G&S Customer Information Page
    Customer Question and Answer
    Page

    Who will be operating G&S this year?

    The Scales Family has leased the packing facility to Pete and
    Cindy Spyke, owners of The Orange Shop in Citra, Florida.  
    Pete is a third-generation Gift Fruit Shipper, originally from
    Davie, Florida, where his grandfather started Spyke's Grove in
    the 1930's.  Pete's sister Barbara is also in the business, still
    operating Spyke's Grove.  Cindy has had a career in the
    banking industry as a trainer, and will participate the G&S
    transition by helping with training of employees and
    customers, among other roles.

    All of the key employees, including April, Janet, Sue, Karina,
    Beth, Bill and David, will remain with the company, so there
    should be a seamless transition.  Bubba (Earl) Scales has also
    agreed to stay on and help out with customer service and other
    roles, including management of The Orange Barn.  The team is
    a very high-quality group of people who are dedicated to
    providing you with the best possible service and performance.

    The phone numbers will remain the same.  This is the new web
    site, and stay tuned for email address updates.

    When will G&S begin shipping fruit for the 2013-
    14 season?

    The first scheduled shipments will depart on November 15.  If
    we find that the fruit is of good quality and color prior to that
    date, we may ship some packages via Fedex in early
    November.  Send us your email address to stay informed of
    this and other special announcements.

    What Customer Management/Database software
    will G&S be using this season?

    We are migrating to a shipping software system we have used
    at The Orange Shop for over 10 years.  All of your prior years
    data has been captured and entered into the system, so there
    will be a complete history for your company.

    We believe this change should eliminate any data management
    issues -- we haven't had any of those kinds of problems with
    The Orange Shop's software.  It's well supported, and
    responses are rapid.

    NEW!  Will my Customer Information be Secure?

    Your data security can be compromised in a number of ways,
    so G&S Fruit Packers LLC has initiated policies that will
    protect the integrity of your valuable customer information.

    Our computer system is hidden behind multiple firewalls and
    routers that eliminate the possibility that hackers can gain
    access.  The credit card processing is accomplished by a secure
    direct connection to the primary processing company on the
    internet, which maintains the highest level of technology to
    prevent piracy of the information.  So, we're pretty well
    secured from the threat of hackers.

    The other policy relates to the privacy of your information.  In
    our opinion, there is no justifiable reason to ever use your
    customer information for any reason other than to fulfill your
    packages and support your business.  To ensure the highest
    level of integrity in this regard, G&S Fruit Packers LLC will
    never share your information with anyone.  And, we will not
    use your information in any way for our own benefit.

    To that end, G&S Fruit Packers LLC will not engage in retail
    gift package sales or marketing on our own behalf.  Our
    customers are fulfillment accounts, not retail gift fruit
    customers, and G&S will never compete directly with any
    fulfillment customer for sales or advertising space.

    There are two closely related companies that do market gift
    fruit directly.  The Orange Shop is Pete and Cindy's business
    in Citra, and The Orange Barn in Lady Lake was a G&S
    Packing Company retail outlet.  The Orange Shop will continue
    to be operated as a separate business, and their data resides on
    a completely separate system.  We will respect the privacy of
    G&S's fulfillment accounts, and data will never be comingled.  
    The Orange Barn has been separated from the fulfillment
    company and will be operated by Earl (Bubba) and Ingrid
    Scales, again as a separate business.  G&S will continue to
    fulfill The Orange Barn's packages in exactly the same manner
    as the rest of our customers.

    Will you be able to continue to export data from
    your proprietary customer software?

    We already have import routines for all the major gift fruit
    software, including Oasis, Indian River Software, and others.  
    We can develop a routine for other software that has the
    capability of exporting data in a recognizable format.  We will
    be contacting those of you who export data to make sure
    everything is working correctly.  

    All other forms of data transfer, including FAX, phone, etc.,
    will be supported as in the past.

    What will be the Call Center Hours?

    The Call Center will be staffed from 8-5 on weekdays during
    non-peak periods.  From Thanksgiving through mid-January,
    the Call Center will be staffed 7 days a week.  We will be
    closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve afternoon and
    Christmas Day, and New Years Day.  If we see the need to add
    early evening hours during December, we'll be prepared to do
    so.

    What about Honeybells?

    We have arranged for an excellent supply of high-quality
    Honeybells for the 2014 shipping period.  Most of them are in
    the northern areas, far from the greening issues of the Indian
    River and other southern locations.  As such, there is a very
    good possibility that we will be able to extend the Honeybell
    season well into February.  We are also securing a supply from
    more southern areas to supply that important "Firsts"
    shipping window in early January.