Media Distributors Honors Customers by Helping Hurricane Sandy Victims
ELMHURST, III., Nov. 30, 2012 /PRNewswire-iReach/ -- Media Distributors and its sister companies, with manufacturer partners Sony, Fuji, Maxell and Panasonic, changed their usual holiday gift plans, which typically include sending candy, gift baskets or other tokens of appreciation to Media Distributors' loyal clients. This year, they decided a better use for the money would be a donation to the American Red Cross, in honor of their customers, to directly help those stricken by the recent devastation in New York, New Jersey and the east coast from super-storm Sandy.
Responding to Those in Need, Together With Manufacturer Partners
"We just felt it was the right thing to do," said Bob Daly, VP of Sales, and co-owner of Media Distributors. "Many of our customers and the manufacturers we've partnered with for 25 years or more are located in the areas still affected by the storms and flooding. Sony, Fuji, Maxell and Panasonic all have their US headquarters and several key management personnel stationed in New Jersey. All of a sudden, the value of a box of chocolates or a fruit basket wasn't so important as helping those in need. I know our customers will understand."
Typically, in past years, holiday gifts are funded through a joint effort between Media Distributors and the manufacturers they represent, for those who buy their respective media products. The total value of the donation was in excess of $15,000 and utilized the holiday gift budgets in lieu of sending gifts.
"It was really something special to see how the manufacturers and our employees could come together to make this happen,"' said Mike Cullen, President and co-owner of Media Distributors. "We matched the money from our promotional holiday budgets with each manufacturer, dollar for dollar," said Cullen. "I'm glad it all added up to a significant amount."
A Close Friend of the Company Affected; Employees Come Together to Help
The hurricane, combined with the resultant tidal surges and flooding severely affected many customers and friends of the company in the area. One manufacturer's rep who has worked closely with Media Distributors' east coast sales staff lost her house in New Jersey to severe flood damage. Another manufacturer's marketing specialist had severe flooding at his home.
"When we heard about that, our employees made a separate collection amongst themselves to help them out, which Mike and I will also match. It really was a hard dose of reality when we heard that great folks we knew had lost so much because of this", said Daly. "We thank God that no one we know was hurt, but cannot imagine what it must feel like to lose your home. We just had to do something. "
American Red Cross Response
In response to Superstorm Sandy and the following Nor'easter, the American Red Cross is on the ground providing food, shelter, supplies and comfort for people affected by Sandy. We continue to distribute relief supplies across all five New York boroughs (as well as Long Island) and New Jersey. Red Cross client casework teams are meeting with individuals and families in shelters to help them identify additional resources to help in their recovery process.
To make a donation to the American Red Cross, visit http://www.redcross.org/charitable-donations. You can also text REDCROSS to 90999 to donate $10 to American Red Cross Disaster Relief, which helps people affected by disasters such as hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, wildfires and tornadoes.(Charges will appear on your wireless bill, or be deducted from your prepaid balance.)
About Media Distributors
Celebrating it's 25th year, Media Distributors (formerly The Tape Company) has established itself as the nation's largest distributor of audio, video and data recording media to the US broadcast, entertainment and corporate industries. With sales offices and warehouses across the country, Media Distributors is able to provide same- or next-day delivery to most U.S. cities.