As our 250th anniversary celebrations draw closer, anticipation is building for what promises to be an extraordinary milestone in British gunmaking. To mark the occasion, we sat down with managing director Marc Newton to hear what this anniversary means to him, why it’s as much about the people as it is the company and what guests can expect from the commemorations.
Q: What does it mean to you to be managing director of Rigby during the 250th celebrations?
Marc: For me, as managing director, a shareholder and just as someone who simply loves Rigby, it’s an extraordinary privilege. I genuinely can’t believe I get paid to do this and it’s very special to be at the helm for the 250th anniversary. Every day, I get to work with a team of talented, passionate craftsmen and women who are keeping Rigby’s legacy alive and it’s their work, dedication and skill that makes this anniversary so special
I’m also keenly aware that this is truly a once-in-a-generation opportunity to celebrate not only Britain’s oldest gunmaker but a company that’s been part of key moments in British history. I think that sometimes, within the gun and hunting space, we’ve accepted a position of being slight outcasts from the business world, but Rigby is as much a part of British culture as anything else. Britain is regarded as the home of some of the world’s finest gunmakers, and that must be celebrated.
Q: You’ve often spoken about how Rigby is as much about the people as it is about the craftsmanship. How are the celebrations going to recognise the figures who have helped shape the brand over the years?
Marc: This company is nothing without its people. The gunmakers in our London workshop, the engravers, the craftsmen, every single one of them has a hand in creating something truly special. And beyond them, there’s the extended Rigby family around the world.
We’re writing a book, though we need to keep the title of it under wraps for just a little bit longer, that will be launched at the anniversary celebrations. It tells the story of how we brought the company back and writing that alongside Diggory Hadoke really brought it home to me that this company really is all about the people.
Rigby’s history isn’t just about the guns; it’s about the great global Rigby family. Our customers, enthusiasts, gunmakers, PHs, the people who carry and love Rigby rifles.
Q: What has the response been like from the people who have been invited to the celebrations?
Marc: A lot of people are incredibly touched to be invited. We’ve only hinted at how special this is going to be, but my plan is to set the bar so high that when the 300th anniversary comes around, they’ll have a hell of a job trying to match it!
People who know some of the details of the event are blown away. My motto in life has always been, “Bite off more than you can chew and chew like hell,” and that’s exactly what we’ve done with this event. The scale of what we’re putting together is huge, but that’s Rigby – we don’t do things by halves. Every single detail has been thought through, from the historic venue to the incredible craftsmanship that will be on display. It started as an idea, and I must thank Simon Barr from Tweed Media for helping to take my idea and shape it into the event we’re about to host. And of course, none of this would have come together without the incredible hard work of Monty, Rigby’s director of operations, who has been instrumental in executing it all. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime celebration, and I know it will leave a lasting impression on everyone who attends.
I only wish we had more space. We could do 20 nights and still not accommodate everyone that I’d like to see there. But while we can only have 250 guests, we’ll be raising a glass to all those who couldn’t be there and we’ll be covering the event extensively so that people can experience it through our articles and videos.
Q: Out of everything that you and the team have planned, what are you most excited about?
Marc: I’ve spent three years working with the team planning this event, and nearly 20 years working towards this moment. Learning everything I could about the gun trade, learning from some true legends and then taking the reins here at Rigby, it’s all built to this.
What I’m most looking forward to personally is standing beside HMS Victory to give my welcome speech. It’s a national treasure, a place I visited as a boy, and this is something I could only have dreamt of. To be standing there with 250 guests and my amazing team, looking back at where we came from and where we are now, that’s going to be an extraordinary thing.
I think I’ll take a moment to pause and absorb it all. Twelve years ago, this was just an idea in my head. I had a box of papers in a car – a car that was worth less than the shoes I’ll be wearing to the event – when I picked up our owners from the airport to discuss relaunching Rigby in the UK. And now, to be here, to have brought it all back and to be celebrating this milestone, it’s incredible.
Beyond that, I just want to see the faces of the people who have made Rigby what it is. This will probably be the only time this group of people come together to celebrate something like this. It’s going to be very special.
And of course, there’s the special edition rifles we’re creating to mark the occasion. The fact that we’re incorporating wood from HMS Victory into these rifles ties together two pieces of British history in a way that’s incredibly meaningful. These guns will be collectors’ items and a tangible link to this anniversary and to everything Rigby stands for. I can’t wait for people to see them.