Bait and Tackle shops....ever wonder?

[Riverbottoms]

A fellow worker/fisherman and I were talking about SOME bait and tackle shops telling customers B.. S... just to sell more bait and tackle. We realize their livelyhood depends on sales. But we would just as soon hear things are slow as to hear pie in the sky lies! Or give us bogus spots to try. The pro's tell us to ask, but don't you think some of the bait shop owners are more than likely to give them better information than some regular joe blow that has never fished that body of before in exchange for promotional advertising of their business? I must say there are a lot of great honest baitshop owners out there that are more than willing to help anybody with info and I know quite a few that are very dependable with their help.Their honesty is what keeps me coming back buying from them, eventhough they might have to charge alittle more than the big chain stores.
I believe that is the right thing to do in exchange for the information the have supplied to me.
What's your feelings on this? Do you think the some of baitshop owners are alittle more inclined to give the pro's better information than the general public?

[buzzer IA]

Hey Riverbottoms,
Not the one I go to..Somebody gives me a bunch of horse hockey one time and I tend to spread the word around that they don't know their butt from a hole in the ground..We got this guy around here that thinks he is a big time outdoor writer and he misquoted a buddy of mine on a fishing report and my friend had to rip him a new one the next time he called for a report..trick me once,shame on you..trick me twice, shame on me..Still think that most folks are honest, but have had people lie to me right to my face as well..I guess being a good judge of character would be a big plus..Just my 2 cents worth..

[REW]

How can you answer that?
What would you do - if you were in the business. Lets say that you are in an area where there are 4 or 5 really good spots that are easy to see and fish.

If you have 500 folks come into the store -- ask about spots -- and you direct all 500 folks to those 4 or 5 spots -- what kind of fishing will there be.

I think that the customer has to ask the right question. Are they shallow, are they deep, are they on the windward side of the points, or the lee side of the points. Is the live bite better or the crank bait bite better. Is day fishing better or is night fishing better?

Look at it from the bait shops viewpoint -- and ask a question -- that the bait shop CAN answer truthfully - allow you to catch fish -- as well as let the person behind you catch fish as well.

I have seen this many times with launch drivers on some of the big lakes.

Lets say - that there is an exceptionally hot spot on a particular inside turn on a steep drop off on a mid lake flat. The launch driver knows that this particular spot holds lots of nice fish. The launch driver has to produce fish for his clients every morning, afternoon, and night.

I have seen the driver casually drive over that particular spot two or three times, and watch as 5 or 6 fish are boated on the launch -- out of 20 clients.

Then I watch the launch driver very carefully avoid that particular spot for the rest of the launch trip. When the afternoon trip comes - I see him go over the same spot again until there are a few fish on the boat -- and then very carefully avoid the spot again.

A bait shop owner is much like the launch driver. He is in business for the long term. He has to be aware where the fish are - what is catching the fish - but there is a person right behind you that wants to catch a fish as well. He can't send everyone to the "killer" spot - or the "killer" spot - will have died in three days.

Enjoy the hobby of fishing - ask for, and give information wisely - and practice catch and release.

Take care

REW

[HEY!! I know that GUY!]

Got a guy here near my hometown. Has a big tackle store, a telephone hot line and small boat dealership. Doesn't matter what the fish are bieng caught on, if he has six boxes of Blue and Yellow Doodle Hoosits, guess what he says the fish were caught on?
I Don't trust him as far as you could throw your truck.

[Sparkee]

Well said, REW! I own a Resort and we sell tackel. We really want people to catch fish,so we tell them what is working and how to fish it. It has nothing to do with what we have in stock, the rest is up to them. Almost 50% will not follow your suggestions, and it's funny that's about the persentage that don't have any luck. Happy customers are repeat customers, and that IS really the bottom line.

STIFF RODS AND TIGHT LINES!
Sparkee

[tstick]

i too, own a bait shop. it gets extremely difficult to give anyone anything good at times. because the locals who are out fishing everyday sure aren't gonna tell me what's goin on. their spot wopuld be fished out in hours.- so i don't ehar much. we don't get out to fish often either. too many long hours in the store. so we have to rely on what we hear. As for the rest. well i'll steer a guy in a direction i think will work. but not assure him of a full basket. after all it still IS fishing, not catching right?- if i can give a guy a tip on a method or particular bait, maybe he'll do well. maybe he won't i don't make that promise. but i find most of my customers want me takin em by the hand and almost puttin the fish on their hook. that's nonsense too.. i have never sold a lure because it's what's on the shelf, i've actually sent people to other stores for "hot lure" which i was out of.- so maybe some guys are greedy and tell ya anything you wanna hear, but i prefer to think most of us think for the long term and try to build a solid rep with our customers.

