Industry news

Bass Fishing — the Buzz is still on

The annual SA Fishing Tackle Agents & Distributors (SAFTAD) show last August experienced one of its best years ever, even though the international financial world — rudely awakened by a liquidity collapse brought about by irresponsible loan practices by major credit corporations — was awash with dire predictions about a world recession.

But, the tackle trade was on a high, and for many observers two facets of the freshwater recreational fishing sector made mega here I am statements, namely bass fishing and specimen carp fishing. Of the two, the bassing sector received the most attention, simply by virtue of the fact that it receives far more media coverage (it also has the most toys).

With the bass facet obviously gaining in popularity — just about month by month — the supply side took note of the financial situation and the major players in the bass fishing industry sharpened their pencils, with forward gearing taking on an almost ominous meaning. Bass fishing, after all, requires not a small amount of financial outlay, no matter the level of skill or the intensity of participation.

Nevertheless, both the primary and secondary sectors — namely importer/wholesale and retail — enjoyed an excellent December season. January and February saw the seasonal dip in retail sales, but the outlook was buoyant for the April Easter period.

“With only 18 working days in April there were more than sufficient opportunities for anglers and their families to go fishing,” it was said. What happens thereafter should follow the pattern that is experienced every year, namely a flattening of the sales curve, until the first days of spring.

Fact of the matter is that bass fishing has never enjoyed the level of social awareness that it enjoys today, with television coverage, radio programmes and a strong print media providing more than sufficient impetus to existing and potential bass anglers.

Bass tackle industry brimming with strong brands

Supporting this public awareness is a bass tackle industry brimming with all the well known and strong brands, while a host of new names has also appeared, with pro-duct emanating from Japanese and Chinese companies taking up ever increasing space alongside the traditional North American brands on retail shelves.

Concurrently with this influx of mostly high-end Japanese product, is the increasingly visible tackle from China. This is because access to China’s huge production capacity is now ridiculously easy when compared to previous years.

In past years China’s factories were only accessible via a closed network of agents. “But now you only have to attend one of their tackle shows and you have direct access to the factory,” it is pointed out. “And what is more, the Chinese will make anything you want, even if it just a modification of an existing product.”

In addition, the strong rand last year — of between R6-R7 against the US dollar —made it financially possible for many new players to enter the market.

“This made it easy for people with a passion for bass fishing — but perhaps with not a similar level of business acumen — to source and import product,” Sports Trader was told.

Influx of new brands placed pressure on existing brands

The influx of new brands has certainly placed some pressure on existing brands, and with it comes even more pressure on pricing. The well-known and trusted brands are able to maintain themselves via support from traditional customers, who also have the financial means to continue putting their trust in brand names that are tried and tested over many years. But, new entries to bass fishing, who do not have the long exposure to the traditional brands, are far more likely to opt for an item that looks like the traditional brand, but costs up to a third less.

The forecast is now that the financial situation will have a most definite affect on not only the bass fishing trade, but on the recreational fishing trade across the board. This will be in addition to the usual seasonal fluctuations in demand inherent to the recreational fishing trade.

In bass fishing, for example, spring was always the traditional time to go bassing. This was because the fish were in the shallows to spawn and were easily accessible, and in addition required little skill and definitely no specific tackle to catch them. This has changed dramatically, however, with bass fishing now increasingly accepted as a year round activity.

Retailers carrying a significant volume of bass tackle are generally philosophical about the ups and downs in turnover that are experienced every year.

“We know that the winter months see fewer sales, particularly in the capital items such as rods and reels. What we do know is that terminal tackle is always in demand, and the trick is to keep sufficient stock levels while not over-loading the book,” is a common comment.

Bass fishing has three generally well defined sectors in SA.

» Firstly, there are those who own dedicated bass boats and participate in formal competition at club, provincial and national level.
» Secondly, those who are purely recreational bassers and who also own boats, but not necessarily a dedicated bass boat — maybe a converted runabout — and who take part in open cash tournaments as the fancy takes them.
» And then there is the vast army of bank anglers, all of whom are purely recreational anglers.

Bass tackle is also a fashion-driven product, open to deep fluctuations in demand for a certain item – a demand often driven according to the performance of the professional bass anglers on the US pro circuits. This personality- and performance-driven demand pertains to all the various skill levels in bass fishing, and can play havoc with forward orders.

Nevertheless, the hardcore basser knows what he wants and knows where to get it, and it is a truism that no matter what the cost, if the product is a proven bass catcher then it will be bought, and bought continuously.

“I am constantly surprised by the number of new products becoming available,” says Duncan Murfin who edits the Gear Up section in SA BASS magazine.

Inherent buying power of bass angler

“Just as I think that the technical sophistication in rod, reel, line and lure design and manufacturing standard has reached saturation point, a new material is discovered or utilised, and we have yet another new model available,” he adds.

Such is the inherent buying power of the specialist bass angler that this trend is continuing — as it has done for the past thirty or so years.

A downturn in actual sales is quite possible, given that job losses and tighter fiscal conditions at domestic level are starting to hurt across the board, but the image of bass fishing remains, and will continue to be, that of a highly desirable outdoor activity that enjoys a high level of social acceptance.