Pre-Schoolers Left Hanging on Graduation Day
Last year, Pre-K Parents of P.S. 198 in the Bronx paid almost $1,000 for custom graduation sashes. The big day came, but the kid's sashes were a no-show. It's been almost a year, still no sashes and no refund, so they called Help Me Howard.
In May of 2008, Doreene Bryan, Parent Coordinator for P.S. 198, ordered graduation supplies from Gordon International in Port Chester, NY.
According to the invoice, they were supposed to provide caps and gowns for the 5th graders, along with custom printed sashes for the pre-schoolers.
There was some confusion at the onset, but after discussing it with Gordon International, Doreene assumed the situation was resolved. Unfortunately, it was not. When graduation day came, the 5th graders had their caps and gowns, but the sashes were not included in the shipment. Now, the parents admit the kids really didn't understand what was going on, but their parents did and Doreene was left to be the bearer of bad news.
According to Doreene, when she called Gordon International about the sashes, they just gave her excuse after excuse. They've gone back and forth over the past year about getting a refund and promises that they would call her back, but they never did.
We called Gordon International ourselves and spoke with a representative over the phone. He told us they were issuing a credit to P.S. 198 for a future order. We asked him to present us with the offer, but he could not, admitting it was all verbal.
We asked Doreene if this was true, she said she would have never wanted a credit because it would be a different graduating class the next year, who knows if their parents would want or need the same sashes as the year before.
Either way, the Gordon International representative assured us that a check would be cut and sent out through regular mail. That was Wednesday, we will see if they are true to their word, if not Howard will be in Port Chester on Tuesday.
Check back for the update.
Comments: 3
To clarify, Gordon International is in Rye Brook, NY and not Port Chester, NY.
I saw your story on Gordon International and almost fell off my chair. We also had dealings with this company as a supplier. We are still waiting to get paid for graduation products we provided to them in 2007 (over $15,000 worth)! From what we've heard throughout our own industry (graduation related products)they have done this time and time again. How long can a company keep taking money from it's customers and not deliver and get away with it. We are currently seeking legal action against Mathew Gordon and Gordon International, but as i was told by Mathew himself, he has "layered" himself with so many companies we'll never see a dime from him. I do know that another supplier did win a judgement against him for $80,000 but lets face it, a judgement is only as good as the paper its written on if the party has no intention to pay. By the way, Port Chester was the correct address unless he's moved to Rye to cover his tracks once again. At the very least, some further investigation should be conducted on this company...i know there are plenty of other victims out there. Perhaps even the district attorney should be involved as i believe he intentionally takes peoples money and doesn't deliver. In any case, i hope the preschool gets their money back...I'm sure it's a small amount to pay to get the "Help Me Howard" spotlight off of him but I sure do hope other victims come forward who may have seen the segment. Thanks for a job well done...we consumers appreciate your efforts!
I am happy to say that we did recieve a check from Gordon International reimbursing us for the sashes. THANK YOU HELP ME HOWARD!!!!!