Aid CitiFloral of Yorkville
Don protégé
CitiFloral and Jeff Gaster need your financial beneficence to continue to operate a Yorkville institution providing fine flowers, comfort and service to our loyal customers in New York City.
With the imminent sale of life insurance policies--our only asset of liquid value--we are planning to pay a substantial amount of the rent we owe to our very understanding landlord for the past year. Without this godsend, our 33 year tenure on York Avenue would probably have ended.
That still leaves us with additional amounts owed for store rent and delivery vehicle parking--as well as taxes and delivery vehicle parking summonses that we still owe. We are pleased that cash flow has stabilized--but this is not sufficient pay off the substantial debts that we owe to the government.
We are optimistic about the future--especially as Jeff continues to respond to chemotherapy treatments to counteract cancer that was discovered last year. Our loyal staff of many years remains intact--as CitiFloral continues to achieve excellence in its service to our customers and friends--whom we value so highly.
We are determined to survive the challenges we now face--but we desperately need some additional assistance from our loyal supporters. Each new or additional contribution will provide us the support necessary to reduce or wipe out the existing obligations that will allow us to continue as a vital, profitable enterprise.
OUR HEARTFELT THANKS FOR THE SUPPORT OF OUR GOOD SMARITANS
When we started our campaign, CitiFloral and Jeff Gaster could not anticipate the tremendous outpouring of financial and moral support we have received from friends and Good Samaritans. We found a great partner in the GoFundMe organization--which has grown into a vital part of our American social community. The willingness of Americans to help each other when they recognize that a worthy organization or cause is in need has become evident with the success of GoFundMe. Their emergence as a platform matching needs with donors is an amazing success story. They are hosting campaigns for the famous, the infamous, the needy and the downtrodden--including such personalities as Michael Cohen. GoFundMe's success story
CitiFloral and Jeff Gaster are truly in need of your financial support to help us succeed past our current hurdles. Please consider making a gift to our campaign and sharing our story and request with other Good Samaritans.
CITIFLORAL'S HISTORY AND PREDICAMENT
In 1986, Jeff Gaster and Gene Burdge combined their diverse talents and created their vision of a retail florist that would provide style, elegance, value and service to their Yorkville Upper East Side neighborhood and all of Manhattan. CitiFloral was created and came to life in a York Avenue storefront that beckoned to them as an ideal location in that thriving city with which they were well acquainted.
CitiFloral's reputation was soon established--and Jeff and Gene attracted a following of diverse people in the neighborhood--some were famous, but everyone received their personal attention, as only a small business can do. We also became known throughout the city--and attracted established accounts with larger and smaller businesses, residential buildings, and a large cadre of followers--many of which are still loyal to us until today.
In the beginning, Gene has started managing the store by himself--but soon Jeff left his legal practice to manage the business full time--and Jeff has managed to overcome obstacles to still be working here every day. Jeff has found CitiFloral to be the joyful creation of his life--and will continue to pursue the continued growth and vitality of the business...perhaps forever.
The business has mirrored the vicissitudes of the floral industry--but has taken advantage of golden opportunities that presented themselves during their pursuits. At one time, we were the biggest sender of international orders from the US--and as a result became the premier florist delivering international orders in New York.
Jeff developed a substantial internet and telephone business for CitiFloral in the early years of our business. This produced a large number of regular followers and deliveries in the city--as well as many out-of-town orders, many of which were sent to florists with whom we had developed meaningful reciprocal relationships through floral wire services like FTD and Teleflora.
CitiFloral became well known in the floral industry across the country--in part due to a cover story in Teleflora's national magazine. We duplicated this public relations coup recently when Jeff and CitiFloral were the featured article in BloomNet's national Floriology.
Over time, CitiFloral developed a tight-knit loyal staff of florists who understand our business, our customers, and their needs. We co-existed positively in a relatively small space--changed over time--and produced and delivered an enormous amount of floral arrangements and gift baskets at our peak of business. Our staff has learned to be experts on the job at CitiFloral--in large part due to our mentor Gene Burdge (who passed on several years ago.)
Unfortunately, we were not spared by the economic depression--which hit our customers and business with a blow that still haunts all of us. As a result, business declined in 2008. But, we could not foresee a crucial moment that would affect our business radically.
Early one morning in 2009, Jeff started working in the basement of the store--where a malfunctioning humidifier had created a veritable flood. He heard a bang on our sidewalk door--then silence. When he went upstairs to investigate what was happening, he found two youths (from outside our neighborhood) attempting to steal our cash register. After he thought he'd scared them off, one of the culprits punched him in the face. Jeff landed on the concrete floor--knocked unconscious.
The super of a neighboring building saw the assailants--part of a pack of six--run away. He came to Jeff's aid and called the police. A large contingent of the 19th Precinct arrived soon thereafter. And the super went with the police to chase after the criminals--who were apprehended.
It was a tumultuous morning--but Jeff regrouped with a shower and returned to work as if it were a normal day. But, that was not to be the end.
The district attorney called Jeff and the super to testify at a grand jury hearing for the culprits later that week. Jeff had to wait for most of the day in the DA's sweltering offices beset by nearly 100 degree humid heat--confined with no air conditioning in inhuman conditions.
When the hearing was finally over, it was rush hour--so no cabs were available. Jeff took the subway--standing the whole trip. Totally exhausted, when he got off the train, Jeff ran up the station stairs--but collapsed on the upper level platform--hitting his head on concrete again. Fortunately, some friends helped him go back to our store.
About a month later, Jeff started to have trouble walking and even talking. It was apparent that he had suffered severe brain injuries and that the only solution was to go to an emergency room.
