Unlocking Hidden Spend Value for a Commercial HVAC Contractor
How a 6-Person HVAC Business Turned $70K in Monthly Spend Into Over $30K in Annual Value
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A 6-person commercial HVAC business was spending $70K/month on a Chase Ink Unlimited card — earning 1.5% cash back... and not even redeeming it.
They partnered with UpNonStop to optimize every dollar:
✅ Moved spend to high-multiplier cards (3x–5x)
✅ Centralized travel booking — all on transferable points
✅ Outsourced all redemptions (owner just replies “yes” in Slack)
✅ No new tools, hires, or training required
Result?
Return on spend jumped to 5.2%+
Over $30,000/year in net value unlocked
Owner flew business class to Japan for free
Tech team gets quarterly Vegas trips — paid in points
And it’s fully managed. No apps. No point hacking. Just pure ROI.
Spending $20K+/mo on cards?
You're likely sitting on 5–6 figures of untapped value.
Everything else you need to know is just below 👇🏻
The Business at a Glance
Industry: Commercial HVAC
Team Size: 6 employees
Annual Revenue: $1.5M
Monthly Card Spend: $70,000
Primary Spend Categories:
- Equipment & Parts
- Fuel
- Supplier Orders
- Travel for Regional Installations
This contractor operated a lean team, with a sizable monthly card volume flowing through a single Chase Ink Unlimited card — a card known for simplicity but limited upside.
Pre-UpNonStop: Money Left on the Table
Before working with UpNonStop, the business was operating with a familiar but inefficient setup.
Snapshot of Their Situation
- Card Used: Chase Ink Unlimited (1.5% flat cash back)
- Return on Spend: Approx. 1.6% (including occasional promos)
- Monthly Card Spend: $70,000
- Annual Value Captured: Under $14,000 — and most of it unredeemed
The business owner admitted he was simply “letting the points accumulate.” No redemptions. No planning. Just vague intentions of “using them someday.”
Pain Points Holding the Business Back
1. Points Just Sat Unused
There was no strategy for redeeming rewards. The office didn’t touch them, and the owner was too busy managing field teams and logistics to prioritize point optimization.
2. High-Spend Categories Were Misaligned with Low-Reward Cards
Most of the business’s largest purchases — equipment, fuel, and supplier payments — were earning a flat 1.5%. Many of these could have earned 3x to 5x with proper card stacking.
3. Last-Minute Travel Bookings at Retail Prices
Technicians traveled frequently for out-of-state installs. Travel was often booked day-of or day before — at full retail rates, without any central coordination.
4. Owner Wasn’t Interested in Managing a Card Strategy
He knew there had to be a better way, but didn’t want to spend time learning redemption tools, booking portals, or card optimization tricks.
Enter UpNonStop: Centralized Strategy, Full-Service Execution
Step 1: UpTop Onboarding
The first step was an in-depth onboarding session through UpTop, UpNonStop’s strategic setup service. This involved:
- Audit of Existing Spend – identifying categories eligible for bonus multipliers
- Card Optimization Plan – sourcing cards tailored to supplier, travel, and fuel spend
- Redemption Prioritization – establishing travel goals, timelines, and redemption windows
Step 2: Spend Alignment with High-Multiplier Cards
The office wasn’t trained to manage a card ecosystem — nor did they need to be. With UpNonStop, the strategy was implemented and managed externally.
Key Shifts:
- Fuel Spend → Moved to a card offering 4x on gas
- Equipment Orders → Shifted to a card with 3x on industrial spend categories
- Travel → Centralized onto a card earning transferable points (5x on flights, 3x on hotels)
Each vendor or spend type was mapped to the card yielding maximum long-term value.
Step 3: Burn Strategy — Hands-Off Travel Redemption
This was the turning point.
Instead of learning how to book travel through transfer portals or manage redemption strategies, the owner outsourced the burn process entirely.
Now, when a trip is needed — whether personal or team-related — the request goes into Slack or email, and UpNonStop handles the entire booking using the best redemption options available.
Results That Transformed the Business
Return on Spend: Jump from 1.6% to 5.2%+
By implementing a card stack that aligned with the business’s actual spending patterns and handing off the redemption process, the return on $70K/month skyrocketed.
- Pre-UpNonStop Annual Value: ~$13,500
- Post-UpNonStop Annual Value: ~$43,600
- Net Gain: Over $30,000/year
And all of this was achieved without changing vendors, increasing spend, or retraining staff.
Real-World Wins
Owner’s Business Class Trip to Japan — Free
The HVAC supplier invited the owner to a product demo in Tokyo. Instead of flying economy on his own dime, he flew business class roundtrip — entirely on points.
- Redemption Value: ~$6,000
- Total Out-of-Pocket Cost: $0
Quarterly Team Fly-Outs to Vegas
Each quarter, a top-performing install crew is flown to Las Vegas for a two-day getaway. Flights, hotels, and even meals are booked using points.
- Team Size: 4–5 techs
- Quarterly Cost (in points): ~150,000
- Redemption Value Per Trip: $2,500–$3,000
- Team Morale Boost: Immeasurable
The Big Picture Impact
Beyond the numbers, here’s what changed:
1. The Owner Got Time Back
No more tinkering with redemption portals or calling airlines. Every burn request is handled end-to-end.
2. Team Morale Improved
Team incentive trips became a regular perk — not an annual “maybe.”
3. The Business Became More Competitive
Install techs often travel across states. By reducing travel costs via points, bids became more competitive — without cutting margins.
4. Supplier Spend Created Travel Value
Instead of spending tens of thousands monthly with no return, each supplier order now contributed to team and owner travel.
Why This Matters for Other Small Trades Businesses
Many contractors, service operators, and field-based businesses spend tens of thousands per month on cards — but barely scratch the surface of their potential value. Most use cards like Chase Ink Unlimited or Amex Blue Business, thinking 1.5% cash back is “good enough.”
The truth is:
- Points can earn 3x–5x on spend
- Points can redeem for 5x–10x in real-world value
- Hands-off services like UpNonStop do all the work for you
The UpNonStop Difference: Full Stack, Not Just Points
This contractor didn’t need to become a points expert — and didn’t want to.
What made this transformation possible was UpNonStop’s full-stack approach:
- Card Strategy (UpTop)
Initial optimization to align spend with high-multiplier cards - Execution
Actual usage, employee access, and payment routing - Burn Management
All travel booked externally, with no lift from the business - Slack-First Approvals
Owner only needed to reply “yes” when asked if he wanted the Vegas team trip booked.
Final Thoughts: Over $30,000 Unlocked — With Zero Workflow Disruption
This HVAC contractor unlocked over $30,000 in annual net value with no new hires, no software installations, and no change in operations. They didn’t spend more. They didn’t train their team. They just stopped wasting their existing spend.
If your business runs on credit cards and you’re not optimizing earn and burn, you're not just leaving points behind — you're leaving real cash value behind.
Ready to See What Your Business Is Missing?
If you're spending $20K+ per month on business cards and not actively redeeming travel points or managing card selection, UpNonStop could be your highest ROI vendor this year.
