The Fall of Hammer Communications: How a Georgetown Ad Agency Built on McMansions Ended up in a Pile of Debt
If you were selling McMansions in the heat of the ’00s bubble, you probably came across Hammer Communications, a Georgetown real-estate advertising firm. The company had squadrons of creative talent who specialized in designing brochures and advertisements to make sure your overvalued properties fetched every last dollar. Hammer’s people would get good placements in the New Homes Guide, the Washington Times’ Friday Home Guide, the Washington Post’s real-estate section, and other pricey publications.
They worked with top regional builders including Basheer & Edgemoore, Pulte Homes, and Brookfield Homes.
But even those builders didn’t wow Hammer account executives the way K. Hovnanian Homes did. One of the country’s largest homebuilders, with revenues totaling more than $3 billion and 10,577 homes built in the last fiscal year, K. Hovnanian has colonized large patches of dirt all around the Washington region with its sprawling brick four-bedrooms and other attractive models.
“K. Hov” was a killer account for Hammer, an agency led by President/CEO Jack Shoptaw. Hammer pulled in boatloads of money from the builder, mainly for running advertising campaigns aimed at people looking for garages and grilling space in the suburbs. Duane Nash, a production artist, recalls that the “bulk of our work was coming from K. Hovnanian Homes and Toll Brothers. The thing was not to lose one of those two,” he says.
Toward that end, Hammer staffers received an assignment in spring 2008. They had to visit three communities by K. Hovnanian Homes, fill out a questionnaire, and return their findings to the company brass in three weeks. It was an extreme measure. Under less desperate circumstances, only account executives made in-person visits to clients’ communities, leaving the designers, production artists, and others back at the office.
Nash took time during his weekends to visit two developments—one in suburban Maryland and one in D.C.—and write up his reports. Then he helped assemble information in three-ring binders for executives from K. Hov.
The work did not pay off. Soon after the staff returned from their tours of Hovnanian duty, the builder pulled much of its business, staff say. Afterward, there was a “definite drop” in work, says Trevor Blake, a three-year Hammer employee.
“I was working on a much smaller amount of communities, and most of them were on the Delaware shore,” says Blake.
Thus began Hammer’s bumpy descent from the heights of the Washington bubble.
In its ascent, Hammer knew only good times. Shoptaw broke it off from another firm in 2004—so staffers already knew how to use their fat expense accounts and how to hire new colleagues to handle the mounds of client work coming through the front door.
The enterprise was less skilled in handling one of the steepest real-estate collapses ever. It didn’t know how to satisfy its bigger clients. It didn’t know how to fire people. But, mostly, it didn’t know how to pay its debts after the cash stopped flowing—a management problem that continues to dog Shoptaw.
“A lot of people are still trying to figure out: How is he still in business? That’s the number one question that keeps coming up,”says Nash.
Like any good real-estate executive, Shoptaw knew exactly where to locate his firm. Hammer employees did their designing, ad-placing, and other creative work from offices in Georgetown’s Flour Mill buildings. One of the offices had an ample view of the Potomac River, and they were all within walking distance to Georgetown’s happy-hour scene.
Staffers frequently gathered on the company dime at nearby Papa Razzi or the Ritz-Carlton Georgetown, recalls Paola Zamora, a former designer.
“There was no limit. The boss wasn’t like ‘I’m only paying for a round,’” she says. Roughly 30 people partook early on at the Ritz, but five or 10 people would stay for hours. “We drank all night—on Hammer,” says Zamora, “and we’d get appetizers also.” The next morning, they could work it off at the M Street Washington Sports Club, memberships courtesy of the company.
The free-wheeling corporate generosity was an extension of the boss. Back in 2004, former art director Warren Ellis says Hammer was a “mom and pop agency” of 20 employees where Shoptaw invited certain staff members to his office for margaritas on Friday afternoons.
But as the company grew, the bonding time dwindled. Shoptaw, a flamboyant dresser who often reminded his employees that appearance was important in this industry, spent a lot of time out of the office, presumably wheeling and dealing and lunching with clients. He didn’t fuss much with the day-to-day issues or make rounds to check in with staff.
For many years, Shoptaw helped MC the Major Achievements in Marketing Excellence (MAME) Awards, a ceremony that every important business in the Washington homebuilder world attends. His repeated stints played up his theatrical side.
“He was a popular guy with the builders,” says Rick Daniels, whose company Graphic Services, Inc. built signs for Hammer’s clients. When Daniels found out that Shoptaw was taking the reins at Hammer, he thought he would “do really well.”
“I kind of thought, ‘Wow, I definitely want to work for this ad agency,’” he says.
One MAME Awards in particular looms in the memory of many former Hammerites. In the runup to the spring 2007 honors, Hammer was flush with cash and expected to win a lot of awards—and the company wanted all their clients and competitors to remember the moment.
The partying began around midday, when Hammer employees began drinking at the office. At around 5 p.m. the limos arrived, taking everyone from the Georgetown offices to the Hilton Washington.
Despite that year’s Miami Beach theme, Hammer employees all wore black, as they were instructed to do. The show started with six hired male dancers in Hammer T-shirts doing a routine before the crowd. At some point, when the company won a major award, the staff rushed the stage and started dancing.
The evening ended at a downtown club, MCCXXIII, with Hammer managers and employees getting drunk and grinding on the dance floor.
“It was just a spectator sport for me,” says Ben Tolman, a production artist.“The clients weren’t even participating. They were just sitting off to the side watching. I have no idea what they thought.”
That was the high-water mark for Hammer Communications.
Tolman was among the first to be laid off after the K. Hovnanian flop. While his fellow Hammerites were sitting in I-495 traffic visiting the K. Hov houses, he decided to not complete the assignment.
“I thought it was kind of stupid,” he says, and he was sick of the job anyway. “It was fine by me that I got laid off, I was kind of looking forward to it.”
From then on people just kept disappearing. Staff members vaguely remember various rounds of layoffs. But while some people got fired, others just quit. The news wasn’t widely reported: “It wasn’t like everyone got a memo about ‘so-and-so’s gone.’ It was just like they weren’t around,” says Blake.
Employees could never tell who would get the ax—could be someone from management, could be the receptionist, could be an account executive. The only pattern was empty chairs: By the end of 2008, Hammer had lost about 30 to 40 employees.
Hard times, however, didn’t get Shoptaw down. He’d still wax optimistic at the all-staff monthly meetings, an institution known to employees as “Hammer Time.” Shoptaw would “just talk about how great the company was and how he didn’t anticipate any more layoffs,” says Frank Bilotto, a former Hammer senior art director.
People wanted to believe him. And they kept hearing the same mantra from the company leaders, says Nash.
