Strategy sessions for HVAC owners in New Brunswick

Cold winters, coast and inland

Winters across New Brunswick bring real cold and plenty of snow, and they bite harder inland and up north than on the Fundy shore. Heating demand is strong for much of the year.

What it means in a session: heat pumps installed in recent years will need maintenance, and some will need repairs as they age. That installed base is a business asset if the company keeps in touch with those customers. Ali often points New Brunswick owners toward service agreements as the natural follow-on to a busy conversion period.

A market led by heat pumps

According to Statistics Canada, 39% of New Brunswick households used electricity as their main heating energy in 2023, 6% used wood, and heat pumps were the main heating system in 27% of households.

As of October 2026, Save Energy NB, run by NB Power, lists home programs including incentives for energy-saving renovations. The oil-to-heat-pump stream co-delivered with the federal government closed to new registrations on 30 June 2026; upgrades under it must be completed by 31 March 2027. Confirm current program terms directly with Save Energy NB.

What it means in a session: when a program closes, demand doesn't vanish, but it changes. Customers who were waiting for a grant may now shop on price. Ali helps owners plan a marketing budget that doesn't rely on program messaging, and check that install pricing still holds up without it.

A worked example: what a heat pump customer is worth after the install

Take a company that installed 300 heat pumps during the conversion years. If a third of those customers sign a maintenance plan at $25 a month, that's 100 members and $30,000 a year in plan revenue, before any repairs. If even one in five members needs a repair in a given year at an average of $450, that adds another $9,000. None of that needs a new program or a new customer. It needs a list of past installs, a simple plan and a phone call. Ali often starts New Brunswick sessions by asking whether that list exists.

A note on communication

In smaller markets, how a company follows up often matters more than how it advertises. A short call or text a week after an install, and a reminder before the first maintenance visit is due, builds the kind of loyalty that keeps customers from shopping around.

Regulators to know

New Brunswick's Technical Inspection Services licenses electrical contractors and plumbing licence holders and issues permits for gas installations, boilers and pressure vessels. Ali doesn't advise on licensing or permits; go directly to the province.

The New Brunswick business mix, and how Ali approaches it

The main centres are Moncton, Saint John and Fredericton, with Dieppe, Riverview, Quispamsis, Miramichi and Edmundston among the larger communities. Markets are relatively small, so a company's reputation travels fast, and the same few competitors appear on every quote. Distances between communities make drive time a meaningful cost.

Typical New Brunswick session topics:

• After the conversion wave: replacing install revenue with service and agreements
• Price discipline: holding install prices when grants no longer cushion the customer's cost, using the pricing and margin session
• Small-market hiring: keeping trained techs when larger employers recruit them
• Succession: planning ahead in family-run companies, through exit thinking

If you run an HVAC company in New Brunswick, call, text or email Ali with your community and the decision you're facing. Other provinces are on the areas page.