Question from the UK

A question from the UK and a mention from DJ BBQ

Q:

A Big hello from the UK. My name is Chris and I have been Actively looking at starting a small business between my usual job in the Royal Navy.
One of my hobbies is BBQ and especially over the last few years smoking. I have a small offset smoker in my back garden which is just big enough for a small gathering of people and have enjoyed using it immensely. I have kept it simple and have achieved great results, I mainly smoke Brisket, pork shoulder ( I believe you guys call it the butt), ribs, chicken and sides of salmon which taste fantastic.

During the summer months I went to a few events and small festivals to which there were a number of people with various food stalls, your usual stuff like hog roast, burger stands and just plain old sausages. To be honest a bit boring and the same stuff everywhere you go.

Also In between all this, one of our national magazines FHM had been running a feature with DJ BBQ,  Christian Stevenson,  he could not praise your smoker enough. This got me thinking “could I actually set up my own business and do something different?” Not one of the events I have ever been to over the years have had a person smoking meat and I for one think there is a gap in the market for this.

I know we must have people in the UK doing it and I know we do hold competitions over here, but as of yet I do not know how popular it is. I am not looking at the competition side though just purely commercial.

Recently I have been away on a tour of duty with my ship and returned just before Christmas. During this period it gave me time to think about the whole thing and I have decided to actively start looking at starting my own business. Obviously the biggest investment will be the smoker and I can’t see any other that comes close to matching yours.

I am a big fan of your 84″ deluxe (undecided on 3 of them) the one with grill, without or the wide boy. As you can appreciate I am exited at the prospect of the path I am hopefully about to take, but also a bet apprehensive as it will be a huge investment for me.
Obviously the big question is prices and more importantly shipping over to the UK.

Not knowing anybody with one of your smokers in the UK to actually go and have a look at is a bit annoying, as it would be great to actually see one up close and personal I have even considered a trip over (I have not run this by the wife yet ha ha) and see which one would best suit.

To that end I would much appreciate any information on prices and shipping costs before I make any decision on going any further with my project.

Sorry if I have rambled on a bit but as you can see I may be getting a little exited at the thought of it all.

Many thanks for your time and I look forward to a reply.

– Chris L. from the UK

A:

Dear Chris,
Thank you for your letter. You thinking is right-on. Your timing is perfect. Your choice of a Lang Smoker Cookers model #84 Deluxe is great, it has started more BBQ ventures than any other size. The reason Chef Christian Stevenson Loves using Lang BBQ Smokers because that they add flavor and moisture to his award winning barbecue and help him stay true to authentic wood cooked foods.

Normally units are shipped via freight forwarders. $1500 is typical fee for freight to your country. Lead time runs 3-4 weeks for production and allow 6 weeks on the water for shipment. With what you are planning you can wright your on ticket. It is unlimited . Any direction you want to go. What a great place to be.

– Ben Lang