“They were still out trying to generate business,” he says. Employees were told “We’re comfortable at this time. We should be able to operate for a while doing what we’re doing.…When things start building up again, once the economy returns, we should be able to start hiring people back.”
Whenever Hammer didn’t land an important homebuilder account, management blamed it on politics, says Bilotto. The rationale was that one of the executives at the company had a personal friendship or once worked with someone at a competing firm.
Further staff departures often followed the excuse-making. “It got so frequent and just ridiculous that we actually made a bingo game out of it,” says Bilotto. “We’d draw up little…cards and every time someone either quit or got let go, we’d cross their name off and see who got bingo. We actually played two games.”
Then came the Feb. 19, 2009, firings. Throughout the day, people were called in to hear the bad news, while remaining employees left the building or hung out in other offices to give co-workers space to clear out their desks. The next day, the last dozen or so employees boxed up their belongings and emptied the office.
One woman—a production artist—was on vacation at the end of that week, says Bilotto. Hammer brass didn’t bother to e-mail her that she’d been laid off.
“She came back from vacation and the doors were locked,” Bilotto says he heard.
Bilotto decided he couldn’t take another day at the company, and soon resigned—as did longtime account executive Sara Badr. But both still had plenty of unfinished business with Jack Shoptaw.
Though Hammer’s Georgetown offices were dark and locked, the company wasn’t yet dissolved.On a conference call the day after the firings, Shoptaw announced the company had found a new office space.
“Everyone was all excited about it. Well, not everyone. But Jack was all excited about it,” says Bilotto.
Not long after announcing his resignation, Bilotto ran into trouble with his employer. In his final days working for Hammer, his e-mail account was shut down, and the remaining company managers rarely returned his phone calls or e-mails. He didn’t get his last paycheck, either.
He eventually went to Shoptaw’s Arlington condo, where the company had taken up temporary lodging, to demand his payment—roughly $6,000 for three weeks of pay and two weeks of vacation time, he says.
He wasn’t successful. After a few minutes waiting around with another employee, Shoptaw walked out of a bedroom and proceeded to berate Bilotto.
“He accused me of being in collusion” with a Hammer executive who’d resigned before the company went under, says Bilotto. “This was our big plan. To screw him somehow, I guess. I was like ‘Uh, no—I just want to be paid for the hours I worked.’”
That wasn’t going to happen, said Shoptaw, who passed on his lawyer’s number. Bilotto soon left. Badr also claims she’s owed back pay by Hammer—more than $8,500—though she’s not exactly surprised by the stiffing. Outstanding payments were a constant issue during her two years at the company, she says.
Badr arrived at Hammer in early 2007; within months after she started, she began hearing from vendors who’d completed Hammer contracts but never got paid. The vendors were businesses who made products, ran advertisements, or executed various services for Hammer’s clients, including those huge banners at development sales centers you can’t miss when passing by. Rather than pay Hammer and the various vendors separately, most clients paid everything to Hammer directly. Hammer was supposed to make sure all vendors were paid.
Whenever someone reported an outstanding payment, Badr would always do her “homework,” checking that her client’s money had been paid to Hammer, so Hammer had the funds to pay for what she’d ordered. Somehow the money made it to Hammer but never left, she says.
The complaints were relentless: “It wasn’t like one or two,” says Badr. “Every week, I was getting a ton of phone calls, saying you know, you can’t run this ad because your account’s on hold.”
With trust eroding, Badr worried she was ruining long-term relationships she needed to do her job. “The business is strained if there’s money overdue,” she says.
Today, there are at least three vendors who say Hammer owes them more than $30,000. United Bank, Inc., also has sued Hammer Communications, Jack Shoptaw, his wife, Theresa Shoptaw (they are now going through a divorce), and two of Shoptaw’s former business partners for $605,000. In mid-May, United Bank filed an involuntary petition to place a Hammer LLC in Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
By all accounts, tracking down Shoptaw is an agonizing experience. Rick Daniels’ sign-making company is owed roughly $35,000, he says. After talking with Shoptaw repeatedly during the fall of 2007, Daniels finally caught up with him at the Spring 2008 MAME Awards. For a while, Shoptaw was surrounded by a coterie of women. But, “once his school of female body guards [got] away from him,” Daniels decided to approach Shoptaw.
“I go to him. I shake his hand—we’re at a black-tie event together—and I say to him…‘Listen, Jack, you’re going to need me in this area of expertise, you’re going to need my product,’” recalls Daniels. Shoptaw was apologetic in public. But that didn’t matter in the end. “At some point, he just decided he wasn’t going to pay.”
Howard Owen, head of Stafford Printing, also has a money beef with Shoptaw. In April 2008, Owen’s company received a $70,000 order for a new Pulte Homes development in Fredericksburg. The contract called for “a complete marketing campaign” of special-made products for the sales staff: business cards, letterheads, envelopes, brochures, pocket folders—about a dozen items total.
Owen had worked with Pulte for 20 years. So when he got the order, he started to work right away, rather than wait for the full payment. He trusted that compensation would arrive by the time he finished.
Ultimately, that didn’t happen.
“Hammer essentially paid us a very small portion,” says Owen, “and has avoided us for the most part.”
Pulte stepped in and helped cover some costs—although the company had already paid Hammer, he says. He says he’s been left to beg for the remainder: $34,000.
Owen forwarded an e-mail exchange with Jack Shoptaw, lasting from early January to February 2009
Subject: Re: PAYMENT
Owen: “Jack, when can I expect payment?” (1/15/09)
Shoptaw: “Our office is closed today but we will be in touch before the week is out. I need to ask you however who you are working on resolving this with? Us or [Pulte]? Please advise.” (1/20/09)
Shoptaw: [Writes he’s occupied with clients.] “I can call later this evening or ask Tina and Jodi to call you. Let me know.” (1/22/09)
Owen: “Call” (1/22/09)
Shoptaw: [Accuses Owen of maligning his company and acting cruelly.] “Howard, We have been challenged like the rest of the world to deal with challenging financial situations due to the world economy,” he writes, adding that three of his clients went “defunct” in the last year. “If and when you are eager to resolve amicably I am more than willing to talk again. Otherwise we will be in touch next week.” (1/23/09)
Owen: “Next week is not acceptable! You have delayed, made excuses, done everything possible except pay your bill. Your behavior is reprehensible. How can you even meet with Pulte Homes and keep a straight face?” (1/23/09)
For roughly the next week, Owen and Shoptaw haggle over exactly how much money Hammer has already paid. Shoptaw wants to “show good faith” on his promises “by turning some printing work your way.” Owen wants to schedule an in-person meeting, and then promises Shoptaw that he’s very nice and not to be scared.
