CIGARSir International, a division of The Critical Solutions Group Companies, surely wanted to make friends - not enemies - when it announced March 12 that it planned to donate to cancer research organizations 3 cents per transaction from its newcigar vending machines. But the head of one cancer research organization is finding this campaign hard to swallow.
George Dessart, chairman of the Board of the American Cancer Society, issued a scathing release last week calling the company's move a "public relations gimmick intended to cajole the healthcare community in believing that CIGARSir has a conscience."
But Joseph Preston, a CIGARSir principal, told PR NEWS last week that the company hasn't backed down and will still head the humanitarian program because it is "an honest and proactive" measure. In response to Dessart's statement, Preston added: "By prematurely denying this financial support, Dessart has turned his back on every cancer patient" and he recommended that the ACS ask for Dessart's resignation or fire him.
News of the philanthropic effort was linked to the company's unveiling of a cigar vending machine that will be marketed worldwide and to its global plan to offer goods, such as CDs, watches and automobiles, for collecting cigar brand labels.
Though its PR with the cancer society might not be so great, it's sticking by its "philanthropic" campaign.