Has any of the members here had much luck displyaing at regular fishing shows to display your rods. Was it worth your time and did you sell many rods?

My experience has been that people who go to local shows are looking to buy something on the spot. I have seen people turn a profit that way but that isn't the way my business works. I get a few customers especially those that are interested in repairs. So for me it depends on how much the space costs, when and where the show is. You have to know the customer base. Go to a few that are held annually - be an observer at the show - see what goes out the door with the customer and then decide.

I guess it depends where you are.
We have done several, the best were also the most expensive and had long, tiring show hours.
The one time we made it to the Charlotte, NC Rodbuilding show was the most pleasant and we had very good business there.
What seems to happen is that most folks going to fishing shows are looking for bargains.

If you are looking for exposure, that is a great way to do it, but you may not sell a bunch at the show.
The same was true for my guide service at shows, we used to book a few there,
but had many calls after we got home for about a month or two after.

Best wishes,
Ron Schneider
Schneider's Rod Shop
Mountain Home, Arkansas
[www.schneidersrods.com]
mtnron40@yahoo.com
870-424-3381

Shows can be great for your business IF you pick the right type of show. I prefer craft shows to fishing shows. Women are always looking for ideas for things to buy their husbands and fathers on special occasions. Getting your business card in their hands can net you custom rod sales during the rest of the year. Nothing against fishing shows but you have a lot of competition there.

One of my articles that ran in the old Rodcrafters Journal spoke of getting involved in craft shows, state fairs and that type of thing. You really do get a lot of exposure and would be surprised how many fishermen are at those type of affairs.

Mark, sounds like you've been given good advice. I'm starting to do shows now and each one is different. Peter Sprague is right on track with thinking outside the box. I sold a custom muskie lure to a lady this spring that just wanted it to put on a shelf in her living room for display. I just placed a rod and a couple of my hand-crafted lures in an art gallery for a Sportsman's Exhibit. I'm trying to reach different clients that others aren't thinking about.

My advice is the same as Ken's and Peter's. Go to some shows this year and check them out. Talk to other guys there to see if they are selling enough to make it worthwhile. Find some other shows in your area like arts and crafts stuff. It may be worth your time.

jeremy

I went to our local Art in the Park this July with my wife and was surprised to see a rodbuilder set up in a booth. He had a rack of 20 or 30 rods right out in front and it attracted a lot of attention. They were not my style - all deco wraps and guide wraps were metallic, with fish decals and hook inlays. The handles were all wood with rod finish on them. These were freshwater panfish, bass and walleye rods for the most part. In my opinion they were built for looks, not fishing. There were a lot of bored husbands that were sick of looking at "art" and it was a magnet area for them.

As I chatted with the guy at least a dozen people asked "how much are they". Then he would explain that they were his personal rods and not for sale. Oops! I would suggest that if you do a show you better have some rods for sale. A few people listened to his pitch about getting a custom and a few took his card. He focused more on looks than performance. He had a notebook full of pretty wraps that he had done, but no info on blanks, reel seats or handles. I learned a lot from that.

_________________________________________
"Angling is extremely time consuming.
That's sort of the whole point." - Thomas McGuane

I'd like to echo Mark's original question.

In my case, a few months ago my wife voluntered to be on the committee for our church's annual craft fair this November 13th. It's their 20th year so it's a well established event with around 150 booths. She mentioned that I have been creating custom rods for a few years and the other committee members said that would be a good idea for a booth, but I would need a state business ID. Up until now I've created rods for myself, family and a few friends. I decided to go ahead and register with the state and feds(excise tax). I'm not leaving my day job but perhaps this can develop into something to supplement retirement income when that day arrives.

Here's the meat of my question...I truly prefer to create a rod to meet someone's desired fishing technique or function. Once that is determined then we can discuss blanks, handles, reel seats, guides, decals, colors, winding checks and anything else that gives a rod a one of kind look. With that in mind, am I better off having my existing rods on display at the craft show and then hopefully taking orders? I believe having premade rods available for purchase kind of defeats the whole idea of a custom rod.

Chuck, when the people at Art in the Park were asking "how much are they", did they seem to want to buy right there or were they inquiring more about the cost of having one made? Since this is my first time I want to be as prepared as I can possibly be. I don't want to sink a bunch of money into inventory when I prefer to create rods to order.

More thoughts?

Thanks,
Chad Huderle

Huderle Custom Rods
Prior Lake, MN

Chad,
From personal experience (2-4 shows/year over the course of 7 years). It is a good idea to have examples for the "ohh and ahh" factor. Spinning rod, casting rod, fly rod, down rigger rod etc - how the people in your immediate area fish. Make it clear these are examples only and not for sale "on the spot" or you may quickly get into a bargaining situation. I think you'll find lots of people will ask "How much?" "Why so much?" "What makes these different?". Questions you should have at the ready answers to. Make a large banner - "CUSTOM FISHING RODS - Made to your specifications" (or something to that effect). My son made two placards for me "Good rods aren't cheap / Cheap rods aren't good". Hand out business cards - LOTS of business cards (one in 50-60 or so may contact you), Also have a "sign up book" where people put down their names, contact information and some basic rod info type of fishing etc. The people who go over to the book to sign up are the people you want to engage in conversation with.
Just my opinion - the guy who is looking for a pre-made rod has lots of choices Bass Pro Shop, Cabella's, K-Mart, Wal-Mart and so forth. I'm not interested in nor can I compete with the large outlets and the prices they offer. I actually don't want to - I offer the repair service to those buyers when the rod fails.