Shoptaw then again implores that the meeting “must be handled in a professional manner.”
“Let me know what time is convenient,” responds Owen as part of a final e-mail exchange on Feb. 2.
No meeting was ever scheduled.
As rumored and promised, Shoptaw’s remaining employees did move into a smaller office in Georgetown—but not as Hammer Communications.
In early April, the Shoptaw Group launched. On its Web site, Shoptaw, as president/CEO of the company, writes this personal statement:
“I believe that a company’s success is a direct reflection of the results it brings to its clients and partners. I started The Shoptaw Group with a vision to offer our clients the outstanding creative services of a small advertising boutique, while providing them with strategic account management, and forward-thinking media strategies.”
The office is roughly a block west of Hammer’s old Flour Mill offices. When former Hammer employees and stiffed vendors found out about the new company’s launch party, they decided to attend—sort of.
They stood outside the building, below the Whitehurst Freeway, with yellow signs that said “How Much Does Jack Shoptaw Owe You???!!!” Right below that question was a little line for people to fill in.
Among the handful of protestors to show up was vendor Roy Kupersmith, who wrote in “$31,000+” on the line.
Kupersmith works for New Home Media, which creates outdoor and indoor signage for new developments.
He says the group was standing outside for 20 minutes before any new Shoptaw employees or party guests noticed them. Eventually, he became fed up with the lack of attention and texted an old Hammer employee. One person came to the window, and slowly the others drifted over to gawk. Kupersmith eventually spotted Jack Shoptaw himself.
“I think there was a hand gesture from me at that point,” he says.
If the protest has helped in any way, it’s to spread the word about Shoptaw’s past, says Kupersmith.
At some point, a party guest left the event and took a picture of the crowd. It was forwarded around to various people in the local homebuilder world, say Kupersmith.
“Literally within a week or so after that date, I got six or seven phone calls, and eight or 10 e-mails from people, some of whom I haven’t spoken to for years,” he says. “They wanted to know more. They wanted all the gory details.”
Shoptaw did not respond to phone messages on his work voicemail or requests for an interview through his lawyer, Michael S. Fried. When a Washington City Paper reporter visited his office, two employees came out to the waiting room to say he was too busy to talk.
12:59 pm
Nine people died in Washington DC in a metro accident this week. How is this story news? Companies go under every day. I'm disappointed that you ignored a much bigger story to write about something like this.
1:02 pm
Boy, was this article was cleaned up for publication!
1:16 pm
Hey Sallie, the crash happened after print deadlines, but we have comprehensive coverage about the metro accident right here http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/tag/dc-metro-crash/.
1:32 pm
As much as I love the fact that Jack Shoptaw’s behind-the-scenes-shitshow has made it to print, these stories published here are maybe 1/10th of the true vile that twisted man has actually orchestrated. And his two cohorts who have stuck by him the longest (two females - both have names beginning with A) should be ashamed of themselves and I encourage them to TRY to scrape up any dignity they have left b/c really, you are the company you keep.
2:02 pm
Rumor always had it that all MAME awards won by Hammer were rigged as Jack and Andrea were judges.
2:09 pm
Why isn't Chris Delucchi or Jodi Leigh mentioned or interviewed in this story? Probably b/c they have moved on from that nightmare in their life but imagine the stories they can tell!
2:39 pm
I find this article very interesting. While everything is true their is so much missing. Can you do a follow up article. I would love to have people see the truth in full. Which is people still no being paid months after. FYI the lack of business sense to pay peope was before the economy took a turn. So the economy has nothing to do with the BS of Jack and his two B's.
2:43 pm
When I worked there, he didn't match our 401(k) for over a year. He also didn't deposit our own contributions to our 401(k).
For me, it was a hard lesson, but a valuable one. Pay attention to your 401(k) plan. Check it more than once a year.
2:51 pm
They didn't mention the copywriter that had a heart attack from the stress, only to spend time in the hospital while Jack Shoptaw kept asking him to do work and died. Oh, and Sallie, they didn't ignore the metro story. This place is a s-l-o-w death!
2:52 pm
When I worked at Hammer, Jack and Andrea would sit up in Jack's office drinking at 3pm inviting select employees in to drink with them. They would get so loud often laughing and talking about employees in the office. Jack often boasted about how he didn't even know the names of many of the production peeps and he didn't care. He thought this was funny. I had never worked in such an unprofessional environment. I have since realized that the "high school like" behavior was probably due the the education level of Jack and his two A's.
2:57 pm
Wow, there's a lot of angry people out there. It sounds like just another story like tons of other companies. Real estate is a bad business to be in these days. But it sounds like the guy just got a hold of a whole lot of free publicity with this article.
2:58 pm
This story is true - but like others have said is only the beginning. Jack lied about taking commissions on media (when in contract things were supposed to be billed net) he had them billed gross and he took the commissions without clients knowing. In addition he lied about how much commission was being charged when one was supposed to be - sometimes charging more than double was supposed to be and bragging about it. Andrea Nader was heard bragging numerous times about billing 100% gross. What is good for the client is NOT taken into account at that agency - it is ONLY about the money. I know it is a business, but there is such a thing called ethics. Plenty of businesses make money while still acting in the best interest of the client. It is not surprising that Jack's actions are coming back to bite him.
2:58 pm
Jack = toxic and insecure
Andrea = dated and insecure
Adina = overpaid and easily controllable
3:01 pm
Jack Shoptaw is a liar and a thief and deserves to be behind bars. I can't believe there is anyone who would be stupid enough to continue doing business with this man. Furthermore...I can't believe anyone would belittle themselves to continue working for him. No amount of money is worth that humiliation.
3:12 pm
Sadly, media commissions is only where it started. How about AEs being told to sell useless and overpriced direct mail pieces and brochures (we are in the midst of the digital age right??), just so Hammer could mark-up printing 50-100%? And if the AE didn’t get their clients to buy into such over priced junk, the AE was either fired or belittled daily until they quit in a sea of tears.
3:24 pm
this is exactly what people need to see, especially the people that are still with him, how blind are you?!?! EVERYONE left - but you all managed to stay based on the thought that he is going to take care of you and everyone else is wrong..its funny how things work out... just one question - how great do you all feel now?
3:24 pm
Doesn't sound like the economy is what brought this place down....
3:26 pm
On a light note...
I always LOVED Andrea's sense of style. Lost in a bad 80's hair video.
3:27 pm
Oh how wish I could be a fly on the conference room wall right now to hear first hand Jack's spin on this article.
3:31 pm
It brings me sooo much pleasure to see this article written. As a former Hammer employee from long ago, I had never seen such a dispicable place to work. Jack and his cronies have dug themselves such a deep hole of shit, sucks to be you. Jack, come out of the closet yet?
