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September 17, 2018

Promo Firms Reopen Following Hurricane Florence

By  John Corrigan

Hurricane Florence has been downgraded to a tropical depression after ravaging the Carolinas over the weekend. Historic rainfall and flash floods continued to slam the states on Monday, with more than 500,000 homes and businesses still without power. Many of the 1,931 ASI-listed suppliers and distributors in the projected major impact areas had closed down last week due to mandatory evacuations. As of Monday morning, a significant number of those promo firms had resumed normal business operations.

“We dodged a bullet,” said Christopher Bernat, chief revenue officer at Charleston, SC-based Vapor Apparel (asi/93396). “There was no damage to our facilities at all. The only impact we felt was the impact of USPS, FedEx and UPS not shipping due to mandatory evacuations by state officials. Our UPS, USPS and FedEx pick-ups are now back on schedule.”

Fellow Charleston-based supplier Grey Ghost Bakery (asi/58214) has reopened after receiving very little rain and wind. “The story of the Grey Man – the story behind our company name – holds that he is a friendly ghost who warns coastal residents that bad storms are coming and that if you see him, you and your property will escape damage from the storm,” said Katherine Frankstone, the firm’s owner. “There were several reports in South Carolina and North Carolina last week that the Grey Man was sighted, so we think he must have worked his ghostly magic to weaken the storm.”

Brand Fuel (asi/145025), headquartered in Morrisville, NC, with offices in Virginia, South Carolina and Georgia, has also resumed normal business operations. The NC-based office sustained light flooding and a tornado warning where the staff found themselves huddled in the center of the office surrounded by promo projectiles, said Danny Rosin, co-president of Brand Fuel. Fortunately, the tornado missed them by six miles. Many folks are working remotely until flooding subsides in surrounding areas.

“We have one displaced account manager from Wilmington who is working remote and praying his belongings are OK,” Rosin said. “We’re the lucky ones. We appreciate everyone’s outreach. We’re fortunate to work in an amazing community-driven industry.”

Charlotte, NC-based JournalBooks/Timeplanner Calendars (asi/91340), part of Top 40 supplier Polyconcept North America’s umbrella, remains fully operational after its facility wasn’t impacted. “We had several team members that experienced minor flooding and power outages at their homes, but we’re grateful that we’re all safe and unharmed,” said Tim O’Boyle, president of JournalBooks. “Many of the surrounding counties and parts of North Carolina were devastated, and our neighbors have suffered great losses.”

Fellow Charlotte-based suppliers Century Place Apparel (asi/85988) and Citadel Brands LLC (asi/45222) also remained opened. “Luckily for us and our employees, everyone is safe and there is no damage,” said Tim Stiene, vice president of sales at Century Place Apparel.

Due to excessive flooding in North Carolina, the state’s transportation department has warned people not to travel in or through the state, CNN reported. Officials report at least 23 people have died since the storm’s arrival on Friday, The Washington Post reported. Emergency workers have made at least 1,000 swift-water rescues by early Monday, according to the North Carolina Department of Public Safety. “This remains a significant disaster that affects much of our state,” Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina said on Monday afternoon. “The next few days will be long ones as the flooding continues.”

Florence made landfall 10 miles east of Wrightsville Beach, NC, on Friday morning as a Category 1 hurricane with 90 mph winds, CBS News reported. The center of the depression was about 240 miles west of Charlottesville, VA, on Monday, according to the National Weather Service. The storm is expected to move north before heading toward the Ohio Valley, hitting West Virginia and western Pennsylvania on Tuesday.