He was brought to New York Hospital--where he was operated on for a traumatic brain injury which had caused life-threatening blood on his brain. He then spent more than three months at that hospital, Mount Sinai and Terence Cardinal Cooke--before returning home.
Jeff yearned to return to work as soon as he was physically able. But, then he encountered an unimaginable obstacle. While he was in the hospitals, his sister and her family had descended upon New York with an agenda of taking control of the business and his apartment--without any authority. After his sister and niece moved into his apartment, the landlord threw them out. But, they continued to work at the store--along with Jeff's nephew. They did their best to control Jeff's life and refused to allow him to come into the store or contact his employees.
On Valentine's Day 2010, Jeff attempted to get flowers for his aide from the store--but his sister and niece refused and then turned them away from the door. The, his nephew took him on a wheelchair ride to a store so the nephew could buy food for himself. En route, the nephew explained how he had terminated some the websites Jeff had built over the years and had ended the internet advertising program which had created the cash flow needed to support the business. Meanwhile, during that week, his sister badgered him to sell the business--threatening to put it into bankruptcy (which she had no authority to do). Basically defenseless, he held her off until that Thursday.
On that day, Jeff went to his first visit with Dr. April, a neurologist--an event that was to change his life in an instant. His sister, niece and aide had accompanied him--and were sitting in the doctor's large amphitheater shaped office--when he announced the results of a brain scan that had just been performed on Jeff's brain. Dr. April announced that his brain appeared "normal" and asked Jeff what he wanted to do first.
Jeff announced that he wanted to go back to work at the store--which his sister had prevented him from even entering for nearly three months while he was home. Dr. April said he would meet Jeff there. And, then his sister started a ruckus--objecting strenuously. Dr. April would have none of this in his office and asked her "Who do you think you are?"
It was a moment you would expect to see in a movie--but it happened in real life. The niece immediately left town--and the sister did the next day.
And Saturday Jeff returned to work.
Jeff spent that day searching through the financial books and files at the store to uncover the dastardly deeds perpetrated by the unholy trio during their control of the store. He had known or suspected some of their activities--but was shocked as he began to uncover the rest.
Jeff assumed control of the store again from that day on. The trio had already used much of Jeff's assets for themselves and the store during his absence--but they left behind a mountain of debt--that Jeff eventually had to draw on his remaining assets in order to take of these obligations.
After experiencing a very busy period resulting in large part from the internet business Jeff had created--but the nephew had dismantled--the business encountered a paltry amount of sales. Jeff focused his efforts on rebuilding internet sales through organic marketing and reinforcing the business's ties with established accounts and the floral wire services.
It would turn out to be a long uphill struggle--as Jeff attempted to rebuild the business--which had previously grossed $1 million a year. The cash flow--which had enabled the business to regularly pay its bills on time--became sporadic and made it difficult to navigate the financial predicaments they encountered at times.
The floral business had changed dramatically since Jeff and Gene brought CitiFloral into the world. The local business of independent florists like CitiFloral was siphoned off by the wire services--who competed for customer orders that they then gave to florists to fill--and "order gatherers" who posed as if they were local florists. While CitiFloral continued to create and deliver a substantial number of orders, more were done for wire services--and less for their own orders.
Then in September 2017, Verizon experienced a cable outage that they couldn't fix for more than a month. Unbelievably, CitiFloral tried to operate without normal phone service and internet service during that period. We lost most of the sales we would have had for the month--and the loss of cash flow prevented us from continuing to pay normal bills timely. This had a cascading effect for months after.
As a small business required to make deliveries in the city, we had substantial costs for our vehicles, insurance, maintenance and parking tickets. And then one day--as Jeff prepared to go to the hospital--one of our vans was taken by the marshal--and subsequently sold at auction. We bought the van back from the person who obtained it at auction for $3,200 cash--money that we really needed for bills--but which was the only way to get our signature vehicle back. We are now trying to register the van with DMV--but we have to pay for some old parking tickets to do so.
As difficult a journey as the 32 years of CitiFloral has been, Jeff was just dealt another blow that could affect his future and the business.
Jeff was operated on last month at New York Presbyterian to remove a large mass in his abdomen. The operation was successful--but the mass turned out to be a malignant tumor caused by cancer. Jeff has been back to work during every day since he returned from the hospital--but he needs to regain his strength--having lost 40 pounds in the ordeal with cancer so far. He is getting around with a walker--and trying to resume his physical duties at CitiFloral. The next steps for Jeff to combat this cancer are a costly and physically taxing combination of chemotherapy and radiation.
Jeff has received a great outpouring of support for his battle with cancer that's just now beginning--which has spurred him on to resolve never to give up hope in anything.
Right now, we are hopeful about the prospects for our business. We have been involved in a partnership with Affinity Data--which is providing us with marketing support and website hosting at no cost--since 2016. We have benefited from the services of Main Street Hub in building our social media presence. We are also working with Signpost to build our connections with existing customers and enhance our public image.
The summer is usually a difficult season for CitiFloral and other florists. But, despite the recent problems we encountered, our internet sales and other sources of orders exceeded expectations. And we have successfully reconnected with past customers and received some stellar 5-star reviews--which are very important for our public image.
So you ask--Why are we mounting this GoFundMe campaign now? We are really strapped for cash resources at the moment--and need some help to right our ship and pay down some very patient creditors--including our landlord who has shown tremendous support and beneficence over the years.
And we have found no private companies or public programs that would help an established small business in our position.
CitiFloral has a great history and reputation that we want to keep building.
With hat in hand and pride in our accomplishments, we ask for your help in making the future of CitiFloral even brighter than its past. 32 years.
Organisateur
Jeff Gaster
Organisateur
New York, NY