3:33 pm
Like many of the users who posted comments, I worked there. I survived for 2 years many years ago. And all I can say is, when you realized he was doing illegal things/mistreating people/stealing/lying/etc. why didn't you leave?
I overstayed. And I am ashamed I didn't stand up for myself, my coworkers, my beliefs and for my work. He didn't value me. He didn't respect me. And he was a crook. I am ashamed I stayed and worked there knowing things were happening.
Job security is important. But not more important than a) respecting yourself b) your reputation.
This is a small ad town. And you've gotta protect your reputation with all you got. It's your most valuable asset.
His reputation is ruined. But somehow, Jack Shoptaw manages to get clients. I hope his clients see this article and leave. If not, I wish Jack Shoptaw would publish a book. Because he could seriously be the greatest con artist of all time. It would make for a great movie.
3:55 pm
The Shoptaw Group is made up of the same crooks who ran Hammer Communications. I don't know who The Shoptaw Group thinks they are fooling.
3:56 pm
has 65 fans?! WTH! How is that possible?
http://ja-jp.facebook.com/pages/Washington-DC/The-Shoptaw-Group/77683825791
And they recently posted "There is no such thing as negative publicity, right?"
Well, after all of these comments, we'll see about that.
4:10 pm
How is Chris Delucchi being left out of this? She was Jack's partner from 2004-2006 - before she started her own agency D+. (You actually get D- service from her team).
She bragged in meetings that ad men lie all of the time. She has been arrested several times, most famously when she sent an email to the whole agency (Hammer Communications) that she was in jail and to not tell anyone!
Hammer Communications were mistreating the creative staff for years. Adina Caron (who went from a graphic designer to the creative director in a years time) had no input in to the creative nor did she support the creative team. Because of he lack of grasp of the English language she barely spoke in meetings and never in front of clients. She stayed on her laptop or her blackberry pretending to address constant emergencies, and praying that she was not asked a question. Why would Jack and Chris put a person like Adina in charge?
4:12 pm
Apparently, Jack likes to dick around with his employees and fuck his clients and vendors. Real bang up job, you dirty sanchez!
4:19 pm
Come on guys, keep it real. This is about Jack screwing over people and that is it. This has nothing to do with CD. She moved on and leave her out of this. And the last comment is going to cause this to be shut down.Just stick to nailing Jack Shoptaw in a professional manner - don't stoop to Jack Shoptaw's level.
4:27 pm
I see that The Shoptaw Group Facebook site does not allow you to write on their wall. How interactive!
I can't imagiine why they would be uncomfortable with that.
Don't they want testimonials?
4:29 pm
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4:32 pm
JL, you have got to be kidding me!
4:39 pm
its funny how people are making fake posts - shows how immature people are - just like youtube. nice try people - but we all know who the pathetic ones are.
4:39 pm
This JL charactor is an imposter, probably from the Shoptaw Group.
4:45 pm
Everyone knows that its not JL! and that the city paper doesnt get "bought" for stories. LOL
4:49 pm
I know Jodi Leigh, his most recent ex-partner (don't you wonder why Jack has so many EX partners and so many suing him?) And someone has defintely posted above under JL trying to pin those commnets on her. Why would she, who ran like could be from this scumbag when all the vile truth was obvious to her, admit openly - especially when she is trying to establish her own business apart from him - that "she milked that cow all the way to the end". Second, yo can not COMMISSION an article. The paper apparently had serious and justified interest in doing this or the editor wouldn't have allowed it to appear, especailly as a COVER STORY. Lastly, I know for a fact that Jack accused his estranged wife (let's see, estranged wife, lots of ex-partners suing him, could he just be misunderstood?) of "helping Jodi and her girls" (and Jodi herself had nothing to do with this article) "slander" him. Isn't it strange that same "girls" reference is in this bogus malicious post under the initials JL? Judge for yourself!!!
4:54 pm
Yeah, that was so obviously not JL. Do you know who I am?
4:57 pm
This is NOT just about Jack screwing people over. It's about Hammer Communications and that includes Adina Caron and Andrea Nader. They were VPs and part of the management of that company.
This article is called "The Fall of Hammer Communications" and that means it's not just about Jack.
Obviously you're friends with Adina. And that's great you want to defend her.
But what do you mean she moved on?? She posted yesterday on The Shoptaw Group facebook page. She still works for him. And when he gets arrested, she will go to court and if she knew about any of the shadiness, she could be held liable, too.
4:57 pm
“I believe that a company’s success is a direct reflection of the results it brings to its clients and partners."
Let's talk about the Shoptaw Group's results:
1.) Shoptaw Group (ie Hammer Communications) has stolen hundreds and thousands of dollars from their clients. Walking away from bad debt leaving their "valued" clients to pick up the pieces and deal with the consequences.
2.) Shoptaw Group has stolen money from their own employees...often forgetting to hand out paychecks or committing insurance fraud by not paying for health insurance premiums but still collecting it from their employees.
3) Extorting money from their past clients...threatening them with eronious lawsuits if they tried to leave the Shoptaw Group and go with another agency. Jack Shoptaw...willing to let you walk...for the right price that is.
4.) The Shoptaw Group takes pride in going the extra mile...the extra mile is setting up an elaborate maze of smoke and mirrors to dupe the client into believing they are actually getting value for the money you've spent. His current employees are well versed on how to lie, cheat, and steal to get ahead in life. That is obvious by the unethical tactics that they've employed over the past few months to get back at those people who stood up for what was right.
Good luck to the Shoptaw Group. May you get everything you deserve!
4:59 pm
No, I have no clue who you are but you are correct. I hope for your sake though that you are NOT the estranged wife I referred to. Although if you are I guess there is something to be said for seeing the error of your ways :)
5:00 pm
The fake post attributing comments to JL is completely libelous and totally actionable. It would take about 2 hours to get the posters' IP address from The City Paper, track the address range back to The Shoptaw Group and file the lawsuit. It's a shame there isn't any money there 'cause this is a slam-dunk. Those people are morons.
5:08 pm
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5:16 pm
I think that everyone who worked at hammer should give themselves a big pat on the back.. because we all left for a reason..and we have ALL been waiting for this day to come. The day that it would get written for the world to see inside the twisted doors of Hammer which has now been carried over to The Shoptaw Group. Now everyone can see what really went on behind the scenes. It was just a matter of time...
I think that this has made everyones day to say the least.
5:20 pm
So if it's all so innocent, I guess Nikki Caporale the acount exec who works at City Paper and used to work at Hammer had nothing to do with the story being published, right?
