Bronx real estate developer Joe Simone offered $3.8 million for a Mount Vernon warehouse used by a failing trophy manufacturer, according to court filings, but the cousins who run the business can”™t agree on anything.
“This deal is a no-brainer,” Mario Singer said in a Jan. 15 letter to his cousin, Gerald Singer, “and your outright rejection ”¦ stifles my retirement goals and breaches your fiduciary duties.”
Mario Singer, of Boca Raton, Florida, sued Gerald Singer, of Chappaqua, March 3 in Westchester Supreme Court to dissolve the company that owns the warehouse.
For 45 years, the Singer cousins have run Classic Medallics Inc. and its affiliate, the Singer Co. The business was founded by their grandfather and previously led by their fathers.
The company originally made and sold religious jewelry. In 1950, it expanded to making medallions, medals, coins, key chains, plaques, trophies and other types of awards.
In 2006, Classic moved from Long Island City, Queens to a 27,000-square-foot warehouse on Fulton Avenue in Mount Vernon. The cousins bought the property for $2.7 million and set up GCMRS Properties to own and lease it to Classic.
The cousins each own half of GCMRS. Gerald owns 50% of Classic, Mario owns 38% and other relatives own the remaining 12%.
But Classic no longer needs a 27,000-square-foot facility and has been hemorrhaging money, according to the complaint. It once employed 100 people; now it employs 20 and many are part-time.
Only one year was profitable between 2014 and 2019, and overall it has lost more than $1.5 million. Gerald has cut Mario”™s annual salary to $51,555 from more than $95,000.
Next year, a loan to GCMRS, personally guaranteed by the cousins, matures. But GCMRS has never made a profit, the complaint states, and “does not have the financial wherewithal to refinance.”
Mario wants to retire and to shed the stresses of running the business. He wants to sell the building and his interest in Classic.
Last October, Joe Simone submitted a letter of intent, offering $3.8 million cash, a $380,000 deposit, and 18 months to close the deal to give Classic time to find another location.
Gerald allegedly refuses to sell, so Mario is asking the court to dissolve GCMRS and compel the company to sell the building.
“The differences are irreconcilable, and we are at a business deadlock,” Mario said in the Jan. 15 letter. “I have been through two divorces and basically that is what we need to go through …. It would be a lot more intelligent and less costly to bring an end to our 45-year business relationship in an amicable way.”
Gerald Singer did not respond to an email requesting his side of the story.
White Plains attorney Jeffrey S. Greene represents Mario Singer.
