Posted on January 28 2013
After frustrating years of sourcing and distribution issues, Partridge of Redditch, having been acquired by FishingMatters, is being restored to its “former glory”—including new US distributor Wapsi and a new product catalog.
Read more in the press release below.
From Partridge of Redditch:
Since acquiring Partridge of Redditch in 2009, British company FishingMatters’ has set about restoring the brand to its former glory, after years of neglect and being hidden within the Mustad group. “Rebuilding our reputation for consistent supply and leading innovation have been our top priority,” stated CEO Mark Hamnett “part of our task has been to resolve sourcing and distribution issues that have frustrated the business for many years”
There are quite a few loyal customers in Canada and the USA (both retailers and fly tyers) who have been frustrated by the lack of priority given the brand during the Mustad years, however this is set to change as Partridge switches distributor from Mustad USA to lead US distributor Wapsi of Mountain Home, AR. At the IFTD 2012 in Reno, Partridge launched their new season catalogue and a whole host of new and innovative patterns and products.
Wapsi’s Karl Schmucker stated; “We will carry a range of Partridge top sellers and offer retailers the opportunity to order other hooks in the Partridge range.” He was impressed that Partridge have taken on board the need to treat the US as a market with its own needs which can be seen from the new Bass and Muskie Patterns that can be seen in the catalogue for the first time.
The new catalogue took some time to complete, as it had to incorporate the revamped range, revised delivery schedules and discussion with pro-staff to tie the best patterns to illustrate the hooks. The results are available as a pdf on the Partridge website (www.partridge-of-redditch.co.uk) or from Wapsi.
For further information please contact:
Mark Hamnett – Telephone +44 (7917) 543392
mark@fishingmatters.biz