Tackle shop trouble

[Matt Brown]

John,

It is difficult for new or up and coming shops to get a foothold.

From the distributors' perspective, their ideal would be to sell 25 rods in one go to one shop. It's much easier than selling 25 rods to 25 shops. That would be 25 orders over the phone, or 25 visits via the sale rep. 25 lots of carriage. 25 delivery notes followed by 25 invoices that require 25 stamps. 25 times the warehouse staff would have to pick and ship the order. And so on.

It is true that money talks. I would imagine smaller independent shops would get their chance should the bigger shops become a little slow when it comes to paying the invoices.

 

[Ryan "Ribblecraft" Turner]

Merv, He was 13 3ish last time he was weighed a few weeks before the photo, he's grown on, I caught him at 7lb 9 n half.

 

[Baz]

Good on you Bed,
You are obviousely a proud dad.

 

[jp]

quote
"I remember on my first ever visit to the Hampshire Avon going into a well known tackle shop for a day ticket for the Severals. On asking advice I was talked down to as if I was a complete idiot"

If we are talking about a middle-aged fat bloke then he is long gone John; it's safe to come back now. He was not much better with locals quite honestly.

 

[Peter Jacobs]

John,

If what you say is true then maybe I'll take a trip into *&%g*oo* for my maggots



That bloke had not only had a double personality by-pass but his manners left a lot to be desired as well.

 

[Mel Crighton]

Just a point I visited a tackle shop in another town today part of a large outlet several shops with a disabled friend when my friend ask how he was going to get into the shop and up to the second level he was informed that as they do not have any disabled customers they were not going to do anything about it and that he could go to another shop were the adaptions had been done..........the fool marked his card .

 

[Phil Hackett 2]

Oh dear Mel!!!!! And October isn?t really that far away is it?

 

[John Jones]

JP.
You described him perfectly. Glad he's gone, next time I'm down that way will deffo pay the shop a visit again. Must say he's not typical and most shops are very helpful when I'm fishing strange waters.

Recently had a dip in the Bristol Avon for the first time. Premier Angling in Chippenham were brilliant with advice. Thanks to the guy (forgot his name) and his wife had a couple of good days at Laycock and Christian Malford.

Also Turner's in Faringdon couldn't have been more helpful with info on the Upper Thames etc; Also had a chat with his son (lovely lad) who had just won the Junior National on the Staffs/Worcester canal.

 

[John Jones]

Peter.
Yes, your spot on about him. Later when I was fishing I got chatting to a local angler. He said the guy in the tackle shop was known to be obnoxious even, as JP says, to locals. Not only did he lack manners, he lacked business sense as well.

 

[Baz]

There used to be a shop near me not that long ago, that doubled as a bit of a tackle shop. The owner was the grumpiest person you would ever meet. He had a stack of these little varnished boxes that you might see in an old chemist shop, full of fishing odds and ends. But he would never let you look in them, you had to tell him exactly what you wanted.
I spotted a pile of split cane blanks one day and asked him how much they were.
He asked me what I wanted them for, and said he didn't know how much he wanted to sell them for yet. Most of the locals were banned from his shop. The thing was he was divorced and didn't want to sell anything to anybody incase his ex wife found out and wanted half the profit.
He was a brilliant character and I allways tell the young lads that once he goes you will miss him. He really was unbelievable.

 

[John Jones]

Baz. Did he live in Bewdley? One thing about Stan, he doesn't charge for the dust!!!

 

[Baz]

No it wasn't Stan Lewis mate, but by his description, he would be a very close double.
That shop that appears in "open all hours" with Ronnie Barker was very much like the shop I am on about.
He used to say to his paper lads, Don't cross that white line on the floor, keep your hands in your pockets, and don't move.
He was brilliant, what a character. This was in the last five years.

 

[Chris Bishop]

I use the little independents as much as I can. In fact I reckon they cater for 85 per cent of my needs.

I'm lucky as I have a great one five mins' walk from the office - Geoff Baker, in King's Lynn; and the same five minutes' walk from my house (Hunstanton Tackle) where my son now spends increasing amounts of his pocket money.

I make sure we get as much as we can from both and would appeal to anyone else to do same.

You get real service, catch up on all the goss and they're more interested in relationship building than selling you the latest mass-produced junk.

Apart from the service, which sets the street corner shop apart from the internet and supermarket-style dealers, they're interested in building a long-term relationship with their customers and dispense real advice and encouragement.

Please support them.

 

[Mel Crighton]

Phil,
As you say October is not that far away, but you would be surprised by the number of places that still have to meet the deadline and some are big names in the high street.