The Partner Network Advantage: How Ongaro & Sons Uncovered $20,000 Hiding in Plain Sight
In a world where contractors fight for every percentage point of margin, one of the most readily available profit levers is often overlooked: rebates. Not special promotions. Not complicated programs. Rebates already available to you as a CertainPath member.
For Ongaro & Sons—a respected, fourth-generation plumbing, HVAC, and electrical business serving Northern California since 1932—this hidden value was massive. When they fully engaged with the CertainPath Partner Network, they unlocked money they had been leaving on the table.
What they found wasn’t theoretical. It wasn’t promised. It was real cash—over $20,000—waiting to be claimed.
And all of it was hiding in plain sight.
A 732% Growth Moment — Without Changing a Single Purchase
Ongaro & Sons had always received small quarterly rebates—typically $2,000–$3,000—from CertainPath partners like Bradford White, Resideo, Moen, and Ferguson.
But nothing close to what they were eligible for.
When CertainPath encouraged them to begin reporting their full purchasing activity through the Partner Network, everything changed:
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Rebates increased 47% from Q4 2024 to Q1 2025
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Overall rebates grew 732% once full reporting began
And importantly:
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They did not change where they bought, who they bought from, or what they bought.
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They began reporting in a more structured and consistent way.
Finding the Hidden Money: The Trane / American Standard Breakthrough
By properly registering their Trane distributors with the Partner Network, Ongaro & Sons became eligible for rebates they previously were not receiving. After working together to complete the registration and submission process, the company earned $17,661 in new rebate dollars—money that would have otherwise been missed.
More Hidden Rebates Surface
Once proper reporting and registrations were in place, multiple manufacturers showed dramatic increases in payout:
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Bradford White: +344%
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White-Rodgers: +1,158%
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Moen: +9,684%
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Rinnai: Rebates received for the first time ever
Again, Ongaro didn’t shift their buying patterns. The money had been available the entire time, but they weren’t connected to it. *[*Grammar fix: changed “weren’t connected to it” to “they weren’t connected to it” for parallel structure/subject-verb agreement with the previous clause]
Home Depot: Another Stream of Quiet Cashflow
In April, Ongaro added CertainPath’s corporate code and registered all company credit cards on the Home Depot website. In only six months, without any behavior change, they’ve already accumulated: *[*Style fix: spelled out “6” for consistency with other numbers in prose]
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$33,789.75 in YTD Home Depot purchases
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At a 2.8% rebate, that’s a minimum of $946 in free money headed their way in Q4
Another example of profit hiding in the open.
What Ongaro Says About the Partner Network
To Ongaro’s new Logistics Operations Manager, Ben Borsian, the experience highlighted what true partnership looks like: *[*Grammar fix: added ‘the’ before Partner Network in the heading, and capitalized ‘Manager’ to match the title style in the quote]
“In Q2 we received more than $20,000 from partner payouts alone. Requesting purchase history is easy, especially when you explain it’s for a rebate program. Once you have it, you can review spending habits and spot improvements or inconsistencies. Having those reports is a great asset in holding vendors accountable and designing new partnerships.”
— Ben Borsian, Ongaro & Sons
The Takeaway: Profit You Don’t Have to Work For
This is the power of the CertainPath Partner Network:
Money that contractors don’t realize is theirs… until someone shows them where to find it.
For Ongaro & Sons, the impact was immediate and undeniable:
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Over $20,000 in cash uncovered
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No new vendors
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No operational changes
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No extra purchasing
Their story is more than a win. It’s a reminder.
Every contractor has money hiding in plain sight, but many never look.
With CertainPath and the Partner Network, contractors get more than access—they get advocacy, reporting support, and someone fighting for rebates that would otherwise be lost or denied.
Ongaro found $20,000. How much is hiding in plain sight inside your business?
