Thomas & Thomas
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I ask a friend in the industry recently why they had never been a major player, he said was told that was not their business model or desires to be a Sage.
I ask a friend in the industry recently why they had never been a major player, he said was told that was not their business model or desires to be a Sage.
That’s hard to believe.
T & T has never marketed to the masses. It’s the owners’ choice the previous as well as the current. And yes, they still make the most (I think) beautiful graphite rods. I have a 20 year old Special Extra Fry Fly rod that is fantastic.
I ask a friend in the industry recently why they had never been a major player, he said was told that was not their business model or desires to be a Sage.
That’s hard to believe. Who makes a product NOT to sell it to the masses?
That’s easy, most every high end speciality product manufacturer. The sad fact is that in many circles, quality does not sell.
They have made some great sticks in the past, but I can’t say they are a player… Even the T&T agent in SA carries Sage’s…
T&T is probably more focused on the eastern part of the US.
T&T also has (or wants to) less marketing budget than say Sage or Winston.some companies ,before the invasion of MBA’s,sought quality over quantity.
I have a Paradigm,an LPS and a Horizon.Unlikely that I’ll ever get rid of any of them.
Best,
SteveI own two T & T Rods and they are nice. My understanding is that they were popular in Ga. untli a few years ago. An ex employee of a busy shop in Ga. said they sold a lot of them. I know of two stores in Md. that carry their rods.
I too find it hard to believe that Thomas & Thomas wouldn’t want a bigger slice of the pie.I ask a friend in the industry recently why they had never been a major player, he said was told that was not their business model or desires to be a Sage.
That’s hard to believe.
I ask a friend in the industry recently why they had never been a major player, he said was told that was not their business model or desires to be a Sage.
That’s hard to believe. Who makes a product NOT to sell it to the masses?
President Reagan commissioned 3 rods from T&T to give to foreign heads-of-state (Australia) and royalty (Prince Charles and Pricess Dianna). There is a business model for this type of manufacturer; think Bentley Automobiles, McIntosh Labs Audio Equipment, and Perazzi Shotguns
Thomas & Thomas makes functional pieces of art. Part of manufacturing high-end anything is properly managing a certain amount of exclusivity into the product.
As far as I know they are still in business. But I haven’t actually seen a T&T rod in a shop in a long time.
Zach
The rumor mill is running on some other forums. The rate that other manufacturers are debuting new rods, materials, new rod families runs in stark contrast to the approach being taken by T&T. For a pretty good portion of this year, the most recent catalog on their website was 2009. For a while last winter, there was nobody in their parking. People are seeing rods discounted in the shops and people are wondering whether there is a company to stand behind the warranty on the products. Personally, I had a shop offer me a Helix 486-4 at a discount of over $200. I shouldn’t have passed it up, but I wanted a Sage TXL 4710. The economics of the industry and the struggles of other rodmakers are fueling the fire.
Zach, this seems like a very interesting interview for your podcast. They are very exclusive and highly crafted rods with an interesting history. I think it would help dispell rumors without having to even bring them up in the interview.
Clearly their business model isn’t working in todays economic climate.
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