The Struggling Fishing Industry
As we appear to be in the thick of the tough times, I thought I would try to help those of you who are frustrated with fishing industry understand as I see it what the fishing industry is going through.
Never in the history of the rapid growth of this industry has the customer seen such a drastic change in an industry. We have gone from times of easy credit to buy boats, available spending money to buy tackle to an industry full of closing companies and no credit available to purchase the boat of our dreams.My assessment is simple: companies were started in the past with very little capital needed be successful, sales were easy and credit was there for anyone who wanted it. Today these companies that thought this business was simple, build and they will buy, did not manage the important things during the growth. Inventory being the biggest of the poorly managed companies, Ranger boats and others had inventory loaded at its dealers, tackle stores loaded the shelves with baits, poor inventory systems and plat-formed costs that they could never have paid with a drastic change to the industry.
This however has changed, now the businesses have to be conscience of every related charge and manage it. Pro's are fishing out of their own boats, poorly run boat companies are closing, tackle companies are creating a new brand of Pro-Staffers that will actually help the company, and costs are being managed. You the consumer will and are experiencing differences from a year ago. The good news is the companies that emerge from the changing times will be stronger, better businesses and provide a service that will be in line with the cost of doing business.
The last point I will make is to ask you to be patient with the industry; it has to emerge from what it was to be better, stronger and more sustainable over time. The best will survive, and we the consumer will be the beneficiary of it. You the customer will always be first, as you have to be for the fishing industry to continue to survive.