STG acquires Mac Baren
https://it.finance.yahoo.com/news/scandinavian-tobacco-group-acquire-mac-073900958.html
Scandinavian Tobacco Group is buying Mac Baren Tobacco Company for about 77 Million USD.
It might be time to stock up on your favorite MB tobaccos.
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Comments
Reading what others with more knowledge and experience are saying, this could possibly really sux badly.
Right you are, Steve.
https://pipesmagazine.com/forums/threads/stg-closes-mac-baren-and-sutliff.107172/
The Danish MSN news site published yesterday that the Mac Baren factory in Svendborg will be moved by 2027 with hopes that some of the 200 employees of the factory make the move to Assens. No doubt some blends will be dropped.
The dismissal of the management team will take place within the next eight to ten days.
However, it is not only the factory in Svendborg that is affected by STG's new strategy. Mac Baren facilities in the US (Sutliff, maybe TobaccoPipes, Cup O' Joes, TobaccoReviews, etc.) will also be closed as part of the restructuring.
Now's a good time to stock up on Sutliff bulk at Tobacco Pipes which is currently 20% off.
Well crap....
An interesting read from Ernie and Watch City Cigar, he uses a lot of Sutliff tobacco to make his blends.
https://pipesmokersdens.com/threads/and-then-there-was-one.24427/page-6#post-990428
From owner of Watch City….
We need to breach this subject due to the overwhelming amount of questions we're getting. It will affect us. We have been through major closings like this 3 times in the past (House of Windsor, Lane and McClelland). As of now we do not know which if any of Sutliff's blending leaf will continue to be made in Denmark. We don't know if another house will take over some of the blends. There are at least 2 other sources for good leaf, but it's different from Sutliff. So things will change.
I hate to be vague, but the best I can say is that our cakes will be gone. We are looking into getting our own press next year and re-blending the cakes. At this point some blends will remain the same, others will be changed slightly and some will be discontinued and replaced. We are tobacco blenders and we'll continue to produce great blends but as is the nature of this business these days, change is inevitable. I'll have a clearer picture in the Spring. We have a LOT of leaf right now and a lot of the cakes. As for those asking if they should stock up? Well look....if you smoke a lot of our cakes, then yes- stock up. They will be gone....but I don't know when. Sutliff IS still in production and have not given a time for official closing...so keep all that in mind.
Also for those asking for a discount on, say, 5 pounds or large quantities? We can't. Prices have gone up several times and we've only gone up twice in a few years. Also for those asking "what are you gonna do now?" Stop. We make tobacco and will continue to with what is available.
Ernie Q.
A good cigar and whiskey solve most problems.
Thanks for posting this, Chris. Very interesting, and disturbing. Gentlemen, we are in fact living anachronisms. It's sad. Brings to mind a couple of thoughts that are side issues. The You-tuber did a great job of pointing out the corporate point of view, and it's hard to blame them. The market revolves around the end user in the long run.
Today there are popular movements trying to legalize those natural substances that have been illegal, cannabis or mushrooms or ayahuasca, things like that. I'm pretty much for that, with a few caveats, public education about realities, no operating dangerous machinery, etc., but that's not the point I'm bringing up. What bothers me on that front is that so many consider it to be some sort of zero sum equation. Legalize cannabis, but make tobacco against the law. WTF? It's like an obsession. If one rises, the other must fall. Why is that? Makes no sense to me.
At any rate, that was also a bit off the center of my thought. The end result is that, as we know, most people equate all tobacco use to cigarettes which are unquestionably the most addictive and harmful way to ingest tobacco. It's an uphill battle to try to get it through people's heads that it is a different usage. I can point out to anyone who will listen that I sometimes spend several days at a time traveling with Faye, and may not smoke at all, and suffer no ill effects. Irritability or withdrawal etc., but they just look at me with sad eyes.
The point I'm making is that generally, especially in America, we who use this natural product, engage in this heritage, are in decline. No market, no business. All I want is for guys like us to be able to enjoy what we enjoy without harassment and persecution. Is that too much to ask?
https://youtu.be/oDt49Xdqcb0?si=HLDfFVpBnWlcUSxQ
"If you do not read the newspapers you're uninformed. If you do read the newspapers, you're misinformed." -- Mark Twain
It’s all about the long game.
Tobacco obviously has been an established part of our society for many, many years. Along with that long standing establishment comes things like deep pockets, lobbyists, and politicians.
As with many “controversial” products in our society whether it be fossil fuels, firearms, or tobacco there are politicians playing both sides of the fence. They press for regulation or banishment of certain products all the while gladly accepting money from the same companies to ease up. Introduce a bill, get paid tomorrow, and the bill never sees the light of day.
That circle has been long established with tobacco. Now that well is running dry for politicians due to “regulatory” agencies finally being put in check. So now it’s time to move on to something else. What better than something that has always been controversial, is exponentially growing business wise every year, and ripe for the political extortion picking.
