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"Meet people we haven't been able to reach before"

Scheduled for August in Cuxhaven on the German North Sea coast, the European Pipe & Tobacco Show is gradually assuming New World dimensions. Participants will include most of the big German names, as well as an interesting line-up of Danes and Italians. It also looks as if the USA will be well represented - a premiere in itself for Europe.

Organiser Rolf Osterndorff is billing the show as the second of its kind - but, in reality, it is a debut. Its predecessor was a medium-sized gathering on Rolf's own premises, neither planned nor accomplished on the scale envisioned for August. This time, Rolf says, there will be 60 to 80 exhibitors' tables. According to his website, the German greats such as Barbi and Joura will be there, along the likes of Tom Eltang, Anne-Julie Rasmussen and Peter Matzhold from neighbouring Denmark and Austria. But Rolf notes that the published list does not yet include everyone - and that further stars may well put in an appearance.

A number of America's top pipe makers are also expected to exhibit: Trever Talbert and Lee von Erck are the best-known US carvers on Rolf's list, while Rolando Negoita and Tyler (Lane) Beard represent two very different stylistic poles among the newer virtuosos.

Pipe shows are an American phenomenon. Despite the fact that Chicago's highly experienced Frank Burla thinks a European event viable, (more in an upcoming Pfeifenbox interview), the concept hasn't been tried yet. For example, it remains to be seen whether European collectors view a show as a convenient buying venue. While excellent pipe shops are fairly evenly distributed in Germany itself, there's a definite lack of them in some other EU countries. Given an attractive selection of exhibitors, a trip to Cuxhaven might easily strike a British aficionado as the most efficient way of spending his annual pipe money.

Acknowledging the cosmopolitan style of Rolf's preparations, Maurizio Tombari of Le Nuvole is one carver who sees Cuxhaven as a new opportunity. He expects a fairly international audience at the show, where - as he tells Pfeifenbox - he is hoping to meet people he hasn't been able to reach before.

Your customers are mainly Italians and Americans. Is Cuxhaven likely to broaden your collector base?

MT: What can I say? That is what I expect. I hope to meet many smokers and collectors that have never heard about Le Nuvole, who don't usually buy on the Internet or don't know my site yet.

Do you think the show will be truly European, or more of a German domestic affair?

MT: Looking at the list of the participants you don't only see German or European pipe makers. It's only the second European show, and I'm favorably surprised by the planned presence of overseas makers. Even Jan Zeman from New Zealand is coming, so I don't think the show will assume a purely domestic dimension.

Who are you primarily targeting in Cuxhaven, the retail dealers or the smokers and collectors themselves?

MT: My production is so limited that I find a serious and enduring relationship with retailers difficult. That's the main reason for my wife and I to choose the Internet, offering our pipes directly to smokers and collectors

Some people say that the European markets are currently saturated with Italian pipes. How can an Italian carver set himself apart and be viewed as an individual, rather than 'another guy from Pesaro'?

MT: Not an easy one to answer [laughs]. I simply hope smokers and collectors can appreciate the style and finish of my pipes.

You will also be going to Chicago. Which of the two shows is the most important to you?

MT: I really love direct contact with smokers, buyers and collectors, and that's what happens at the Chicago show - so I think the European show will be the same. This year, it finally seems I'll be able to go to Chicago. My wife and I are working on the details of the trip right now - and we are very excited about it. So, at the moment, Chicago is more important than Cuxhaven, simply because it's the earlier of the two shows [laughs]. Soon after Chicago, Cuxhaven will become the principal deadline for Le Nuvole.

(February 4, 2004)

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