I don't feel comfortable enough at this point to really sell my rods, but looking toward the future, how did you guys come about building a customer base and finding rod building/repair work? I'm sure a lot is referral, but what suggestions do you have for getting your name and rods out there for people to buy and come to you for repairs?

Alex, you might check with local bait stores to see if they need a contact for repairs. I don't do many repairs because I hate doing it. Honestly, I think its easier to build a new rod than to repair a broken one - but thats me.

Try lending demo rods to friends that fish hard - let them eval your work and give feedback. Donate rods to fishing leagues, DU banquets, etc. as prizes. Make sure your work is good though. With your name on them the word will get out. Thats a two-edged sword. If your rods have poor performance or workmanship you will be sealing your fate. I'm afraid there is no quick way to build a reputation. You said you didn't feel comfortable enough to sell your rods. It's good to be humble.

Chuck



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/27/2007 02:32PM by Chuck Mills.

I sold rods for a little over 20 years. I worked at a hospital where a lot of the men working there were also fishermen. I started out by doing some repair work for them and a few asked me to build them some rods. I also had some business cards printed which I handed out to prospects. Word got around that I built custom rods and one doctor over the period that I sold rods bought a couple of dozen rods for personal use and to give to other doctors that referred patients to him. I would also hang out at tackle shops and give out my cards. I sold a few rods that way. I always carried a rod that I had made when I went to buy supplies at a local shop. I think that most of the rods that I sold were by word of mouth and referrels. Recently I have had three calls for rods from customers that I built rods for about 20 years ago. I don't sell rods anymore but I will barter. I have a few close friends that I still build rods for in exchange for fishing trips and work done on my house. A friend of mine (now deceased) that had a good custom rod business got most of his orders by attending fishing and boat shows. At one show he sold 25 rods. Just before he passed away he had ordered $10,000 worth of Pac Bay supplies and was going to attend a show in Florida. His business was growing so well that he had hired a lady to help him.

You don't have to start out selling rods with fancy wraps and weaves. Just build good fishing tools with neat guide wraps and a good finish on them. Do learn to weave names. That is a big seller and a lot easier than doing full wraps. Remember, Rome wasn't built in a day; but then I was not the foreman on that job (lol).

Visit some of the fishing boards. Many have separate forums dedicated to rod building. Post pics of your work and get a dialog going with the people that hang out on the forums. I really had no intention to get serious about building rods for others, but after posting just a few pics of my work, I started getting e-mails and corresondence asking me to take on everything from rebuilds to new projects.

I have agreed to do a limited number of builds for friends, but that is about it so far.

Many party and charter boats need repair work done at the end of each season. This is a good way to get some business. Spend time at the active marinas and get to know the captains. Good work at reasonable prices will get you noticed.
Dave

Alex,

You've got some outstanding advice from some notible veterans of the craft above. I'll offer a couple things to think about. Bear in mind these are coming from a relatively new rodbuilder ( started in 2005). First you must realize that you are marketing to a small group of clientelle. Those that appreciate performance and aesthetics, and don't mind what they have to pay for it. Allthough they do appreciate value. In my area, this is what I have run into. We have a blue million fisherman who are on a small to medium budget. They have, what I call, a "WalMart" attitude. If they break a rod, unless it is of sentimental value, They would rather go to the nearest chain store and pay $35 - $50 for a new one. Forget Custom, unless they want a special themed rod for a gift. This is not to say that you will run into the same problem. Just making you aware of what you may be up against. Then, again, I could be wrong. Take it for what it's worth. Remember, opinions are like B???h???s, everyone has one and most stink, except on this forum. I value every opinion here.

Bill in WV

I agree with you Bill. It seems the guys around where I live love WalMart rods and they think Bass Pro rods are the only thing worth spending a little more for. I was interested to see how this evolved for some and then others who actively pursued it. Big difference there.

Lotsa good suggestion and ideas. I can relate to the finicky (sp?) buyer. I shot competitive trap for many years and would watch a guy drop $15k on a shotgun, but wouldn't spend more than $10 on a shooting bag. At the same time I saw the guy who wanted the $150 shooting bag with a $500 gun. Go figure. All kinds out there.

Participate in your local or regional fishing web site by offerring advice or comments on fishing rods, their components, how they are built, etc., not in an effort to sell a custom rod, but rather so the board members can make informed purchases about any rod. The custom orders will follow.

Ray I started out over 27years ago in my house. Back then I lived fishing. Unfortunately there were no rod or reel repairman near by. So I started doing my own work. Back then there was a small magazine folder by Fenwick and the Dale Clemon's fiberglass rod building book avable on rod building. Some of my friends seen my work and asked me to wrap their rods. This word of mouth lead to a small sport fishing store that was 30 miles away contacting me to do rod repair work for them. Well after about five years I opened up a small a store front. When a customer would come in for a rod repair job, they wanted to buy my personal custom rods, that I had hanging on the wall. I never really advertized. I just had phone listing for fishing rod repair. You have received some great advice from other builders. Where are you located at? I live in WA.