[Fordnut]

One thing too remember is that these bait shops may see 500 hundred people a day, out of that 50 people may have found the fish and need more bait sure it sounds good. My point is they return throughout the day so it looks good to the owner the fish are biting all day, but the percentage is not really that good 10%. They can`t remember all the faces that have been through in one day.

[Don't agree....]

with the 'let's look at it from the baitstores point of view'. That is a bunch of BS.If I ask a question or two, and get the cold shoulder,so to speak, that is just plain lousy customer service.And yes, this has happened to me numerous times at a couple of establishments on a 100,000+ acre lake in MN, and I refuse to do business with these people anymore.I don't ask for the world when I go in to buy bait, just a little direction to get started with. I don't need somebody to hold my hand, or bait my hooks, I know what to do, and how to do it,so I still don't get it how the industry says call or ask the bait stores about what's going on locally at that time, then the baitstore people crap on the guy doing the asking.The bottom line is as long as the baitstore has YOUR money in THEIR till, that is all that matters. To answer the original question, I don't have to wonder...,been there, done that.

[Gunga Din]

Don't be so one-sided. In most productive relationships there's give both ways--and it's no different here. Develop a rapport with your local shops. Tell them what's working for you--what's not. That's where they get most of their info from anyway. Share your successes and failures and they'll share with you too.

When you walk into your tackle shop you should know the guys by name, and vice versa. Develop a relationship and info will flow freely both ways--to the consumer and to the dealer. A dealer feeding consumers BS may make a sale today, but that kind of action doesn't exactly develop long-standing relationships based on trust.

[Gizmo]

Ah, one of my pet peeves- fishing advice, which is more elusive than the walleye itself. I started walleye fishing about 10 years ago and relied heavily on advice from local baitshops for two years to gain some knowledge of the art of walleye fishing. I can honestly say that I have received good information at local baitshops about 10% of the time. They often have a gum-snapping teenager or clueless adult working there that has nothing helpful to say. Most of these people obviously don't fish! Maybe a pro can get good tips from the owner but the occasional fishermen or the non-locals are not so fortunate. One thing to remember is that most advice is usually at least a day old and should only be considered a starting point.
Actually, the bigger sporting goods stores in towns near the lake often have well informed people working in their fishing depts. and they are eager to give advice. This idea will no doubt bring some criticism from local baitshops but sometimes it works for me.
There are two other places where valuable and more specific information can be found, the gas station where all the fishermen fill up and the fish cleaning station. Ask the fishermen and not the ones selling the gas or bait and you will be better informed. Let the locals know that you are new to the area and they tend to be more helpful. One good idea is to have a map of the area with you when talking to people.
One place to ignore the advice is the fishing reports in the newspaper. It's commercially motivated, three days old and not worth the paper it's written on.
There you have it- advice about advice. Good fishing!

[AquaMan]

Good eye Gizmo.

In fact, I have had excellent fishing reports from my guys at the old Burger Brothers, now Gander Mountian, for lakes as far away as LOW and Leech. Their info was nothing more then two guys swaping some tips in the isle if Northland Jigs.

I have quite asking the local baitshops unless I am recognized. Besides, as Gizmo pointed out. Most of those people are usually high school kids on summer break workin' for some drive-in money.

The newspapers are not too bad. I look for the general reports on Wednesday in the Star/Trib. But....the really good tips are right here on Walleye Central! I cannot begin to count the great tips and insight I have gained from this site and the best information from people who have tried and proven them.

Beyond that, work the lake based on your own basic instincts and you might surprise yourself with some good fishing.

AquaMan~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[Greg W]

I'm glad I met a local bait shop owner that not only gives out great info, he also fishes so he knows what he is talking about.

If you guys are ever in the Vermilion Ohio area, stop in at the Sportsman Outpost and meet the man who posts here regularly. DEN.

The one comment I saw and agree with totally is that it works both ways. If you had a good day fishing, or a bad day fishing, let the person who gave you the information know what worked and what didn't so he can pass that along to the next guy.

Greg

[Rats]

My father and I went fishing a lot when I was a boy. Quite often when we traveled, we would go fishing along the way. My father would go into a tackle shop and come out with the d---est junk some times for lures. He said that the shop keeper told him this was hot, but it was just some junk that he could not sell to his local customers.

I think he knew he was getting taken, but he wanted some local advice. The advice usually paid off. I guess it was just a game. I thought he was not very wise to be taken so easly, but I didn't realize it was a little thing he did to make our fishing experience better.

Thanks Dad.

[Dan]

Talk to the folks in the parking lot also buying bait, chances are they have a good report from a friend or coworker.