Trying to hold the line on our fishing gear.

[fishweewee]

Spence,

I don't see Wal-Mart as a threat to the brick and mortar tackle shops in the long run.

Commodity ittems like fishing line and leader and maybe some terminal tackle and generic lures will always be cheaper at Wal-Mart.

But you won't see Wal-Mart stock even certain Shimano, Daiwa, and Penn reels and rods and what not. It's just too many SKU's to deal with. Wal-Mart is fundamentally targeting the price conscious consumer in a bazillion consumer categories.

And while many Wal-Marts will get to tailor their SKU's to accommodate local tastes, they'll never be on par with the mom and pop tackle shop. Fishing equipment is hyper-regionalized, which reflects the customs and practices of the area you're in. Much of the good stuff is coming from low-volume mom-and-pop type outfits, who wouldn't even be on Wal-Mart's radar screen. When was the last time you saw Habs in a Wally-World?

If people really get into fishing, they will eventually upgrade their equipment over the course of time. For that you need a tackle shop.

I think there are other macro participation forces that tackle shops are more sensitive to. Namely, the overall economy, weather, and the state of the fisheries in question.