I've been doing this stuff for 40yrs. My buddy Gary joined me in it about three years ago. I started by doing rod repairs on my own sticks and then for folks who knew I could do that, and it grew from there. Similarly, I built my first few rods for myself, and then some folks asked me to do some for them, and it became a hobby that just about paid for itself for a lot of those years.

Gary came into it when we repaired one of his rods - I showed him how rather than doing it for him. He has developed into one of the finest I've seen with thread and finish. We did our own rods and got requests for repairs and a few rods out on the piers and on the beaches. Sound familiar? Well, we decided to see where it could go for us, and we took the route of selling to individuals, always carrying business cards and never hesitating to hand them out. We then went the route of selling to stores, and have had some misadventures in that approach but finally figured out how to get round the "Wal-Mart syndrome" - we found some stores that sell a bit upscale and have a customer base that's looking for semi-custom but unique designs in a "custom rack" setting, and also for "true" bespoke rods. Obviously, the last are the most lucrative but also take the most work, and involve the most demanding customers. So far, we've only had one throwback.

We've structured our advertising and materials around the things the stores think will help them to sell our rods. For example, they want us to participate in "special" days and "events", as well as presentations to clubs. These stores also have three things in common: (1) they want us to train their staff about our rods, why they are worth the higher price, what's special about the designs, etc., (2) they want us to guarantee our rods, to compete with the "big boys"; they understand that the cost of doing that adds to the price and therefore their cost and (3) they usually ask for extended terms, but they are indeed willing to pay for the rods (as opposed to shops that want to do a "consignment" deal until they see if your rods will sell). Any shops that won't do this are NOT good canidates for your work. Also remember that you need to figure how much you want out of your rods as opposed to what the store's margin requirements might be, and that most of the commercial rods involve 30-50% margins for the store. Cost control is important but not at the expense of the best components you can afford to meet the retail price. After all, it's the upscale quality that sets you apart.

Yes, we printed sales slips, hang-tags, and info and order sheets. We use the RBI materials as well. We have racks and signs with our logo and we have screen-printed shirts because when we're in the stores, we get more interest than we ever expected. We have stickers for our trucks and the store windows.

And yes, we still do repair work, for both stores and walk-in customers. It's actually the most profitable thing you can do except for bespoke rods, and it does lead to rod sales. We look at this work as a challenge - we always learn something new from it that we can use later. There used to be a shop in our town and the guy paid the rent - and then some - with repair work for sports and captains. The new rods were the icing on the cake.

None of this came overnight. It's taken 40yrs of basic one-man experience and three yrs of messing with it, growing it, and making mistakes along the way. It's not anywhere near done yet - I figure at least another couple years before we really get it off the ground. But the help you'll get from the folks on this BBS might shorten the time by about 30yrs or so, and not a day goes by that I don't wish I'd had a resource like this all those years ago.. Let us know how it goes.

Uncle Russ
Calico Creek Rods

Russ do you have a web site? Nice insight on how you started out. When I made my post I forgot to mention my endeavor took many years to develop. What help me was a local radio fishing and hunting program. Where a listener could call in a local fishing or hunting report. I would call in and give reports. I never used my business name. I just used my first name and where I was located.. The MC of the program liked my reports. So at least once a month he would allow me to talk about my shop. I did not sell bait or tackle I just did repair work and built custom rods. That lead ro me getting my own by line in a local fishing and hunting magazine. This did not happen over night. I had my store front for a least 5 years before I started showing a decent profit.
Good Wraps Bob

Bob, we don't have one yet (trying to hold down the overhead). We have the content, though - a local outdoor writer did an article on us a couple months ago in his regular Friday column, and took lots of pictures and gave them to us the rights as a trade for some repair work. Currently, we're working out of my "out-back" building, which we've converted to a shop. We are working toward a storefront, especially since the guy who had one here sold it and the guy who bought it folded it six months later - said he "didn't want to work that hard".

I think our association with the retail stores will pay off from the event-days. I've also found a relatively inexpensive print-ad setup offered by our local paper. I figure another couple years - - - but we figured out, the other day, that we've never sold a rod at a loss, and only one at breakeven, and that includes factors for "soft" materials (thread, finish) and shop overhead. It's a fun game, but it takes patience. But then, so does fishing.

If you'd like to see what we're doing for collaterals, e-mail me at calicocreekrods@hotmail.com.

Uncle Russ
Calico Creek Rods

I want to thank all who posted above, and all the pros on this site for all the information they give to us,that they have learned over the years .

As I also am just getting started in Custom rod design and sells,
A couple weeks ago I put a order in for 30 Graphite USA DHX Saltwater game rod blanks,For a redesigned 50/50 cut 2pc ,B85 MegaMag, which will be built for the serious Big Cat Hunter's here in Kentucky, Have many requests already and looking forward to whats to come in the future.

Thanks again Guys, for something $ cannot buy..



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/03/2007 10:29PM by Kenneth W Price.

I didn't make a single penny on the rods I built for a church league and tourney but it sure can't hurt to get your name on the same page as Linder's Angling Edge and Reeds.

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