Cloning a coding gene into a non-expression vector
In principle, you can amplify any gene with PCR and then clone it into a vector of choice. However, it is often not as easy. Most things can be done with expression vectors, but sometimes it is easier to clone a sequence first and then subclone it.

Some sequences are hard to amplify, especially when they get long or very long. Amplifying 2,5kb can be tricky, digesting and subcloning such a piece might be easier. Additionally yields of PCR can be low, while you get a lot of DNA from a miniprep.

You might want to introduce additional restriction enzyme recognition sites (one can easily be done via PCR, but more again is tricky), linker or additional tags, which are not present in all expression vectors. Then it is easier to simply do a first cloning step into the non-expression vector and then take the complete insert into the expression vector.