Custom Jig & Trailer Combination: Custom Baitmaker's Studio

 

One of the things that is clearly obvious when you walk through the ICAST convention floor every year is that when it comes to bait manufacturers the market is very fragmented unless of course you are talking about brands like Googan Baits that is which seems to cross market many bait categories.

Traditional JIGS like Spinnerbaits appear to have taken a bit of back benching the last few years from the developments from major manufacturers focused on capturing sales from the latest and greatest design trends coming out of JDM- Japanese Domestic Market.

Think Bladed Baits , Swimbaits and Glide Bait variations.

Most brands have a single specialty these days be it terminal tackle, hard baits or soft plastics. Don't get me wrong there are major brands that sku the most popular segments of each of the main categories if for no other reason than to capture more space on that big box aisle. If you have been in a big box store you may have noticed some retailers moving to a "brand specific" stocking rather than a bait specific one. This means that the aisle of say crankbaits will be divided up among the brands based on a number of factors but the aisle will be broken down by brand.

Often you find more variety even within the lines of the major serial baits online than at big box stores. Companies like Dicks Sporting Goods for example seem to have reduced their fishing sections of floor space compared to a few years ago where it seemingly allocated more space and carried a lot more brands and baits within a brand. Dick's also though many are unaware has its own line of fishing baits that it typically end caps in prime space and reportedly marketed under the brand name Jawbone Tackle Co.

There is an opportunity for CUSTOM baitmakers to either begin to pair segments or partner with another baitmaker to offer the "complete presentation".

For example here you have a CUSTOM JIG but also the Trailer derived from the plastisol pour that is mixed with colors and often times glitter and such and poured into a bait mold to create CUSTOM trailers colored specific to match the JIG skirt or jig head color.

This is a CUSTOM HAIR JIG paired with a Black & Blue CRAW mold Trailer perfect for that flipping presentation. Typically, an angler would have to purchase individual jigs and then have to buy a bag of trailers normally from a totally different brand to pair with the JIG. 

With CUSTOM baitmakers this can be accomplished in house thus limiting the expenses of the angler by offering the JIG with Trailer or like some custom offerings the Jig with (3) trailers.

The CUSTOM baitmaker can start with a uniform pattern but then add differing color contrasts like these JIGS paired with HAIR which offer anglers differing patterns to utilize. In the case of these Blue and Chartreuse are used but Yellow or Red could just as easily be used.

The pattern colors are also easily changed so that Green Pumpkin, Watermelon Candy, Black & Blue and all the uniform accepted color patterns can be offered in a line up.

CUSTOM Baitmaker's have plenty of options when it comes to JIG molds in which to pour their jig heads but more importantly nowadays the market has provided access to the right kinds of desired hooks that anglers want and the molds come in various size weights to accommodate preferences for presentation. Often times anglers have preferences as to the skirting material as well.

Literally thousands of CUSTOM creators have popped up really since Covid -19 as many are able to produce their custom baits from home without having to invest in large spaces or workshops but its not met with its own challenges. Custom guys not have to be designer and producer but also marketer and sales and shipper and when starting out costs can be higher than you would expect when things are not procure in volume like the major brands who often sub out alot of the production and or sales and marketing.

Often this is why CUSTOM has always been more expensive than major brands who make their profits of the volume not necessarily individual unit price points and they have the advantage of the buyer not being you and me but rather major retailers buying to bulk for hundreds of unit locations around the country.

Now that Fall is close we can expect the ICAST RELEASES to drop at major retailers but outside the refined Bladed Jig /Vibrating Jig we are likely not going to see many new options when it comes to the JIG.

Here is ICAST 2023 New Releases at least for Tackle Warehouse:

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/firstlook.html

The new twists will be use of Tungsten or changes to blades for Chatterbaits or Thunder Crickets and such but little in the way of totally new, innovative JIG baits. The CUSTOM guys may fill that void.