Today we’d like to introduce you to Anthony And Andrea Johnson.
Hi Anthony and Andrea, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
MadHatter’s started first as a personal hobby (and a general appreciation for Alice in Wonderland) – Anthony had always been interested in pipes and pipe tobacco but hadn’t been able to previously pursue the curiosity. Curiosity turned into what if, and what if turned into a leap of faith. Generic Amazon starter pipes quickly became Savinelli, Peterson, and Chacom. MadHatter’s Tobaccos and Miscellany began officially in May of this year and we have essentially been winging it and “seeing what happens” ever since. We’re both the type that are more likely to ask “what if?” and without too much more of a thought, run with it. That is what makes our tobaccos especially unique. Anthony worm holes through mixes and concoctions – a little of this, a little of that. Andrea is the professional sniffer, extract tester (you have to be able to understand what a smell will taste like after all), and occasional mixologist. MadHatter’s is a consistent trial and error test kitchen and design studio. We balance our full time jobs (Anthony is in the automotive industry and Andrea is a metro area high school art teacher) and full time parenting (we’ve got a junior in high school and a toddler in daycare) while tossing in the madness of MadHatter’s. Anthony most often is the one generating the digital art while Andrea creates the product labels and creative descriptions (the description for Hello My Name Is… is still one of her favorite blend write ups). Blends are named thoughtfully based on flavor, intent, and sometimes, just a vibe. We’ve used fictional characters, song titles, and lyrics, and even a barely running junk yard car as influences. We’ve been fortunate to encounter and now call as friends people from all over the United States thanks to social media. Many of these folks have helped us to grow and in six short months. We’ve discovered reviews of our shop and tobaccos on Youtube (which is still a bit surreal), we’ve had folks from other countries reach out (that’s a next to impossible market as a small tobacco retailer as the logistical and legal hoops are a nightmare). Our name made it from a friend in Pennsylvania to a pipe show in Indiana where our rep for Laudisi Enterprises, Amu, was (Amu was really impressed that such a small store that wasn’t at the show still found its way there). For everything we didn’t know when we’ve started, we’ve learned it and more. Anthony is currently enrolled as a apprentice tobacconist and hopes to soon have that certification under his belt as well (think like a sommelier for tobacco).
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Hahahahaha! That’s a funny joke. Man, we’ve learned SO MUCH. We’ve learned that sometimes, even when you are very straightforward about the product that you sell (especially when your name is literally MadHatter’s Tobacco and Miscellany) that companies you thought were cool with you (looking at you, especially, PayPal) are in fact very not cool with you, will yank your primary method of accepting payments and leave you scrambling for a solution. We’ve learned that an old personal checking account that you decided to convert to a business account is in fact not the same as a business checking account. Third party processing is a necessary and incredibly expensive upfront cost. We’ve “met” people who have decided that we are too much in our non-traditional and creative approach to tobacco and have passive-aggressively written up digs at us on public forums for which we are also members. We’ve released blends that have been amazing that we feel were really slept on and released others that went so quickly we were shocked. Business shipping is a necessity (God bless that little thermal label printer) and sometimes the USPS is an interesting adventure when a package decides to unexpectedly road trip the opposite direction of its final destination. There has been a lot of research. A lot of trial and error.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Individually, we both are creatives. Whether that be because of genetics, unmedicated ADHD, or divine providence remains to be determined (but is most likely all of the above). While Anthony’s field in the automotive world is less creative, personally, he is the Jack of All Trades (and once had a handyman company, prior to moving to Kansas City, named just that). Anthony IS the MadHatter – the tobacco alchemist seeking flavor and quality – testing, testing, testing. Personally, he’d just as soon professionally photograph wildlife (something he still wishes he had stuck to in undergrad instead of being persuaded elsewhere because “he’d never make any money in the photography field”). Anthony is the one who rabbit holes through AI illustration for our product imagery – lord knows how many inputs those can take sometimes. A strong wi-fi signal, a busy mind, and a genuine curiosity for what if is a solid driving force.
Andrea by trade is a high school art teacher of 18 years. Originally wanting to be an architect, she discovered that math was not in fact her friend and adjusted course way back in middle school that she was going to be a teacher. While she debated the meaning of teaching Language Arts (but balked at grammar and punctuation with a particular disdain for comma rules) and P.E. (but realized lack of participation of students would probably drive her to homicide), she decided art was where the future truly lied (laid?). She specialized in sculpture methods in undergrad, with a special interest in plaster. Currently, she does all of the graphic design for product labeling, as well as all creative product imagery for other merchandise for MadHatter’s. She also does freelance photography, graphic design, and other art commissions when possible. She’s most recently been working with portraiture with a concentration in charcoal and chalk mediums.
As far as MadHatter’s as a collective, we are set apart by our willingness to throw a wicked teaparty of flavor and experimentation as a microblender where others do not. Want a tobacco that tastes and smells like a creamsicle? We’ve done it. Want to translate a song lyric into a flavor profile? We do that too.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
Kenneth Grigsby for the various online forum platforms for which he is in charge and helped to promote us through as well as being a solid soundboard and genuine friend; Andrew Gardner of Mainely Pipes for the encouragement, feedback, and comradery; Oliver Guyton for being a willing guinea pig and honest source of feedback as well as online promotion; Patrick Whitmore of WhoDat Pipeworks for being a content knowledge expert and sincere supporter; Chris Schmac for late night phone calls, collaborations and a solid friendship. We also genuinely appreciate all of our customers who we have developed a sort of kinship with and genuinely keep us on our toes (looking at you Symns). Thanks to Amu for working as much magic for this little guy in the Midwest as he can.
Pricing:
- Our house blends sell for $19/2oz.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.madhatterstobaccosandmiscellany.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/madhatters.tobaccos/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61574595765130