5:26 pm
Honestly, everyone is laughing because we all know that the the truth is what this story is about. Not who helped it get published - The TRUTH - made this story what it is. It was only a matter of time before this story came to life, and its ABOUT TIME that people can finally see it and get their word in.
5:28 pm
Absolutely. If anything, the story was kind to the Shoptaw Group for not putting more dirt out there. Anyone of us who worked there knows that all of this is barely touching the surface of the disfunctionality of that place.
5:53 pm
This company did not fail because of the economy. This company, as noted by many posting, failed because of the immoral and corrupt practices of the leadership (or lack thereof). There is some thrill in knowing that Jack's life is suffering both personally and professionally. Yet I hate to sink to the same level on which he lives his life. I have to own up to my own involvement when I was there and the way I got sucked into the Hammer Insanity. I regret that I stayed as long as I did and did nothing while I was there. I'm just glad I left when I did and got the money coming to me before they went under completely!!
6:06 pm
Reminder to everyone: You're welcome to comment anonymously, but please limit yourself to a single pseudonym (do not artificially create the appearance of being multiple people), and do not impersonate other people. I had to delete several comments that impersonated someone else.
6:13 pm
Hi. I would like to email the moderator here? What email address should I use?
6:14 pm
wmitchell@washingtoncitypaper.com
7:18 pm
I want to respond to someone above, as I was someone who was one of the several people at this protest (there were more than in the picture). I have no idea who Nikki Caporale is, whether she had any connection with Shoptaw previously or if she has any ax to grind with him. Several different media took an interest in this story and there will likely be more out on this by others. This paper was just the first. And whoever the heck you are you have some nerve using the word "innocent" and the word "Hammer" in the same paragraph!!!!
7:34 pm
PULEZE, if every media outlet was discouraged from writing a true story with multiple sources on Hammer b/c they currently have a former Hammer employee on staff, NO ONE would ever be able to cover the crooks. The turn around at Hammer was something I have never seen before. Oh but that wasn't Jack, Kevin, Andrea, Jennifer or anyone else's fault - those DOZENS AND DOZENS AND DOZENS of people were all incapable - but not those at the top running the worst fiasco known to business.
7:55 pm
I am so thrilled this is finally here. Real truth.
I worked at hammer and I used to travel frequently to "work". While I loved partying in all the cool places and didnt have to pay a dime, it wasnt worth the countless nights of Jack hooking up with people and lying about his identity-just come out already.
The amount of pressure from the agency was enough to get an ulcer-seriously. I couldnt watch clients getting screwed over-their money being taken and no work being done.
Honestly, if you work for the Shoptaw Group, hire them to represent your business, or be a vendor to them-you may be the dumbest people out there. I can understand if you have never met Jack, Andrea and Adina you may fall victim (they are crooks) but if you read this article and still hire the Shoptaw Group-ask the person sitting next to you to beat the crap out of you. Trust me, they will be doing you a favor. Everything written here is absolutely true-and there are so many other stories.
Jack, you are lucky that I am not a vengeful person-because if I opened my mouth about the ridiculousness while Hammer was falling apart and while you are going through your divorce...You would be done. I believe in karma-and you will get yours along with everyone else whos working at Shoptaw. Do the right thing for once and walk away while you can.
10:05 pm
Well, it's all true. Every last dirty detail. It's been an incredible story all of my fellow hundred+ employees have shared amongst ourselves. Well done City Paper.
10:07 pm
WHAT GOES AROUND COMES AROUND BABY
YOU REAP WHAT YOU SOW
10:18 pm
Monkey wants to know why we all can't just get along.
10:26 pm
NOW ITS YOUR TURN TO CRY
CRY ME A RIVER
THE DAMAGE IS DONE
10:30 pm
I, a Hammer ex, can tell you this story is 100% true. I remember jogging to the bank on payday because only the first few checks would clear -- if you got one. I am still owed over $3k but have given up hope at this point. My thoughts....AC is a loyal employee and fantastic creative talent, I have to give her a pass on this one. As for the rest of the group, cheers! You have gotten a very small part of what you deserve in this way overdue publicity. Hats off to City Paper for exposing this seriously shady operation. BTW, CD was before my time, but from what I can tell, JL was the brains of the operation. Check please!
2:10 am
Let me start out by saying that I love ALL of my former Hammer co-workers (well, not all of you. She knows who she is.). I really do but if you're not owed any money by Jack Shoptaw, it's time to move on. Yeah, sure, there were people there that were underqualified for their positions, misappropriation of funds and an abundance of excess but if you're still upset because Jack or one of his partners made you cry in a meeting two years ago let it go! I will agree, what has happened is both insane and criminal. I feel bad for everyone affected but chances are you left (or you were fired), you got a better job and you're doing ok with yourself. If not, oh well.
And if anyone has an issue with what I have you say, you can find me at the intersection of 11th & I!
7:18 am
D. Nash
Hammer Communications does not warrant anyone's silence about anything.
9:31 am
Jesus is the answer!!!
9:55 am
I work outside of the industry and even I know more sordid details than those printed by the City Paper...but good job on exposing this fraud. I hope there is a follow up article since this has uncovered only the tip of the iceberg.
To those who have lost money in their 401(k)Plans...by law ERISA requires that all employers purchase an ERISA (Crime or Fidelity) bond in the amount of 10% of plan assets or $500,000, whichever is less. Hopefully Hammer had such a bond. If you lost retiremrnt funds through theft or fraud at Hammer, then you should be able to go back and recoup those funds if the crime insurance was in place...look into it!
11:03 am
KARMA, ya gotta love it.
12:15 pm
How about Kevin Hodgekiss? He was Shoptaw's FPO!
1:33 pm
KH is irrelevent. He was smart enought to leave that messed up place.
I honestly believe he gave his best shot against all odds to do things right. Any more inside dirt on Andrea Nader?
1:35 pm
I worked at Hammer at the very beginning, and in fact was the whistle blower on the 401k scam. I left shortly there after on my own accord. The culture was much like most ad agencies, but there were some skewed elements and strange players in the mix. I had to deal daily with my vendors not getting paid. I had to deal daily with inappropriate behaviour in the office. It was almost surreal, and I'm not surprised to see the info in the public forum now. I am surprised that such 'nobodys' have made front page news.
1:44 pm
Ha Ha, how did you whistle blow this in the beginning and it continued to go for years?
They also never activated/paid for dental insurance for many.
You would find out when or if you finally went to the dentist that it had not been activated.
1:44 pm
Well, KeepITReal -
Kevin Hodgekiss' best should land him in jail.
2:30 pm
KeepITReal: Once it was known about the 401k debaucle, amazingly the funds appeared about 2 weeks later, fully up to date. I'm not sure what happened after that, as i left.
