Brick and mortar flyshops

[ScottP]

Considering I live in a major metropolitan area (must be since D.C. always scores in the top 5 in terms of traffic congestion) with a decent population of flyfishers (must be since places like the Potomac during shad season and Big Hunting Creek on a spring weekend are zoos), we have the absolute worst choices when it comes to flyshops. Let me qualify that by saying the Urban Anglers, formerly Angler's Lie and formerly in Arlington (25 miles away, but if timed properly a doable drive), is actually a pretty good shop. The problem is they've moved 10 miles farther away to Alexandria and, unless they're willing to stay open 'till 3 AM when traffic and parking might be manageable, there's no way in the world I'd make that drive. Of the 2 Orvis stores, the one in Tyson's is the most pathetic excuse for a flyfishing establishment I've ever seen - lazy, disinterested, pretentious staff (unless they see you pull up in your Porsche Cayenne Turbo) with a flytying selection that is dwarfed by the WalMart in Polson, Montana; haven't been to the other Orvis store, so I'll hold judgement, although I expect it's probably as bad.
With the price of gas, tolls, time (stuck in traffic) having reached the tipping point, I've found I do 99% of my shopping on-line, unless I'm in country. Heck, Whitefish, Montana (population 5000+) has 4 shops (including Sportsmans, more of an outdoors store); admittedly it's in Big Sky Country, but it's not in a fishing hotspot like West Yellowstone, Bozeman, Missoula, etc.

Regards,
Scott

[chewydog]

So next time take the Porsche...

[ScottP]

So next time take the Porsche...

Point taken.

[Crotalus]

No one is driving around suburban DC thinking - "dang used all my 7x, i really need a new spool" or "crap, cant believe I lost my last hopper already this morning".

i think the fly shops end up being where they are accessible to people that are in the act of fishing for spur of the moment/emergency purchases. If I am on a week long vacation and destroy my waders it is more likely that I am going to go into the local shop and buy a new pair than I am to go shop on line, compare prices and order a new pair to be shipped.

[EdD]

So next time take the Porsche...

Chewydog,
He'd probably do a lot better if he'd just let the chaffeur take him in the Rolls. But the Idle Rich DO like to think they have somethnig serious to complain about...


Ed

P.S. Nashville has 3 fly shops on one street (West End Ave./Harding Rd.)
P.P.S. Most of the drivers in Nashville tend to drive as if they are thinking about 7x tippet and hopper patterns instead of traffic lights and turn indicators...

[Luke McLeod]

Before Gander Mountain and Scheels moved into Springfield IL (30 mi.) with their pitiful "fly shops", the closest shops to me were St. Louis at 100 mi. and Chicago at 175 mi. If it wasn't for the internet, I might never have gotten back into flyfishing! Luke

P.S. I guess this isn't completely true, the local tackle shop has a 12 pack of indistinguishable Chinese made "flies" on a cardboard blister pack for $2.99, no other fly tackle, but it's a start, right?

[jimsnarocks]

Well I don't live in an urban metropolis but still have to drive 75 miles one way to the UGH Bass Pro Shop. I say ugh because of the traffic in the area it's located. They do have a fair selection of flyfishing/tying stuff. Across the freeway from that is a nice Sports Chalet. They also have a decent selection of tying materials. Both stores give discounts to our local ff clubs. We do fly tying demos and sell hot dogs occaisionally at BPS for fund raisers. Closest mom and pop fly shop I know of is 150 miles one way. Others are over 200. Thank God for the internet.
When my wife went to DC last summer she took the busses to everywhere she wanted to go. Jim

[John Rhoades]

Scott -

I bet you are more fortunate than most people if you only have to drive 35 miles to get to a good fly shop.

The nearest so-so fly shop to me in SE PA is 25 miles away, the next so-so place is 45 miles, and I have to drive 55-60 miles to several pretty good fly shops when I'm in MT.

I buy stuff where I can find it, when I need it (and that's often debatable!), and I sometimes shop whereever I think I may get a good deal (I bought a new Sage Z-Axis last summer on Ebay for under $100.00, plus 2 used fly reels I used as trade-ins on it, for example).

[Dave E]

　
Hi Scott.


We have five brick and mortar fly shops on our side of the hill and four more ( if you include the two big boxes like Cabela's ) on the other side of the hill, all lay between twenty five minutes to an hour and forty-five minutes from here. ( Out west, that's still in the neighborhood. )
More and more I go to the internet, simply because of the variety of readily available inventory, much of which we'll never see in our homogenized fly shops of today.
Fly shops around here are like McDonalds, traveling from one to the next, you might see a small change in the staff and decor, but the menu is always the same.

Best, Dave

[John Rhoades]

I'd also like to pose the question: Exactly what is a "brick and mortar flyshop" these days anyway?

Don't most of the ones that have an actual storefront also have an online business too?

Here's a qoute that the owner of one of the largest flyshops in PA has on his website:

"(The owner) can found in just about any of the stores as he travels to each location weekly to oversee the operations although, his main focus is on the internet business within (the flyshops).
(The owner) started this company in 1990 with a 750 square foot storefront and has now grown to 5 retail locations and over 25 different fly fishing related websites."