Not Good News for Gawith Customers in the US

[oldgeezersmoker]

Kretek International Restructures, Ventura Cigar Co. Staff Reduced (Update)

Kretek International, the parent company of Phillips & King International, Tobacco Media Group and Ventura Cigar Co. is undergoing a major

halfwheel.com

Kretek and the various subsidiaries mentioned in this article are the importers for Samuel Gawith and Gawith and Hoggarth. Eric Stokkebye,who has lost his job in this restructuring, knew a lot about pipe tobacco. GH and SG make many fine tobaccos, but they can only ship what an importer orders. I would imagine Kretek will now be focused on stopping the bleeding from their over extension into vapes (the back story I heard from two different Las Vegas show attendees.

Edit: Fixed Capitalization in Title

 

[mso489]

As if SG and GH aren't rare enough commodities already. I hope there are work-arounds and circumstances that keep some supply coming, but this doesn't bode well.

 

[oldgeezersmoker]

As if SG and GH aren't rare enough commodities already. I hope there are work-arounds and circumstances that keep some supply coming, but this doesn't bode well.

Most likely they will just keep ordering what they have been ordering, when they get around to it. As before. But some with more inside knowledge than I have had hoped that the distribution would improve when they took on GH from Arango.

 

[3rdguy]

Well that didnt last long...

 

[mso489]

Wonderful blends from a wondrous area, but getting the ones you like on any regular basis is a part-time job.

 

[mordy18]

Oh well. I am just beginning to get into Lakeland toabacco. Guess I will need to buy a ton next trip to London or Rome.

 

[briarbuda48]

I wish that of one the companies we know and trust would pick up the torch for Samuel Gawith and HU Tobacco.

 

[weezell]

This really pisses me off!..??

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

How big of a staff is needed to distribute 2 to 3 shipments per year that are sold out before they're received? I wouldn't expect any appreciable changes as far as Gawith is concerned.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Listened to the warnings of, "buy it while you can", decades ago. No worries here.

 

[oldgeezersmoker]

How big of a staff is needed to distribute 2 to 3 shipments per year that are sold out before they're received? I wouldn't expect any appreciable changes as far as Gawith is concerned.

There was hope that the situation was going to change for the better re:availability. Reps weren’t as important as Eric Stokkebye. The GH line in particular needed a lot of work to bring it into line with US preferences. ES was working on those changes. GH can send more product to the US, but an importer has to order it first. And they have to pay for it.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

There was hope that the situation was going to change for the better re:availability. Reps weren’t as important as Eric Stokkebye. The GH line in particular needed a lot of work to bring it into line with US preferences. ES was working on those changes. GH can send more product to the US, but an importer has to order it first. And they have to pay for it.

I don't necessarily believe it will get any better. If handling the small volume of Gawith product is overwhelming for an importer/distributor, they may as well close their doors. I'd also think Gawith isn't ready to walk away from the US market and will take steps to protect their interests if necessary.

Doesn't really matter to me. I'd like to pick up a couple of pounds of Sam's Flake but am more than set on everything else.

 

[oldgeezersmoker]

I don't necessarily believe it will get any better. If handling the small volume of Gawith product is overwhelming for an importer/distributor, they may as well close their doors. I'd also think Gawith isn't ready to walk away from the US market and will take steps to protect their interests if necessary.

Doesn't really matter to me. I'd like to pick up a couple of pounds of Sam's Flake but am more than set on everything else.

Not sure what steps can be taken. Both SG and GH have been ill served in the US by distributors, but there aren’t many choices anymore. Laudisi (Smoking Pipes) comes to mind, but I don’t know how that would fit into their using their marketing resources with the existing products they have.

You really don’t need any more Sam’s Flake. ?

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

Not sure what steps can be taken. Both SG and GH have been ill served in the US by distributors, but there aren’t many choices anymore. Laudisi (Smoking Pipes) comes to mind, but I don’t know how that would fit into their using their marketing resources with the existing products they have.

You really don’t need any more Sam’s Flake. ?

Do you think the short supply problem is with Gawith supplying too little or the US side importer ordering too little?

If worse comes to worse, I can pay a tad more and get the Sam's from Estervals.

 

[craig61a]

There was just an article on this board about GH & SG...

Gawith article

And I don’t see how restructuring translates to less of this being imported.

 

[oldgeezersmoker]

There was just an article on this board about GH & SG...

Gawith article

And I don’t see how restructuring translates to less of this being imported.

Do you think the short supply problem is with Gawith supplying too little or the US side importer ordering too little?

If worse comes to worse, I can pay a tad more and get the Sam's from Estervals.

Too little, plus not ordering consistent with market demands.

 

[oldgeezersmoker]

There was just an article on this board about GH & SG...

Gawith article

And I don’t see how restructuring translates to less of this being imported.

Less? Maybe, maybe not. My bet is it is less than was planned by Chris Gawith when Kretek took over. Will other efforts to better serve what the market demands be implemented? Likely not. Want Kendal Blueberry? Have your shop order it, in stock at the distributor, hardly ever out of stock. Louisiana Flake? Gee, that one is out of stock. But it always is, yet every distributor order is for the same amount. Wouldn’t it be nice to have more of the GH line in 50g tins in the US? GH tins virtually everything they make for one market or another, no reason for smokers to search out the few on line etailers that sell by the ounce or else spring for a 500g box. They are available in tins in other countries. Why isn’t Cabbies available in 250 g boxes as in other markets? Why do people do group orders to Synjeco to get ropes, twists and plugs?

 

[oldgeezersmoker]

k

If worse comes to worse, I can pay a tad more and get the Sam's from Estervals.

Wouldn’t it be nice to have Sam’s in boxes? But all Chris Gawith sees is an order for the same # of 50 g tins as the last order.

 

[rdoss16]

and just when im starting to fall in love w GH....

 

[Elric]

I'm starting to get news fatigue about all the unobtainium blends. While SG has a couple blends I enjoy, I will live to smoke another day if I can't get them any longer. There are a lot of great US blends I have yet to sample.