4:03 pm
Shoptaw was around 3 rounds prior to his "group". He started by joining Morris/Beecher in the same space at the Flour Mill. Mark Morris & Diane Beecher (the husband wife team) made Jack a partner because of the clients he brought to the table. They were also known for burning through employees at low rates, long hours and false promises. Morris/Beecher then joined with an Atlanta company in order to merge work efforts and increase clientele. After squeezing the Atlanta owner out of power, Jack, Mark & Diane's bad reputation started to spread. They changed the name to The Brand Consultancy. After a few years of burning through employees and reputations, Mark & Diane left The Brand Consultancy and Jack changed it to Hammer Communications. Working with Jack for a year while it was Morris/Beecher, I learned about his lack of care for people. I, along with the staff, were promised bonuses that mysteriously disappeared after they hosted a huge Holiday party. After working 14+ hr days for a year, we got a couple hundred bucks as a "gesture". Since my departure in the late 90s, its amazing how former employees to any of those agencies share a bond by telling their horror stories. It seems like a huge amount of people have had their "run ins" with one of those agencies. As a former employee, it may seem biased, but I've only heard about Hammer and/or Jack Shoptaw in a negative light. People have gotten screwed by him in one way or another, and am glad that it is now getting some press. But like others have said, it's only the tip of the iceberg. I don't understand how he's not in jail.
4:09 pm
The fact that some of this story is out is great...I need to know so I can avoid these companies. I was at an agency,smaller mostly pr based but the same kind of smoke and mirrors. Owning vendors, owning designers and writers, great people with solid talent. Somehow these people are not big enough to either be held to their debts or to be placed in jail for fraud.
5:57 pm
You can still apply for an AE position at Hammer. They offer great benefits! ;)
http://www.hammer-c.com/hammerc_jobs/jobaccexect.html
You'd think the web-savvy folks at The Shoptaw Group would perhaps take that down since they claim to have "forward-thinking media strategies."
If you get the AE job, please tell them to lose the TiltViewer flash effect on their web site. It sucks.
But, if you like it, you too can have it to ugly-up your own web site:
http://www.simpleviewer.net/products/tiltviewer/
8:44 pm
I think I might be the only one with nothing to complain about so I'll use my real name. I know other people got burned (the article is 100% true as far as I know) and that sucks but I didn't so I can't say anything about that. I was a production artist, and as the article said Management ignored us. But that meant we could do whatever we wanted. Marci Bingo anyone? I spent most of my days drawing or working on my website drinking beer for at least 5-6 hours, 2-3 hour of actual work. And I was the first to get laid off so I had no problems getting my last check. Unemployment only meant that I could now be a full time artist. Many people have been screwed over pretty bad, but whatever might have been going on I think I made out quite well.
9:59 pm
Well, I have a connection to the former Hammer agency and just the little bit I heard from this person struck me as just screwy. And I'm really surprised nobody has mentioned the REAL reason behind Jack's divorce! LOL
I can't believe he's still in business or that ANYONE would even do business w/ him.
10:38 pm
As a former employee, Hammer hasn't paid one vendor that I contracted with in the short time I worked there. I quickly left because I did not want my vendors whom I had a good reputation with to not get paid. I soon realized that no one else would work with Jack unless he would pay up front with a credit card. One day when it took an hour for A and J to decide which credit card I could use I realized I had made the right decision to have quickly found another job. I still feel bad for those six printer reps loosing their commissions. Still glad I worked there so I could pay the rent before I moved on to better things. I also never gave the other agency that I also had worked for, that won that last big account that Hammer was up against anything, so no politics were involved in that one. It was location, location, location that won that deal and I am sure some good creative from the winner though I never saw any of it. Glad to be out of only real estate advertising. Glad to be away from those terrible bathrooms. Good Luck to everyone in finding better places to work. And Jack I am sure those printers still would like to be paid. Times are still hard out there for honest trusting folk.
11:28 pm
While some people admit (Ben:)) that they did not do a lot of work there - let's not forget that A LOT of people worked really hard and put in long hours. Some good work was done DESPITE the lousy management team. I think most employees (and there were a lot over the years!) took pride in their work and didn't realize the extent of the dysfunction. Don't let the bad memories and realization of how messed up it really was let you overlook some of the good work accomplished and a lot of the team effort that was put forth. Again I stress that the ONLY reason things were EVER successful there - was because of the people who worked there - NOT the management team - who not only didn't know how to run a company, but didn't know much about advertising either.
1:25 am
I agree with the complaint that this story does not merit front page coverage. I am not a former employee or vendor by the way. As best as I could gather, there are personal gripes and scores to settle in this article. On the face of it, it is not credible that Hammer or the management could be that bad for so many years. To read this article you would think that no employees or vendors got paid ever, which obviously was not the case. Why would some employees get paid and others not? Makes no sense. Also, if there are legitimate grievances they should be aired in court and not the press. In fact, the former employees who claim to have been screwed are damaging their own credibility with those silly yellow signs and with this obvious attempt at character assassination. Personally, I could care less, but I was annoyed by the article being on the front page.
3:33 am
D-, no one said that the story shouldn't be told. Tell it! Hell, it's being told eighty-five fold by now! My only beef is with those of you out there that are still bitter and feel like they have to say something because a client or a member of upper management made them cry once or twice. After a certain point, the comments were getting REAL redundant. We all know karma's a b!tc#. Jack screwed over clients and employees. Anyone who still does and/or will work with Jack is insane. OK, WE GET IT!!!
I understand everyone has a story to tell but come on, do you really have to after the 15th post?!??! Someone left a post that said, and I quote "I hope that Jack gets what he deserves." Why? Because you were fired or belittled daily until they quit in a sea of tears? C'mon! Try cashing a payroll check the weekend before Christmas to buy gifts for your child only to find out that the bank won't take it. Try going to pick up medicine that you need only to find out that your health insurance has been cut for months without you knowing about it. Try getting sued by...I don't think I can even tell that one but how does your hurt fellings compare?!?! They don't.
And stop it with the homosexual references. Remember, Jack has young kids that have to deal with this craziness.
Oh yeah. Ben, "Marcy Bingo" was suppose to be a secret! A very funny secret.
11:33 am
Hi Warren,
You still working as an art director at GKA Advertising (http://www.gkaadvertising.com/)?
Now THAT'S a fucked up agency. Michael Gura is an insane cokehead who fires employees willy-nilly after they suffer his unchecked tyranny and abuse. I'd advise former Hammer employees to steer clear of this hack's "agency" unless they think they'd enjoy working for the mad hatter.
