Established in 1986, Air Conditioning Today is celebrating its 40th Anniversary this year. Beginning with a lady by the name of Mary Redmond as its 1st publisher, she grew the Texas based newspaper from a fledging startup serving the wholesale air conditioning industry, into a publication that covered not only Texas, but the 4 surrounding states of Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas & New Mexico.
After 14 years under Ms. Redmond’s leadership, two individuals joined the publication, each with 24 years’ experience, respectively, in the air conditioning trade and newspaper industry. Joe and Janice Eaton assumed the duties of publishing the newspaper later in 2000 when Ms. Redmond married and wanted to spend more time with her husband.
Building on what Ms. Redmond had already established, the Eaton’s continued to work with wholesale distributors for advertising and editorial content. The two continued to grow the paper in size, staff and reach with over 21,000 readers across the 5 states. After 15 years of continuous market penetration, another individual presented the Eaton’s with an opportunity to retire.
With many years of experience in the building trades, Mr. Lance Lackey began working with the Eaton’s in August of 2014, immersing himself in the daily operations of the paper. After about 6 months, he assumed the responsibilities of publisher. An additional 11 years has elapsed since, with Mr. Lackey growing the paper even larger by including the state of Mississippi…..now covering Texas and the “five” surrounding states. Air Conditioning Today also has added a Google based website that grows in readership each month.
The dedication, drive and growth of the wholesalers and contractors in this industry has helped propel our trade into one of the largest industries in the world. Here in our Southwest market, we are the largest contributor to that industry in the United States. Air Conditioning Today is proud to be the voice in our region. We hope this publication has helped provide an avenue and resource to help contractors and distributors succeed and prosper…..from this paper’s beginnings in 1986 to the present day in 2026. HAPPY 40TH ANNIVERSARY!!