Del, I get asked this question a lot, so I'll try to answer as concisely as possible.
The Whiting Pro Team (PT) is a two-way agreement. There is no pay, but PT members can get great disounts- below wholesale-on Whiting products. There is also the status and recognition, which of course are intangibles but still valuable when in the 'public eye'. PT members can also order specific and specialized materials, such as cree, and receive preferential status on orders. PT members are allowed to tie at the Whiting booths at shows and conclaves. The Pro Team package is currently being updated and hopefully many more benefits are in the future. There are hats and shirts available, and I'm working on getting Tom to have some shirt patches. PT members may buy 6 pelts a year at 25% off wholesale, with wholesale usually being figured at half off the retail cost. So an $80 saddle would cost $30 for a PT member. Large quantities for professional tiers who are PT members can be purchased at wholesale. At present, there are a number of requirements in 'the agreement', of which only a few need to be fulfilled. If a tier meets the below criteria, these agreement criteria will easily be met. Promotion is a flexible approach. I, like other PT'ers, use Whiting because I love the feathers. It's not hard to promote something you already use and enjoy. What does the PT candidate need: First of all, as you would guess, he/she would need to be a stand-out tier, recognized and well thought of among their peers as innovative and creative. This person needs to have an established record of being in the public eye, whether through shows, clinics, books, mag articles, videos, etc. They should be members of at least one fly fishing/tying organization. They should be known as instructors and teachers, not just promoters. They need to interface well with the public, be interesting, entertaining, and informative. And one who deals with the public must be patient and always polite- regardless. It reflects on the show owners, promoters and yourself as to how well you deal with 'difficult' members of the public. PT members must also agree to promote Whiting feathers exclusively. They may use other feathers, of course, but Whiting only must be promoted. A good working knowledge of the history of Whiting and the genetic lineage is a must, also the breeding and selection process. A good overall knowledge of the Whiting products are also a must. Tom does allow PT'ers to make some sales, but it must be specifically approved and not in competition of retailers who must pay the full wholesale price. Tom puts great emphasis on innovation and design in flies, especially those leading to great fishability, thus demand. He listens to the advice of the PT'ers in many areas- feather qualities, packaging, marketing, etc. If you are a show tier and give out samples of your flies tied with Whiting feathers, along with sample feathers, Tom will supply these promotional materials at no charge. Also, Pro Teamers have first access to new products, to develop applications using that creativity and innovation they were chosen for. I've had discussions with Tom about revamping the Pro Team arrangement with more organization and benefits to both sides. Hopefully we'll get this ironed out soon. Like the VFB Co-op Swap, I'm advising Tom to have more promotional programs headed up by the PT'ers, ones that add up to great deals for all involved, as were the co-op swaps. I'm trying to get him to put up a Pro Teamer's page for the public to communicate with on technical and tying questions. I'm also hoping to be able to expand the web site so that all tiers can participate and receive benefits from their creativity. I'd like him to put up different kinds of programs for trout, warmwater, bass, and saltwater tying. This will all take time, but is also fun in the process. Any other questions? DonO