It’s all about the long game.
The part about closing TP (Tobacco Pipes) and CoJ (Cup O' Joes) and moving everything to Pipes and Cigars makes more sense when I learned that TP and CoJ are both currently run out of the Virginia Sutliff facility that's being closed.
Ken Byron's take: https://kbven.com/if-its-true/?v=0b3b97fa6688
Damn.
Nolite Oblivisci Peniculus Dentes
From another forum, a response from STG with some more information:
Pardon the length of this post, but I figured I’d jump in to provide some clarity / serve as a human punching bag regarding STG’s purchase of Mac Baren/Sutliff.
It’s been a while since I’ve posted here, so a quick introduction. I’m Leonard Wortzel. I’ve been a pipe smoker for 30 years, and I’ve worked for STG since shortly after the Lane acquisition in 2011. I’ve held multiple roles in the company, including Vice President of Marketing & Product Development at Lane (that’s a pompous way of saying I oversaw the Lane pipe tobacco portfolio for about a decade). This link will give you an idea of the sort of things I was up to during that time.
Lately, among other duties, I have been responsible for analyzing the current STG/Mac Baren/Sutliff global pipe tobacco portfolio and determining what that portfolio should look like in the future. Essentially, I was tasked with providing the recommendation for what products we should continue to make, and what products we should discontinue. I did not make decisions in a vacuum, but if you’re looking to pin the blame on the person most responsible for product decisions being made… I’m your best bet. [Small note for clarity: I drove the decisions on what we should make, not where it should be made.]
So let me answer what I can. There are some things I can’t discuss for various business reasons, but I’ll do my best. What I’m not here to do: Change anyone’s opinion. I do not expect anyone to feel any different than they currently do. You’ll just have a few more facts, and a little less conjecture.
I’ll start by attempting to pre-answer some questions.
Why Did You Wait Until Now to Respond?
Whether it’s about individual products or factories, it takes time to analyze the data, make recommendations, and come to a consensus. More importantly, the results of those decisions won’t simply impact our favorite products, they will impact people. People’s livelihoods are at stake. Good, passionate people. It served no one to add fuel to a rumor mill until we had a chance to communicate directly with those who may be impacted.
Why Is the Sutliff Factory Shutting Down?
We already have a factory that can produce all the same products and that has extra capacity. Maintaining two facilities when you only need one simply makes everything more inefficient and more expensive. What did NOT lead to this decision was the people who work at the factory. They showed up every day – for decades in some instances – to make products for the pipe tobacco community. They also helped make Sutliff more and more profitable every year since Mac Baren purchased the company. For reasons beyond the employees’ control, Mac Baren decided to sell, and the realities of factory capacity utilization followed.
What Will Happen with the Sutliff and Mac Baren Products in the US and Why?
Sutliff sells 988 products. Less than 950 sell more than 1,000 lbs per year. The Sutliff facility is set up to handle small-batch products. The STG facility is not. That answer is unlikely to please anyone – that 988th product is some pipe smoker’s favorite blend – but that is the reality. Therefore most of the Sutliff products will be discontinued (for now). Those that remain will be manufactured at STG’s Denmark facility. The final list of the Sutliff & Mac Baren products that are remaining will be published within the next few weeks.
What About Lane Products?
Nothing is being discontinued from the Lane portfolio. We already delisted low volume sellers from 2018-2020. For what it’s worth, 100% of what we delisted I had personally launched or resurrected over the prior decade. Take it from me, euthanizing a good chunk of a decade’s worth passion is not fun.
Are These Product Decisions Permanent?
No. Provided that they are grandfathered from an FDA standpoint, there is nothing stopping us from resurrecting any of the Sutliff or Mac Baren blends. Just like we resurrected the majority of the Lane Bulk portfolio after the STG acquisition in 2011. The pipe community is not shy. At pipe shows, pipe clubs and pipe forums, you will tell us what products should be brought back.
Does STG Even Care About Pipe Tobacco?
Again, I have neither the desire nor the ability to change anyone’s opinion on this question. But allow me to share my opinion. After Reynold’s decided to walk away from pipe tobacco, who had the interest, the money and the capability to step in? When Swedish Match was no longer interested in brands like Borkum Riff and Half & Half, who stepped in? When Dunhill decided to walk away from pipe tobacco, who stepped in to revive the blends under the Peterson name? When the owners of Mac Baren decided it was time to walk away, who stepped in? There are many of us who would have had the interest to step in, and a few who would have had the capability. But who ultimately put their money on the line? And who is the individual responsible for managing STG’s pipe tobacco portfolio going forward? A young man name Max Stokkebye. Max cares about this little hobby of ours. As do I. And we’ll stop caring when you pry the pipes from our cold, dead hands.