Wow – I can’t believe this: Westley Richard’s Simon Clode had passed away. My condolences to his family. You can read his obit on Westley Richard’s The Explora blog here.
I ran into Simon a few times, the last one at the 2016 Safari Club Show in Vegas. He was sort of the Steve Jobs of the British gun trade – a real visionary.
I have tremendous respect for what he accomplished. He built great guns and a great brand. He brought a new generation of craftsmen into the biz and gave work to the existing ones. He was also spread the word about British guns to shooters around the world.
From marketing to gun making, he knew what he was doing. People like him are rare. I hope Westley Richards has someone in line to take over with the same drive and feel for the future.
Gregg,
Thanks for making mention of this unfortunate event.
Simon was always the consummate British gentleman despite the pressures of keeping a high-end, legacy English gun company running in today’s difficult business climate – especially in regards to gun manufacturers.
He succeeded in creating a “lifestyle” aura about his company and as you correctly pointed out, managed to keep a portion of the British gun trade alive and working.
I’ve had the privilege of having known Simon and using his WR guns in Africa and in the Pigeon ring. The latter of which will live on for generations to come.
Well done Mr. Clode…See you on the other side.
Godspeed!
JW