11:55 am
L,
No. Gura fired me after 3 weeks. My work was judged as unusable! This from a man who thinks Sizziling Savings is an innovative branding platform. I started working at Discovery the next week, and now I work for myself - so all is right with the world. I would not this that anyone is devastated about being fired from Gura.
2:22 pm
I've know Michael Gura for more years than I should probably publicly admit. A cokehead? No. Insane? No. A tyrant? No. An odd duck or absent-minded professor type with not a whole lot of social ease or graces? OK. But that's not a crime. He is in no way - not even close - in the same lowly professional or pathetic personal league that Jack Shoptaw is. Michael may embarass you or himself from time to time but Jack is an embarasment to the entire industry - no make that to HUMANITY - all the time.
2:34 pm
I agree. There is no way Gura is a cokehead.
5:43 pm
Are the AE's at Comstock Homes, Toll Brothers and K. Gov helping Jack Shoptaw, Adrea Nader and Adina Caron of Shoptaw Group fleece their companies?
9:45 am
KeepITReal
The 401K money did not fully reappear after 2 weeks. Money is still owed. The fraud continues.
3:39 pm
"Sizzling SUMMER Savings" was the exact copy - and I had heard from Gura's #1 lackey that he was a big cokehead in the 80's and early '90's - not surprising considering how high strung and type A he was. Working with him is terrifying. He calls it "boot camp", doesn't allow you to leave for lunch (illegal), and screams at you all day. He doesn't know how to use basic Microsoft Office apps like Word, yet somehow he has dubbed himself "Creative Director." He's not just an eccentric old man - he's a cantankerous, petty asshole who (temporarily) fucks up the lives of whatever employees are unfortunate enough to work closely with him.
Warren - congrats on the Discovery job! Glad you escaped GKA. : )
5:09 pm
L-
Thank you. If I stayed longer than 3 weeks I am sure that I would have reached the same conclusion. I was fired the very day I contacted the person who placed me there telling her that Gura was a hack. She called him that day.
I found Jack to be nicer than Gura. Jack had other people do his dirty work. Gura built his ego by tearing others down. He is a sad clown who shouts that he has won 100 MAME awards as if that was an accomplishmet.
11:59 pm
As a former employee who left after one year, of my own accord, for a variety of reasons, I think it is more then fair for those screwed over by Jack Shoptaw to have a public forum to vent. Doesn't mean any of us are still bitter or haven't moved on (I have) but what goes around comes around. In the three or four years since I left, it never ceased to amaze me that Shoptaw and his band of sycophants were still in business, still cheating unsuspecting people. I never wish ill will on anyone, but this creep is way overdue. Let's see how the chips fall.....
10:13 am
Any one that knows Jack Shoptaw knows that he is not smart enough to have acted alone. A whole network needed to be in place for him to have milked clients and vendors. Past production managers must have helped with printing kickbacks. And ALL of his past partners must have known or been involved. And if they did not what does this say about them? Shoptaw has been shady for over 10 years and his former partners knew him for years before they went in to business with him. His FPO was harassing vendors before he abruptly flees his offices in haste when the 401K fraud was brought to his attention.
And what about the Account Executives on the client side who aggreed to all of the ridiculous pricung? Did they, and do they get kickbacks?
11:09 am
This Shoptaw guy sounds like a jerk. Hopefully he'll get whats coming to him. Congrats to all who got out and have moved on. For those who HAVE gotten out and are not owed money but still have not moved on, you really need to do so. Dwelling in the past will keep you living in the past. Look to the future and put Hammer behind you. BAD ENERGY!
12:11 pm
Buffet Lover,
Jack and others have been able to get by with so much for so long because most victiums have taken the high road, moved on and remained silent. When I worked for Jack I was very vocal about the horrific conditions at the agency and was harrased for it. I an many others worked 14 hour days and 75 % of the weekends, so Jack owes us plenty.
6:56 pm
I too am one of the vendors Jack decided not to pay. His reasons were petty and childish. At the time, it was not worth the expense and time to sue him, I just wanted to get as far away from him as possible.
I remember someone said to me "aren't you going to go after him, that's alot of money"? And I said "nope, he'll get his in the end."
We all hear about "karma" and "what goes around, comes around" but rarely do we get the chance to witness it first hand. I hope at Jack and his cronies reap all that they've sowed, ten fold.
We are in the same business and every once in a while I will get asked if I've ever heard of Hammer Communications or if I know Jack ... my answer is always the same. "Our paths crossed once, but his was too crooked for me"
4:34 pm
Comments have been made about Jack, Andrea, and Adina but let's not forget Sharon Braithwaite. She is just as backhanded and dishonest as the rest yet somehow tries to play the innocent bystander (all the while clinging to Jack's coat tails). Sharon is now posing as an Interior Designer for Jack's new company with absolutely no education, experience, or talent in design. If they actually get hired for a project I would be curious to see who would do the work. Sharon is not a designer and never has been.
6:54 pm
True, Sharon does not have the slightest clue about design. I would be surprised if she had more than a high school diploma - like Jack. And like Adina, she gets credit for the work of past talent. All of the great interior design done by Hammer Interios was done by Nora Kepes, who Sharon backstabbed at every turn. Now, Nora is doing fantastic work for her own firm and Sharon is stuck in the criminal ring of Jack. Andrea, Raluca and Adina.
7:07 pm
Hammer Interios even claimed to have done the interior Design work of Jack's and Chris Delicchi's River House, which was done by another design firm.
11:44 am
To FormerHammer -- If a company does not deposit your 401k contributions, that's a FELONY! You're right -- everyone should pay attention to their 401ks and call employers on the carpet for any irregularities.
11:06 am
D- Now that you have mentioned SHARON BRAITHWAITE, my experience has been similar. I would like to add a little more to this. She has only on the job experience. She is not licensed or trained in the area of Interior Design. She IS college educated. Check her background. Sharon is a smooth and slick sales person, but that is as far as it goes. Her follow up was always poor and that always got her into trouble. It's not what Sharon says as much as what she doesn't say. I have always found her to be charming but ruthless. She has no conscience. She is a taker and not a giver and has hurt many people in the past. Fortunately, she is getting what she deserves. I don't feel sorry for her. Hopefully, she will learn a lesson. Solid character development is the most important key [Connelly] "He who fights monsters should look into it that he himself does not become a monster. "When you gaze long into the Abyss, the Abyss also gazes into you." written by Neitchze. Sharon should read a good book on character and human evil written by M. Scott Peck, called PEOPLE OF THE LIE The Hope for Healing Human Evil and the recognition of it.
11:27 am
Former MNCBIA Man of the Year?!...Jack Shoptaw managed his way into many a relationship.
