The White House declared a major disaster in Florida over the devastation caused by Hurricane Ian on September 29. More than 2.5 million customers across Florida were without power that Thursday morning, according to NBC News. Nearly one week later, film companies in hard-hit areas take stock of the damage.

A team member at Naples Tint Company of Naples, Fla., tints a windshield.

TubeliteDenco has two locations in Florida. They have a warehouse in Fort Lauderdale and a corporate headquarters in Apopka, which was slightly North of Hurricane Ian’s path. Window Film Division manager Rob Oranges says while they survived the storm, they are now facing several challenges.

“Both of our facilities are in good shape, but due to the impact on the surrounding communities, we have limited delivery capabilities, and we will be canceling our open house in Fort Lauderdale [this] week,” Oranges says. “Most importantly, our employees throughout the state are safe and unharmed. Some have experienced flooding, but nothing catastrophic. Our hearts go out to those who were adversely affected by the hurricane. We are trying to assess what our customers need in the way of support, and we will do everything we can to help them get re-established.”

Tint World of Fort Myers, Fla., found itself in the path of Hurricane Ian but endured just a few years removed from Hurricane Irma in 2017. The company was closed for business from Tuesday, September 27, to Monday, October 3.

Tint World of Fort Myers, Fla., avoided structural damage during Hurricane Ian.

“Our location and building held up fine—no issues there,” says owner Mark Hamilton. “There’s a lot of damage to buildings around us and the community, but luckily we fared well through the whole storm. We’ve got power and water back up and running.”

Hamilton’s employees decided to ride out the storm in Fort Myers.

“We’re here to help people,” Hamilton adds. “A lot of people [who] had damaged cars are already starting to buy cars and get their windows tinted on their new stuff.”

Naples Tint Company of Naples, Fla., is based roughly 42 miles outside of Fort Myers, Fla., which Hurricane Ian ravaged. Owner Matthew Sandherr, whose company had an estimated $800,000 in sales in 2021, says October poses challenges that could impact 2022’s sales.

“We had houses on schedule that are losses,” Sandherr says. “All of these condos have parking underneath, and hundreds of cars were washed away. I’ve been surprised by the support in the community and from our loyal customers. We are staying positive and working together to get paradise back online.”

WINDOW FILM magazine is here for its readers. Florida shops, please reach out to editor Chris Collier at ccollier@glass.com to let us know how you are doing and if you need support. We will do our best to assist.

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