Tom Hunt tells us how he went about creating, testing and marketing a new product to the fly fishing market
With a keen interest in fly fishing I began to lay down plans to create a brand that would produce high quality fly fishing treatments that could rival and even exceed the performance of the current market leaders. Being UK based and drawing from the rich history of fly fishing in this country I wanted to create a brand that would be recognised and associated with quality. Recruiting the help of my brother, a graphic designer, we set about developing the basis of the company and most importantly the branding itself. We wanted a strong branding image as we both felt that the market had become somewhat static with very little change in what was already out there.
Being mindful of the saying ‘if it’s not broken then why fix it’? we considered the best approach would be to create a complete range of fly and line treatments under the one brand which to my knowledge is currently only available by Loon, an American-based brand. No company based in the UK has developed such a range, giving us what we believe to be a unique opportunity. After hours of deliberating over a name for the company it became clear that the natural thing to do was to incorporate the family name and so in September 2014 we registered the company, Hunt’s Original Ltd.
Hunt’s also had to be a company with products and ethics that customers can trust. The packaging had to be functional and at the same time 100% recyclable, minimum impact on the environment essential and a brand that customers can be assured that every care has been taken in its development so that the end result would be environmentally conscious. We decided on a statement that would reflect this and one that could be incorporated into everything we do. We came up with this!
Hunt’s Original
‘Committed to respecting the environment’
The next step was to decide on what type of products to release first. We had a very tight budget with most of the funds coming by way of donations from family members. I already had a floatant powder for flies in mind and thought the perfect partner to this would be a line and tippet degreaser. We decided on Hunt’s Original Floatant and Hunt’s Original Mud to be the first product release and set about sourcing the raw materials and packaging. The mud was mixed and the floatant bottled. The labels were sourced and tested for durability around water and I began to make enquiries with potential shops and distributers. Confident we had a winning formula, we managed to strike a small distribution deal with a well-established and respected distributer. We thought we had cracked it, but how wrong we were. Feedback on the Mud filtered back quite quickly and was generally positive but the floatant was a different story. We were being compared to the leading brand Frog's Fanny and Shimazaki and the results we not good. Sales of the Mud were slow and the floatant ceased altogether. Because of this we were left with no choice but to withdraw the products entirely and start all over again!
Quite a few months past and to be honest I was feeling deflated but tried not to lose sight of the dream. After all Edison had a 1000 failed ideas and it wasn’t until his 1001st did he invent the lightbulb!
I started working in a large fishing retailer as I knew I had to get into the mind-set of what customers wanted from a product as well as the fact bills still needed to be paid. It was painful to watch at times as bottles and bottles of everyone’s favourite brand were being sold. I knew I still had the great foundations for a business but I just needed some expert advice from someone who could help me understand what makes the leading brands so good. I had to somehow find out what they were made of, who made them and if possible how could I better them. I couldn’t very well phone the companies as what was I supposed to say? ‘Hi I’m Tom and I’m trying to make a product just like yours, only better’. I had made enquiries with a chemical analysis company but they wanted £2000 per product tested and could not guarantee consistent results. More months passed and I had not gotten any further and I was seriously considering quitting. I was enjoying my job and thought "better the devil you know". It was a this point a customer entered the shop and began to ask my advice of fly fishing tackle as he had done it before and was keen to get started again after a few years away. I recognised him from somewhere but couldn’t put my finger on where from so I asked him where he lived. It turned out of all the places that he lived in the same village as me. Further questioning revealed he was a doctor, but not just any doctor. He had a doctorate in Chemistry and when I mentioned what I was trying to achieve he jumped at the chance to help me out. Dr Martin Pick turned out to be the light at the end of the tunnel.
We arranged a meeting and I took several samples of the leading brands of powder floatant as well as the original floatant we had brought out. A quick analysis under the microscope revealed a massive difference in particle size. This truly was the lightbulb moment and after a lengthy telephone conversation with a supplier we arranged for some samples to be sent to us. Now it’s no secret that floatant powders are made using Hydrophobic Fumed Silica and you can buy it by the boat load over the internet and all claiming to be the exact same formula as Frog's Fanny. The truth in all this though is that there are hundreds of different types, all varying in quality, particle size and chemical makeup. Some will even sink a fly if you get the wrong type. We began the task of testing the samples using a combination of methods including vigorous field testing in some pretty awful conditions. We tested against the best and narrowed our results down to just two potential powders. We also made another crucial discovery in that the diameter of the bristles used in the application of the powder make a significant difference. Another telephone conversation with the supplier led to what would be the final breakthrough and what would ultimately lead to the choice of powder we use in the products today. We were told that the powder could be put through a second process of which we will keep to ourselves. The end result, in basic terms is that our powder would contain silica nanoparticles bonded during the treatment process, thus rendering it super hydrophobic and unique to our requirements.
