I don’t think haddrells will take too much of a hit. One of the larger sources for income is live bait. There is already a west marine close by to both stores which sells plenty of tackle and reels. I don’t buy as much as I should from haddrells based on the advice they’ve given me, but the type of fishing me and my group of friends do pushes us all to online retailers. Many things we need are not carried locally and while yes they can order it for us but quite honestly the people we order from are also small business and a lot more competitive price wise. The guy we buy all of our 30-80 sized reels from spools it for a penny with any amount and any brand of braid.
Point is the people who use them regularly will continue to do so. They may take a small hit but the majority of us use them or don’t already.
BPS will not be able to match the knowledge and expertise that Charleston angler or Haddrell’s bring to the area … if i want to see a big fish tank with a bunch of tourists all around me ill go to the aquarium
Remember this. The people that will work there will be LOCAL folks. Yes, the senior managers will probably be from somewhere else, but the average worker will not “flown in from the Bass Pro Shops mothership”. They will be local people with local experiences looking for a job. Will they have the technical and fishing knowledge of the people at Haddrell’s? Maybe not, but they will bring some local knowledge and experience to the store. I am about ready to retire and when I do, I would love to have a part time job there dealing with stuff that I love.
Molon Labe!
Until you have loved a dog, part of your soul remains unawakened. - Anatole France (paraphrased)
Its called a free enterprise system, i really hope the local shops can co exist, BPS will be looking for local anglers and local hunters to work for them, and the first place they will look is at the local shops that are operating now. they are not doing 2.6 billion in sales a year not to know how to get what they want or who they want…
… and they will offer more money and benefits that the locals may not be able to provide, so if i owned a local shop and had an excellent employee i would sit down and have a serious heart to heart with them,.now…the local shops need to be prepared for their employees to be approached or even their own employees thinking about looking into working for BPS, money with benefits often talks loud. I had rather go into battle prepared than to be surprised later on…let me repeat i am all for the small business man, i am one, but i also know the cold reality of competition and loyalty of employees ,my own brother in law threw me under the bus, in my business all franchisee’s working for me has to sign a 2 year (that is the longest time the SC law will allow)non competition agreement, i do not know if that would be an option as an employee, employer relationship, our business has patented process and equipment that has proprietary process. that means if a franchise quits or has defaulted he cannot even work in the same field of expertise with the processes and equipment he has used for at least two years. and to think that BPS will not try to persuade your employee is not good business sense…you might even offer a small percentage of the business to keep the employee that is excellent and that will motivate them to do more, just my thought and good business practice, keep your friends close and your enemies closer:face_with_head_bandage:
Whatever I need per my fishing needs, I will always choose local first (if available) even if the prices may be slightly higher. The annual business I give to BPS will not change. My loyalty will remain local on all competing products.
Big boxes will get some business but I have to look at how busy Royall Hardware is to tell me that the local shops will do fine. Harris teeter has seafood on sale weekly but a hard worker like Paul can open a seafood shop up and do well by serving his customers. Yes,
Interesting how this thread has progressed.
Tackle shops make big money on bait? Come on now.
BP will pay their employees better? Come on now.
Tackle shops will loose employees to BP? Reelly?
I have been to several BPs and they are ok. Better prices? Not really. Service?
You tell me.
Will I continue to shop local with the choice of several good local tackle shops?
it is simple economics, i dare say that most people on this site that live within 40 miles of the new store will at some time go in and look around and that would be normal, but probably 1/3 of those that go in will buy something, that sets the tone, some will never go back, but most will, especially if they are going close by for some reason, so to say that the BPS will not hurt sales of the smaller shops is debatable, some could even reason it may draw more people to the smaller shops , time will tell, and if i was an owner of a smaller shop i would be concerned and prepared to deal with it…with their number of sales per store per year averaging 43 million (2.6 billion gross sales per year for 58 stores) that money is coming from somewhere, yes mostly tourist but locals will support it as well… how many here have ever bought any fishing supplies from WalMart, just because you were there and it was convenient, how many have even looked at the fishing supplies in walmart and compared the prices to the local shops, that is the reality, and I. applaud you who have dug your heels in and will never support it but unfortunately you are probably the minority not the majority , sorry but i am a realist not a pessimist and sometimes that sucks
Well, it’s winter time and the weather sucks at times making the fishing slow, so we might as well enjoy talking about these types of topics that may or may not impact the community. I hope it all works out.