3:19 pm
Tassel -
Not to mention that Sharon needs a good oil treatment!
6:08 pm
Shoptaw group only has one client left. Will it take a TOLL on the BROTHERS?
9:44 pm
What was KHOV thinking? Spending 100's of 1000's of dollars to support a drinking habit? Real value for the ultimate clients, the homebuyers. Who was watching the till while the hammer was nailing down crazy fees?
9:45 pm
Yeah. Hard to understand
9:47 pm
Wonder what Ara and Bob would think? It's their monet after all
11:48 pm
Or Carol at Toll Brothers. Does her boss know how poorly she is managing her accounts?
2:19 pm
I moved from NYC to work for Hammer - I'd worked for an R/E specialist agency before and they supposedly valued that experience. Jennifer Cerasani had just started (she's now working at The Gaylord Hotel), and she HATED Andrea Nader ("I didn't like her, so I pushed her out" she smugly announced after Andrea left). She and Jack both knew I was really being hired to assume much of what Andrea was doing on the Toll account - but didn't tell Andrea or me; letting me negotiate a much smaller salary for a much smaller scope of work - and Jack let Jennifer (whom he'd known for less than 4 months) push out his trusted friend Andrea (whom he'd known for years since their days at Richmond American.) When Andrea left, my work tripled but Jack and Jennifer refused to adjust salary or even acknowledge the obvious lie about the job description. I left when I was offered a better job, and Andrea came back - I can't imagine why given how she'd been treated.
VERY UNPROFESSIONAL: I'm no choir boy - I'm not easily shocked. I've worked at agencies good and bad in several cities - petty workplace scandal, partying on the clients' dime, delayed payment to powerless vendors: none of it is unique. But I have NEVER seen the level of unprofessional, degenerate behavior and nasty backbiting that went on at Hammer. Does anyone remember Curtis the former Creative Director? He used to bang his mistress in the office on nights and weekends - we'd all met her - then invite his wife to office parties. Jennifer used to SCREAM in French at her husband on the phone while a roomful of employees waited in her office to continue a meeting. Then, she'd later comment to the group how she wasn't getting any at home and that's why she was so pissed.
How many recall how Mark and Diane used to invite young employees (boys and girls) back to their house after hours?
Anyone remember the poor lesbian girl who came to work as a junior account coordinator? She lasted all of one month before she left in tears citing in her exit interview how hostile the work environment was. Jack laughed about it.
I wish Bob Birdsong would comment on what his Hammer experience was like - he worked on the k.hov account, then when he left he went to work for Gura & Lee for a short time. He went through a lot while he was there. So did many others.
The paper where I worked after Hammer used to have sneering nicknames for the rotating list of overwhelmed media girls who booked ads on behalf of Hammer clients. All the I/O's were wrong, all the art files were late.
After I moved on, I moved in with my girlfriend at the time right across from the Hammer office. New faces in and out every week. Lots of disgruntled employees packing their stuff in their cars right in front of my house. Somebody even vandalized Jennifer's and Jack's cars one night - so many suspects the cops never found who did it.
5:00 pm
here's a link to the lawsuit filed by the United bank against Jack, Theresa et al
http://dockets.justia.com/docket/court-dcdce/case_no-1:2009cv00809/case_id-136468/
10:16 am
I am very proud of the protesters who got the ball rolling on exposing Jack Shoptaw for what he is, and isn't!
1:01 pm
I worked for Hammer for 6 months in '05/'06 on the Toll Brothers account. Jennifer and Jack were horrible and the stuff I witnessed made my skin crawl. I've never seen a more incompetent man than Jack. By the way, I know who vandalized his car, at least when I was there. I'm sure it happened multiple times.
What clients does The Shoptaw Group currently have? Just Toll Brothers? What about Acton's Landing?
8:28 am
I stumble into this article via Twitter but this is a story that gets played out over and over again in our country (and I am sure world wide). Company started by loud-mouthed, egotistical person (usually sales background) who thinks that they can do it better than people they worked for. Their story telling skills get a following of hopeful believers. Company has a successful campaign or two and appears successful based on spending client’s deposits and on things that impress other clients and staff instead of client’s projects. Company leverages it's debt by over-extending it accounts with vendors and creditors. Company focus is on impressing other peers and new potential clients and not in delivering promises to existing clients and vendors. Company never made any real money but was going in debt from day one and until the predictable and inevitable implosion finally happens. Former employees complain about not getting paychecks, vacation etc. etc. and act like innocent victims.
Reality Is: Anyone who worked there for more than a few weeks - especially in the last year is either lying or an idiot if they couldn't tell that this was coming down. The whiney ex-employees who knowingly didn't do anything productive while on the clock, who drank during business hours and partied with management to excess are also guilty of committing fraud. I would be embarrassed to be publicly complaining!! They should feel lucky that their only penalty for their immature behavior is to being not paid a few thousand bucks. It is obvious that these ex-staffers were only loyal to their paychecks and to the excesses that they enjoyed that were provide by their employer and not to their conscience or the company’s clients and vendors.
8:55 am
One Last Thing ---Kudos to the ex-staff who had the where withall to come clean in this post!!!
1:30 pm
Jack,
It was wonderful seeing you last weekend at the gay DC sports bar Nellie's with your new boyfriend. Boy, you sure like them young! It did my heart good to see that you were able to have such a wonderful time OUT, and rocking pink trousers no less, while you are being sued for hundreds of thousands, while your former employees can not make rent because you owe them money, and while your former vendors may have to close their doors. And who was looking after your kids while you were OUT, surly not your estranged wife who you incorrectly claimed battered you? Funny how homophobic you were towards your former gay employees while you were meeting male escorts at the Ritz-Carlton and in the Flour Mill parking garage. On second thought, it is not funny at all - just sad.
1:26 pm
Attention City Paper, the above POST from D- is another attempt by someone to post pretending to be someone else. THIS POST WAS NOT MADE BY ME even though I did recently run into Jack. I must have mentioned to whomever "D-" is about my running in to Jack. D- knows that if Jack reads the posting that he will have no doubt that it was made by me. It was not.I have NO knowledge of any of the other remarks in this posting. I only came back to the article because I was made aware that there was a comment that appeared to be from me. I am NOT D- and I am sick of this whole story.
James E. Boston
1:42 pm
Will Mitchell,
Per your posting earlier about comments from people trying to appear like they are from someone else, PLEASE address again. D- is obviously one of those people. In this case they are trying to appear to be me and the comments they make are slanderous. Can't you identify these fake posters by IP addresses? If not, I would hope that this once interesting but now very tired story would be taken down or sadly, set up with no commenting options.
James E. Boston
2:55 pm
Comments are now closed on this article.