D’Agostino Agency purchases assets of Sure Insurance
Page 4 • Wednesday, August 16, 2017 • The Hammonton Gazette
INSURANCE, from Page 1
The iconic Second and Vine
Street location was well-known to
Hammontonians and people
throughout southern New Jersey
for decades, thanks to an
advertising slogan that was often
repeated on radio commercials on
“Unforgettable” FM 104.9 WRDR:
“So Be Sure. See Sure. Sure
Insurance. Where the service is fine
at Second and Vine, in the heart of
beautiful downtown Hammonton.”
According to D’Agostino, Sure
Insurance is slated to become
inactive on August 1, 2018.
D’Agostino said their agency
had made similar purchases in the
past, of Howell Insurance in
Absecon and John Alliano in
Hammonton.
An initial effort to purchase Sure
Insurance
was
made
by
D’Agostino Agency approximately
20 years ago, but a deal could not
be made with Jerry Vitalo Sr., the
owner at the time, D’Agostino said.
Vitalo died in 1999.
“We originally had plans to
purchase it from Jerry Vitalo but
that fell through. Jim McGuiness
and I would talk once or twice a
year for about six or seven years.
He called me in June and said,
‘John, it’s time.’” D’Agostino said.
The acquisition has made
D’Agostino Agency a stronger
insurance company, according to
D’Agostino.
“The thing that was attractive to
me was that he had six insurance
carriers that we had, so it made it
easy to have their information
entered into our system. Our
customer service will improve
because we now have a larger staff
that’s knowledgeable in insurance.
Sure customers will be offered
more choices, including more
options on every aspect. Better
pricing is possible due to more
options
being
available,”
D’Agostino said.
Sure Insurance, according to
information available online, has
been in business for 59 years, and
D’Agostino Agency has been
operating for 48 years, D’Agostino
said.
“We’re seeing mergers and
acquisitions at a record pace in the
insurance industry,” he said.
Customers of Sure Insurance
will be moving across town, from
Second and Vine downtown to
D’Agostino Agency’s location at
105 N. White Horse Pike uptown,
something D’Agostino said was
important from a customer service
standpoint.
“We were happy to have the
customers be able to stay in town
with the acquiring agency. They
can come to us. Hammonton has a
specialized customer base that
wants
customer
service,”
D’Agostino said.
D’Agostino said he feels that
consumers have been returning to
independent agencies in recent
years, and that this acquisition is
happening at the right time for the
agency and the customers.
“I looked at it as being good for
the people of Hammonton. The
employees stay with reduced
hours, which is what they wanted,
and the customers become part of
the
D’Agostino
family,”
D’Agostino said.
Customers have been notified
about the change through
advertisements in The Gazette,
through mailers and online.
D’Agostino
said
future
acquisitions like the recently-
completed one of Sure Insurance’s
assets may occur in the coming
years.
“I’m always looking ... It will be
if the location justifies staying open
where it is, then we will look out if
it can stand on its own. I don’t want
the consum