Arkansas HVACR NewsMagazine March 2025

HVACR NewsMagazine March 2025

State National Chapter News

instance, Brown said, customer equipment warranties went unfiled, and employee deductions were wrong or nonexistent. Thinking about the future of the company, the Browns consulted with their accountant, who told them that the company was viable. “And so he helped us seal the deal,” Brown said. “We would just hunker down and make this work.” Kelly Brown resigned from the bank and went to work for AAF. Still, the company was in a crisis. It had $6,000 in the bank to make a $20,000 payroll for about two dozen employees. The Browns transferred their personal money into the company’s account to “make it work,” she said. The Browns didn’t pay themselves for three months. The couple worked all the time, forgoing vacations and personal purchases. “We’re trying to be very strategic in what our expenses were,” Brown said. “So obviously ‘efficiency’ couldn’t be the word. ‘Survival’ was the word.” Meanwhile, Darren Brown aggressively bid for jobs. “We began to properly bill and collect accordingly,” Kelly Brown said. AAF’s business has grown since 2018 to include serving large strip centers, hotels and medical buildings. The company handles everything from fabrication to installation to follow-up or maintenance. It also has added commercial plumbing services. Trammell was charged with 29 counts of bank fraud, but 28 of them were dismissed when she pleaded guilty.

Kelly Brown said she was happy with Trammell’s sentence last year, which had been delayed because she was being treated for breast cancer, according to the court file. She said that if a business owner is going through a crisis like that experienced by AAF, the owner should seek advice from professionals and friends. “It will be humbling but share your story and listen to their advice,” she said. “Your advisers will sustain you with encouragement, offer realistic advice and graciously cheer you on to financial stability and success.” Article provided by writer , Mark Friedman, and Arkansas Business. We appreciate their contributing valuable information to the Arkansas HVACR industry. You can subscribe to Arkansas Business at this link https://arkansasbusiness.dragonforms.com/loading.do?omedasite=AB _prefs&version=1&page=1&oly_enc_id=9130A7779801A2S