I did my first show last January so I probably don't have much to talk about but...
the show was a "fly tying expo" since I build mostly fly rods it worked out.
The organizers were looking for people to tie different styles/kinds of flies.
I asked about rod building. they thought it was a great idea.
booth space was free(a bonus) and I took along some rods to sell and some of the repair work I need to get done anyway.
I sat there and did repairs(guide replacement) and chatted with folks.
In the end I sold 1 rod. got orders for 3 more customs and about 5 repair jobs.
probably not bad for sitting around for 6 hours.

Oh and I won a guided trip in the @#$%&/fundraiser.

Chad - That's hard to answer. I heard people say "are these for sale?" and "how much?". What shocked me was the answer - "about $70 to over $200" to have one built. I almost fell down. Most of mine have way over $70 in parts at cost.

Ken, I realize that a pre-made rod may not be a true "custom" (there have been many threads on this topic). If it was me I would have some nice rods that I was willing to sell. I can build a pretty nice rod that will be exactly what many guys here in MN would want. An example would be a nicely crafted 6 or 6 1/2' vertical jig walleye rod with little guides. Try finding one downtown that is built right - guides wrapped with A thread and a good finish, as well as a cork handle that is mostly cork and not filler paste.

Gary - that was a great idea! It's always nice to watch the craftsman create what is on display. Good point!

Chuck

_________________________________________
"Angling is extremely time consuming.
That's sort of the whole point." - Thomas McGuane

Do you expect to make a profit off the show or do you plan to write off the time as an advertising/marketing expense?

IMO... the key here I am seeing is you need to figure out something first... do you want sell fishing rods or sell custom built, made to order rods.

You don't sell these the same... they are different products. Where is your focus - that will help answer a lot of your questions.

-----------------
AD

OK thanks. this will give me a lot to think about.

Chuck,
Understood - clearly you already know your target market. You know what is available locally; what people are looking for and what they are willing to pay. Members of the local BASS chapter keep telling me I should make up a line of rods - popping, worming, top water,chatter baits etc. I could do that and I could probably make some decent return on investment. The downside of that, at least for me, is that I would then change my approach and business. I would have to focus on one aspect / one type of fishing and I would have a JOB again. I don't want another job - I retired ;-) .

Several things to think about and consider when displaying at a show. Carry several nice rods as examples of your work. But on the other hand, Do Not just carry a display rack of rods. Carry your wrapping unit and wrap guides with some bright color thread that will draw attention. Carry your finish drying unit and have a rod spinning with lighting on the rod. Have examples of handle set-ups. By having some action going on in the booth will draw attention and possibly stop some of the folks that may otherwise keep walking. If you do repair work, talk that up as a aspect of your business. Getting customers to your shop for repair work could possibly lead to futue custom rod orders.

Bob McKamey
bobm@mudhole.com

I have done the State fly show and several small shows. If you want to sell rods OK but you will find very little interest, most of them say oh I only buy Sage or St Croix rods and if you try to build them on on their blanks they will still prefer the factory rods. However if exposure is what you want then it's a good deal. I have talked to a lot of people at these shows and find that most of my business comes later. Hand out your cards and business brocheres and a lot of people will contact you after the show. I have gained lots of repairs and bamboo rebuilds and if they are not interested at the show they will rember you when they break a tip or guide or when they discover Grandpa's old beat up bamboo rod in some old attic or barn.

I do about 6 shows per year not counting the ICRBE. All Boat and Sportsmens shows. I don't build custom rods unless I'm asked to do so. I target the bass fishermen and inshore saltwater market. Those guys aren't walking around at a show, hopefully to find a custom builder exhibiting there to order a custom rod and have it delivered four to six weeks later. They are there to buy rods, reels, lures or whatever else on the spot.

I go to a weekend show with around 120 rods on display in prices ranging from 150.00 to 225.00 and some upwards of 300.00. Most of the guys walking up to the booth already know what they're looking for and will buy one or more rods at that moment. I've been doing this for ten years now and have a loyal following of repeat customers. I also sell a few accecories such as specific lures and stick jackets. Most everyone that purchases a rod also will buy a jacket or even several for their rods. My last show sold over 70 stick jackets with most people buying five or six at a time.

On a slow weekend I'll sell around twenty to twenty five rods and on a busy weekend sell upwards of forty rods plus accecories. And even once in a while I'll have an order for a custom rod or two.

Lately the attendance at these shows have been falling. Most of the people shopping at these shows are watching closely how they spend their money on fishing equipment. Sure there are some that's trolling the isles looking for a good deal but the serious fishermen don't mind spending 200.00 on a quality bass or inshore rod that they know will last for years to come.

Lance

something else you might think about. Give something away, have people fill out a slip with their name address, email and phone #. You could ask what type of fishing they do and how often they go fishing. That will give you a nice list for sending email fliers telling about your business with pictures of your work. They may be in more of a buying mood if you catch them at home (or working) and not being drug around by the wife and may have more money to spend than he did at the show.

It would be interesting if the users of this Internet Forum would define the definition of a custom rod.

They run the gamut from museum pieces to functional high quality fishing tools.

If you are going to sell anything the product must meet the needs of the customer.

Who attends "boat and sportsmen" shows?

What are they looking to buy?

What do you have to sell?

Does your target market desire market artwork or highly fishing rods?

Either of the above is considered a custom rod if properly done.

Cash flow is king.

If you can meet the need of the customer you will sell the product on the spot.

Better rods than they can buy from other sources will always do the trick.

Rowdy Yates could have said "Wrap Em Up Move Em Out"!