2012 Skeeter ZX22 Bay
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I agree that Paul found the niche fresh seafood and great service, not frozen imported like Harris Teeter, but Harris Teeter still sells boat loads of seafood as well, and that is my point, the smaller shops can survive if they fill that niche and court the locals for good service and good seafood, and i do not think that there is that much of a markup on mud minnows,lol, local tackle shops do provide that service, and Royal Hardware has found that niche of providing service that the box stores do not and they stock those speciality items that do not turn 4 times a year in big box stores, and if you were the new store manager of a Bass Pro, where would you look for knowledgeable people, not at the local car wash, and yes i will support the locals, charleston angler in summerville is just around the corner, but then again Wal Mart is just around the other corner,
i agree Skeeter, and i am not wanting to cause negative responses on this sight but just to get everyone thinking that even if you do buy from Walmart or the new BPS, just don’t forget the local shops and those who are trying to make a living and feed their family as well
I will still spend my money at Haddrell’s. Prices will be comparable and do you think you will be able to get any good fishing advice from the young kids working at BPS. Support your local folk’s they have been outstanding for many years.
Really? 4.51 million people annually. That is roughly 370,000 people per month, 92,000 people per week, and 13,000 per day! Can those numbers be right? Sounds more like state-wide figures. I went to the website and I saw the numbers, but I find them hard to believe. I didn’t think we had that many hotel rooms or vacation homes available. If this is true, that is flat freaking amazing! I do know that Charleston is consistently rated a #1 place to visit and so on, but 4.51 million extra bodies per year is hard to fathom. I was born and raised in Charleston, so this just a little hard to get my head around. Not arguing or being a smartass, but that is a bunch of people.[:0]
In an Emergency Management social assessment I did: “Roughly 4.51 million people come to vacation in Charleston with an “estimated economic impact of $3.22 billion” annually (The City of Charleston, 2013).”
I was an employee at one of the “box” sports/fishing tackle stores for a few years. This wasn’t B Pro. Our dept. manager stressed customer service and we did well until he transferred up north. Our next dept. manager hired was a female with no outdoor sporting experience. This isn’t meant to bash the fishing ladies reading this site, it could just as easily have been a man. Anyway, in less than six months our sales plummeted by 25%. Just imagine the reaction of the guys who were coming in for advice about different reels, baits, guns etc. And the manager has to go find one of us peons to get an answer. The local guys just quit shopping with us. Customer service and a good selection of what customers want to purchase is what keeps customers loyal to any store. When I left the “box” store some of the “baits” were still on the shelves from before I was hired, just taking up space!!
I went shopping at the B Pro in MB a few years back and was less than impressed. The guy who I finally found couldn’t tell me where the baits I was looking for were located. He might have been a new employee but didn’t seem to be interested in learning what stock was where. Luckily, we have a Sportsmans Warehouse nearby. They seem to carry a bunch of freshwater fishing supplies, when they can keep them in stock. Their fishing dept. employees seem to really know their jobs and actually go fishing. Imagine that!! Once I retire I hope to get a parttime job at one of our local small tackle shops.
Well on the Fishing Discussion forum someone says then went to the Charleston Angler in Summerville today and they are closing in that store in March. And seemed to imply it was the result of the Bass Pro Shops announcement. So that kind of answers what is being discussed here.
My wife got me a $50. gift card from Bass Pro several years ago .
That will probably be the only time I will go there . I have also had a gift card from that box store in Summerville, cant thionk of the name now. Ive been there 1 other time and couldnt get anyone to answer my questions, havent been back since. I have bought fishing gear from both Haddels and Charleston Angler. I go to those even though I live in Summerville.I hate to see the Anglers close in Summerville, about 5-6 miles from my house .
Slightly off topic, but…my 20 yr old niece has been hunting and fishing since she was a little girl, and has even killed deer and hogs with a bow. She got a summer job at BPS in Houston, TX last year and they fell in love with her. When someone asks a question about fishing or hunting, she generally knows the answer. The customers love her, management loves her. They rehired her to work during Christmas break (she is in college), and they want her back this summer.
So enough bragging about my niece. It just goes to show you that customer service sells. Customer service is very rare at BPS and I think the local shops will be able to stay afloat as long as they maintain their level of service and are smart about pricing. I know I will pay a little extra for good service but not a whole lot. If BPS sells an item I want or need for $100 and a local shop has it for $110, I’ll buy it from the local shop. Probably not if it’s $120 though. They just need to find the right markup on the items they are competing with BPS on. And they don’t need to try to compete with them on every item.
If you’re lucky enough to be fishing, you’re lucky enough.
service is rare at BPS. i was in one for over two hours once and not a soul offered to help me find something. i can’t walk into hadrell’s for any longer than 2 seconds without someone asking if I’m finding everything alright.
