There’s a story David W. Florence tells to demonstrate why he loves New Orleans: Some years back, he was walking through the French Quarter when he bumped into a friend of his who was carrying a Bloody Mary in a to-go cup. Florence asked his friend what he was up to.
“Not much, just going to get breakfast,” the friend replied.
It was 2:30 in the afternoon.
It’s a special sort of city where something like this isn’t overly strange, and it reflects what Florence, the chairman of list firm Direct Media Inc. and Direct Marketing Hall of Fame member, appreciates about it: the relaxed pace (and, of course, the food and the jazz).
“I am a type A sort,” he told Direct Newsline during an interview at the Café du Monde. “This city slows me down.”
In many ways, it is inevitable that it would. Even before Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans hadn’t been a significant source of list business, and Florence was more or less forced to get away from it all when here.
“I always wished there was more,” he said with a smile. “I could have written off my trips. We did some business with K-Tel, the restaurant and food catalog, but the small marketers rarely turn into much.”
Florence has loved the city as a resident, albeit a partial one. He has owned two successive apartments in the Quarter, although he sold the last one he owned in 2005, before Hurricane Katrina hit.
(Photograph by Richard H. Levey)
Direct Media founder and chairman David W. Florence at the Café du Monde, New Orleans.
But he still has close ties to the city: His son Robert lives in the city, where he runs the Historic New Orleans Tours company (http://www.tourneworleans.com). Robert Florence has also published two books on New Orleans’ Cities of the Dead – its aboveground cemeteries.
That business is coming back slowly. Before Katrina, each tour would have between 30 and 50 participants. For a long time afterward, there were two or three customers per tour. But things are looking up: Recent excursions have hosted around a dozen knowledge seekers.
Robert Florence has committed to staying in the city and rebuilding his company. “He loves it here,” said David Florence.
Ten years ago, Robert Florence’s wedding provided David Florence with his most memorable meal in the city – or, rather, most memorable series of meals.
“There were three dinner parties in a row, all hosted by different friends,” he said. “All of them served crawfish etouffee. Each version was different, and they were all wonderful.”
This article is part of a weeklong series Direct Newsline is featuring on direct marketing and the economic recovery of New Orleans.
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