The Camillus story, part two

April 27th, 2005

The Hobbit Hole has given away more items to the troops than just knives. When we find a product that the troops like, we often contact the manufacturer to share the compliments, and let them know how well the items were received. Often we would get back nice emails from a company representative, expressing their thanks for sharing the letters and emails. Many times the company will offer us special prices.

Our first Camillus “Black Ops” went to First Sergeant “Iron Mike” K. I was floored by the praise for this knife in an email from the infantryman. Troops are generally delighted with our pocket knives, but this professional soldier made our humble offering sound like a gift from heaven.

With nothing more to go on than the general-contact email address from their web site, I sent Camillus an email telling them about our little group, and the fabulous response to the first Camillus knife we sent out. Normally, this would bring back a polite, “thank you for sharing that with us” email.

In the case of Camillus Cutlery, the person handling emails from their site passed it on to their Government Accounts representative, Michelle Finizio. I received an email from her that was as gratifying and enthusiastic as the note from 1SG “Iron Mike”. After a few more exchanges of email, I got up the nerve to call her, and found her gracious and enthusiastic in her support of our efforts.

The first minor miracle she worked was to convince their warehouse manager to shake down the warehouse, looking for any Camillus “Black Ops” that had not yet been sold to discounters. It was only a handful, but enough to take care of the immediate demand, and offered to us at a most generous discount.

I had since learned that a pocket knife may go unnoticed in a troop’s pocket, but a fighting knife hanging from your body armor draws immediate notice. And word travels fast. Giving away fighting knives to Infantry and Marines is like tossing a raw steak to a hungry Rottweiler. It doesn’t last long. Emails started coming in quickly, and our small supply of Camillus “Black Ops” knives would soon be gone.

Michelle Finizio could not work another miracle in finding more “Black Ops”, but instead proposed a plan that would be an even bigger miracle. That story will be told in the next chapter of “The Camillus Story”.

Entry Filed under: Hobbit Hole Knives