community with three separate actions. These investments have greatly enhanced their presence here and have enabled the hiring of hundreds of employees. It is an honor to have HVAC Distributing and MRCOOL call Graves County their home, and we are always excited to watch the growth of this company.”
Graves County Economic Development President Jason Lemle was encouraged by the company’s vision: “Jason and Doug Ingram are the future of HVAC equipment for individuals looking for an affordable and long-lasting unit. It has been a pleasure to work with them the past several years and support their vision to become the world’s leading HVAC equipment company. As they continue to grow, Graves County will be here to help them continue to achieve their goals.”
HVAC Distributing’s investment and planned job creation furthers recent economic momentum in the commonwealth.
Earlier this month, Gov. Beshear reported that General Fund receipts for July 2023 totaled $1.1 billion, marking the 11th straight month with revenues over $1 billion. The Governor also recently announced that his administration secured the largest General Fund budget surplus and Rainy Day Fund, as well as the most jobs filled in state history.
The General Fund budget surplus at the end of fiscal year 2023 was more than $1.55 billion. Nearly all of the $1.55 billion surplus will go into the commonwealth’s Rainy Day Fund, bringing the fund to a record balance of $3.7 billion – a 2,700% increase since Gov. Beshear took office in 2019.
Gov. Beshear also announced an increase of 6,400 jobs filled, bringing the commonwealth to 2,015,600 filled jobs in June. That is a record number of nearly 60,000 more jobs filled than before the pandemic.
This year, the Governor announced that Kentucky set the record for the longest period with the lowest unemployment rates in state history. On May 18, Gov. Beshear announced that Kentucky set a new historic low unemployment rate of 3.7%, which is the lowest rate ever recorded in the commonwealth.
Since the beginning of his administration, Gov. Beshear has announced more than 880 private-sector new-location and expansion projects totaling approximately $27 billion in announced investments. This is the highest investment figure for any governor in state history.
The robust job creation has been accompanied by rising wages across the commonwealth. The average incentivized hourly wage in 2022 was $26.78 before benefits, the second-highest mark since 2010 and an 11.5% increase over the previous year.
The Governor also secured the best two-year period in state history for economic growth and announced the two largest economic development projects in state history. In September 2021, Gov. Beshear and leaders from Ford Motor Co. and SK On celebrated a transformative $5.8 billion investment that will create 5,000 jobs in Hardin County. In April 2022, the Governor was joined by leadership at AESC to announce a $2 billion investment that will create 2,000 jobs in Warren County. These announcements solidify Kentucky as the EV battery production capital of the United States.
That position was strengthened even further in May 2023, when the Governor and leaders at Toyota announced a $591 million investment across multiple projects as the company’s largest manufacturing operation in Georgetown introduces its first battery electric vehicle. Growth within the EV sector continued into June as Gov. Beshear joined INFAC North America to break ground on the company’s $53 million investment to support EV-related production in Campbellsville.
Over a two-month period this year, Kentucky secured two credit rating increases from major agencies. On May 12, Gov. Beshear announced that his administration obtained the first state-level credit rating upgrade in 13 years and the first-ever upgrade from Fitch Ratings. On June 29, Gov. Beshear announced the commonwealth received its first-ever rating increase from S&P Global Ratings.
Site Selection magazine recently placed Kentucky first in the South Central region and top-5 nationally in its 2023 Prosperity Cup ranking, which recognizes state-level economic development agencies for their success in landing capital investment projects. The publication also placed Kentucky second nationwide and first in the South Central region for its annual Governor’s Cup ranking for 2022, which recognizes state-level economic success based on capital investments.
Gov. Beshear recently announced a new “Supply Kentucky” initiative with the goal of boosting job growth, reducing costs and providing more security in the supply chains of our Kentucky companies.
To encourage the investment and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) today preliminarily approved a 15-year incentive agreement with the company under the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based agreement can provide up to $500,000 in tax incentives based on the company’s investment of $5.35 million and annual targets of:
- Creation and maintenance of 40 Kentucky-resident, full-time jobs across 15 years; and
- Paying an average hourly wage of $26.00 including benefits across those jobs.
By meeting its annual targets over the agreement term, the company can be eligible to keep a portion of the new tax revenue it generates. The company may claim eligible incentives against its income tax liability and/or wage assessments.
In addition, HVAC Distributing can receive resources from Kentucky’s workforce service providers. Those include no-cost recruitment and job placement services, reduced-cost customized training and job-training incentives.
For more information on HVAC Distributing, visit HVAC-Distributing.com.
A detailed community profile for Graves County can be viewed here.
Information on Kentucky’s economic development efforts and programs is available at CED.ky.gov. Fans of the Cabinet for Economic Development can also join the discussion at facebook.com/CEDkygov, on Twitter @CEDkygov, Instagram @CEDkygov and LinkedIn.
Read about other key updates, actions and information from Gov. Beshear and his administration at governor.ky.gov and the Governor’s official social media accounts Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
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