Controlling the Journey: Marc Wilson’s HVACR industry story
Marc Wilson remembers feeling slightly out of place on his first day of trades training at Nova Scotia Community College (NSCC).
"I had applied for the plumbing, electrical, and oil heat systems mechanic course, but I wasn't a tradesperson at the time and wasn't even the most handy guy," he recalls. "They went around the room asking why we wanted to be in this trade, and while a lot of the others were in it because they were training to be part of a family business, I was like, 'I have no idea.' I knew nothing about oil except that there was always money in it."
Not knowing what to expect but recognizing the potential for a rewarding career, Marc persisted through the 20-week program and his pre-apprentice internships with Wilson Fuels, same name no relation…a division of Kerr Controls.
“Once I started, I loved it,” he admits. “I loved just building something with my hands, learning new skills and becoming mechanically inclined. I’d never done that growing up, so it was cool to get right into it.”
Following the program, Marc joined Wilson Fuels full-time as a Red Seal Oil Burner Mechanic. Here, he continued working the tools for several years before moving to Corner Brook Newfoundland to support his wife's career as an audiologist. And while the move initially meant saying goodbye to Wilson and the trade he had started to love, Marc soon found an interesting new career opportunity with Kerr Controls in his new home.
“I saw that Kerr Controls was starting an outside sales team, and I knew Kerr was a sister company of Wilson’s. I loved working for Wilson back in Nova Scotia, and I had a good background in oil, so I applied and, fortunately, they hired me,” he says.
Marc was one of the first to join Kerr’s outside sales team. He was entrusted with a sizable territory across Western Newfoundland and Labrador–a responsibility that also came with a steep learning curve. It was also during this time that he started gaining more experience working with HVAC equipment, such as propane furnaces, boilers, and heat pumps.
Over the next four years, Marc continued to gain hands-on experience in the HVAC trade. Eventually, his wife would receive a new job opportunity back in Nova Scotia, but this time the relocation did not put a pause on his budding career.
"I went to Kerr and said, 'Look, my wife wants us to go back home, but I don't want to leave. I love this job, and you guys are great to work for, but this is something I need
to do for my family,'" he recounts. "That was when Kerr said, 'Don't worry, you don't have to leave. We don't have an outside sales position right now for that territory, but we don't want you to go, so we'll find something for you in the meantime.'"
True to its word, Kerr did find an inside sales position for Wilson at its Dartmouth Branch in Nova Scotia. Then, only a year and a half after his move, Marc was offered a new outside sales position where he continued to hone his skills in a more competitive market.
Ten years later, Marc has made a home at Kerr as an Outside Sales Rep with the company. And while it's been some time since he's worked hands-on with the HVAC products he's selling, experiences from those early days continue to provide invaluable in his current role: "What's great about having that experience is it gives me a bit of an in with contractors. To them, I'm a salesperson who has been where they've been; I know what it can be like working down in a basement or working in the rain and snow slugging oil tanks. It's not always a pretty thing, and I get that."
"It also helps that I've had my hands on the material that I'm selling to people, like the boilers," he continues. "I've serviced them, and I've been in their shoes when it comes to needing parts quickly because their customer needs heat right now."
All told, Marc is thankful he decided to enter the trade all those years ago. He also appreciates finding a company that invested in his potential early on and supported his journey to becoming a trusted seller in the HVAC space.
“Kerr really worked with me and made me feel like I was a part of the company, not just somebody who's replaceable,” he says.
Marc adds his story shows that a career in the trades doesn't always have to start from family traditions. That, and that the best way to keep talent in the trade is to support them from the start: "Investing in your people does make a difference. I'm proof that if you, as a company, show you're willing to invest in your people, your people will be willing to invest back into you."
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