Now that we had decided on which powder we were going to use, I wanted to take another look at the Mud. It was already stable in terms of the fact it doesn’t dry out. We have all gone back to our vest or bag at the beginning of the new season only to discover a tub something resembling a rock. I had left samples exposed to heat and sunlight for days, placed some in the freezer and was happy that neither had any effect on the formula. Feedback was generally good, but I felt there was room for improvement. After consulting with Martin, he suggested another ingredient which would improve the degreasing quality, better the adhesion to tippet material and enhance the mud's ability to cut through surface tension whilst maintaining the overall feel and viscosity of the original version. Our new formula contains three separate ingredients that once massaged between the fingers become activated, working together to give the user what we believe is the finest line and tippet degreaser available on the market today.
Sourcing new packaging was the next task and as I mentioned earlier the diameter of the bristles used in our floatant with brush is crucial in the uptake of powder from the bottle. I managed to find a manufacturer that could provide what we needed. The Mud would remain in its original packaging as people seemed to like the fact it was larger than what other brands are offering and it represented better value for money. At this point we decided to expand the range of powder treatments to include shake tub versions. We were aware that some people preferred to place their flies in a tub and shake the powder on rather than risk it all blowing away whilst trying to brush it on. One would be a straight forward version which only contained our powder (perfect for CdC) and the other would incorporate silica crystals. These help in the uptake of moisture especially when using larger patterns such as sedges. It was essential that we stuck to the ethics of the company so the silica crystals we sourced had to be completely safe and non-hazardous. A lengthy conversation with an industry expert provided us with the perfect materials and ones we could use in or Slime & Grime. We initially wanted to incorporate blue to pink self-indicating silica which would give the user an indication of when the product had exhausted its moisture uptake. We had seen these being used by other companies but we were promptly warned that these posed a significant risk to both human and aquatic life and in no way, should they enter the water system. Instead we were advised to use orange to clear indicating silica which poses no risk to either.
Our final product in this initial range was to be a drying agent that could be used by the river and stillwater angler alike. Delicate enough not to damage small dries but with the absorption capabilities to work on larger patterns incorporating materials such as fritz and marabou. Enter Slime & Grime! Made up from thousands of super absorbent beads and a non-toxic indicating silica it really does zap the moisture from a fly. It’s perfect for when you have just caught a fish and the fly is literally slimed up. You might be down to your last successful fly of the day and don’t want to change patterns. Slime and Grime will revive your favourite fly by removing fish slime, moisture and dirt. We included the indicating silica (orange to clear) as a way of providing further moisture absorption and allow the user to see when the product is ready to be replaced.
We now had our first five products which also incorporated our new branding. We began the process of providing samples to anglers who we felt would give us an honest opinion. Peter Afield, owner of the Bakewell Fly Fishing shop was one of them. Knowing he would provide genuine feedback he agreed to test them himself and offer a small amount to selected customers. Feedback began to filter through and the future looked bright. A major turning point for us was when Glen Pointon purchased some of our Mud and floatant from Peter whilst filming for BT’s show On the Bank. Glen was very impressed with what we had produced and gave us a very honest and impartial review on Facebook.
Following Glen’s review, we were inundated with sample requests and we even started to sell through our online store. Adam Stafford from Wet your Knot really liked the products and kindly passed them around to people as well as promoting our company whenever he could and of course, Eat, Sleep, Fish too.
We managed to provide some prizes for the Broadlands Grayling classic competition which led to an introduction to the very talented Ben Bangham. Things are moving forward in a very positive way and Ben now helps with our sales and distribution. We attended our first ever show at the BFFI which was fantastic and we headed to the first ever London Fly Fishing Fair. We support the England Youth Team with our products and they are also being used by top guides such as Charles Jardine, Ben Bangham, Glen Pointon, Alex Jardine and Hywel Morgan to mention just a few. We will also be featuring in the May edition of Total Fly Fisher magazine. We are also sponsoring the up and coming Scierra Pairs competition which is one of the largest fly fishing competitions in the UK with over 500 competitors in teams of two.
We are very excited to see what the next year holds in store and with new products currently under development we are sure it’s going to be eventful.
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