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Alice Paul Direct Mail Marketing simplifies direct mail marketing for our customers by working to exceed industry standards for maintaining innovative processes and technology.
We strive to provide superior customer service by emphasizing honest, respectful and personal interaction with our customers and company team members. We are united in our efforts to expand our capabilities by realizing annual profit increases regardless of the business climate or seasonal shifts, reducing expenses, and increasing quality and efficiency on a job-by-job basis.
A History of Alice Paul Direct Mail Marketing
Alice Paul Direct Mail Service began
as a one-woman consulting business in 1989. Initially
dubbed MJ Consulting after founder Martha J. Pontoni,
the business was incorporated under the name Alice
Paul Printers and Mail House, Inc. in 1991. The
following year, Patricia Harris joined the company
to manage finance.
Alice Paul started to grow, production staffers
were hired and Ms. Pontoni resigned from her outside
employment to concentrate on sales. Customers
came from word of mouth and telephone book advertising;
in the early years one client accounted for most
of the annual sales. In 1993 Carolyn Albu joined
the staff after returning home from the Gulf War
as an honored veteran. She was initially a commissioned
salesperson.
In 1994 the corporation moved its offices from a sub-basement to a rented building on Bridge Ave. in Cleveland’s historic Ohio City. At that time, Ms. Albu was Director of Sales, Ms. Harris was the company’s Business Manager, performing all accounting and administrative work and Ms. Pontoni supervised production. By this time the corporation had several addressing machines, tabbing machines, folders and other equipment necessary to run a mail house.
A year later, the United States Postal Service changed many of the sorting rules for bulk mail and began to offer substantial discounts for adding a barcode before mailing. Because Alice Paul was relatively new, the most modern equipment was already in place and they were able to capitalize on this opportunity. Sales revenue grew 40% in 1995.
In 1999 sales exceeded 1 million dollars for the first time. Ms. Albu took over the accounting and administrative duties, Ms. Pontoni supervised the sales and production departments and Ms. Harris remained active as financial consultant.
Alice Paul Direct became the first mail house in Ohio to recognize union representation when, in August of 2001, the Communication Workers of America Local 4340 were welcomed as representatives of the mail handling production staff.
Soon the business had grown so large that the Ohio City space was inadequate. The three partners purchased and renovated a building at 1325 West 73rd Street, in Cleveland’s Detroit Shoreway area. Alice Paul Direct moved into their current space on April 12, 2003.
Alice Paul Direct Mail Service was certified in
2007 by the Women’s Business Enterprise National
Council. The same year, the three partners
were also certified as City of Cleveland Women
Business Owners, and Alice Paul Direct became
a member of the Allied Printing Trades Council.
OWNERS:
Martha Pontoni, Chief Executive Officer
Martha Pontoni was born and raised in
Cleveland. A graduate of Cleveland State University,
she has been a member of the City of Cleveland
Police Review Board, the Community Relations Board,
organized the inaugural Cleveland Pride celebration
and publishes a statewide newspaper. Repurposing
equipment used to send out subscriptions for her
newspaper, Ms. Pontoni created Alice Paul Direct
in 1991.
Carolyn Albu, Chief Financial Officer
Carolyn Albu, a decorated Desert Storm
Veteran and Cleveland native, came to Alice Paul
Direct in 1993. She has overseen a five-fold increase
of sales, as well as coordinating renovations
to the new facility, in which Alice Paul Direct
took up residence in 2003. Graduating with honors
from David N. Myers University with a degree in
accounting, Ms. Albu plans to continue her education
through the masters level program at Cleveland
State University.
Patricia Harris, Chief Operating Officer
Patricia Harris was born in Jacksonville,
Florida and moved to Cleveland in 1986. She attended
MacMurray College in Jacksonville, Illinois and
Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan,
graduating with a degree in education. Joining
Alice Paul Direct in 1992, Ms. Harris also is
the managing editor of a statewide newspaper,
and has been an honorary co-chair of the Cleveland
AIDS Walk, serving on its committee for
five years. |
