Tradesource Member Profile: Cold Wave Heating & Cooling Service
One day, while Robert Scheffrin was working in his father’s refrigerated warehouse in Denver, when the freezer broke down. He was fascinated by what the repairman was doing and asked him how to get into the business. The next day, he enrolled in vocational school, and went on to start his own commercial refrigeration business. The 1980’s recession, that hurt the commercial business, the fact that there are a lot more private homes needing air conditioning and job opportunities in warm climates than in Colorado, and the fact that he likes socializing with customers convinced him to become an air conditioning repairman in Arizona.
Robert soon started his own company—Cold Wave Heating & Cool Service. When he bought a fixer-upper house in Arizona, he was in dire need of getting his pool resurfaced, but could not afford it. He wound up swapping services with a pool contractor who needed a swamp cooler, and his love of barter was born.
Robert found, though, that it was difficult to conduct barter one-on-one and, while watching an Oprah show, discovered that there were companies that could efficiently facilitate trades, and began joining barter organizations. He even joined an international group in New Zealand, where he met his wife, conceived his now year-old son and vacations in luxury often.
Robert joined Tradesource 12 years ago, and has found it to be a huge help to his business. “Tradesource has the most diverse set of merchants to deal with in Arizona.”
