In my opinion it would be most difficult to breathe new life into the Rigby mark. The whole world knows that at present "Rigby" is no more than a word. It stands for nothing. There is no credible organization behind it. There is no remnant of tradition or culture developed over time and upon which the former good will was established. It has been stripped of everything it once stood for.

If someone should acquire that name, that person would be building a new stock of good will from the ground up. Acceptance of the brand, if to be had, would come not from the name, but only from a strong demonstration of highest quality product coupled with devotion to late 19th century ideals and ethics.

I suppose it would require that the highest level of talent be combined with appropriate equipment in a proper location, preferably in London. Initially and for the foreseeable future there would have to be sufficient capital backing to support production of speculation guns to demonstrate the talent. Only after such a showing would orders be forthcoming.

Tony Galazan has attempted a similar undertaking trading on his own name as to his O/U while trading on the Fox and Winchester names also. More recently he seems to be concentrating on mass produced knockoffs of the SKB. Obviously he couldn't confine his effort to the very high end. Could he do better with a worn-out name such as "Rigby"? Doubtful. It would be interesting to see his financial statements.

All of this seems a daunting task. Whether and how such a venture could be made profitable is beyond my comprehension.

Curl