I went to Cabelas with a gift card and a list of six things I needed. Nothing major, just wanted the mustad barbless dry fly hooks in 10 and 16 and mustad standard wet fly in 10 and 12. and black and red/brown thread UTC 140
Cabelas had none of the six, (at least not that I could find) Having the store here is nice I can look at the stuffed animals and the fish, but the fly shop is such that you never know what their going to have and they never seem to have what I want in stock.
Ended up buying some stuff I didn’t need but wanted to try out just to get rid of the gift card.
I had the same experience last year just after Christmas. I left after admiring all the displays, without purchasing anything, came home, went onto their web site, used the gift card and had the stuff sent to my home. Could have saved myself a 100 mile drive. At least I learned something. ( I hope)
That is interesting Narcodog. I was under the impression that Sidney, Ne. facility isthe main warehouse for them. All orders I have had to make have gone to and come back from there. Adjustments to a leaking pr of waders were sent back there and new ones came from there.
My above mentioned desire to buy was a pair of hip waders and a simple pair of tenny runners. Local, Post Falls, ID had no waders ( my real reason for wanting to buy in store was so I could try them on) No hip waders in stock and a limited choice (at higher prices than I eventually paid). I have to agree, they can not and do not carry all they have in their catalog.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not about to bash Cabelas. They have treated me well on all dealings in the past. Adjustments have always been done quickly and to my satisfaction. The stores are beautiful to look at. One visit to the store will last me for a while. Web site search and then phone in an order for me in the future.
The store is so handy, it is close to another store my wife and daughters like to shop at, so I can drop them off then kill an hour or so shopping for my self. There are two other stores near to this area that I will head to from now on, better selection for fly tying. if I have to buy from the Big C I will mail order it.
I live about 2 hours from the nearest store, and have had the same experience - they don’t have the same stuff I want in stock. For the big stuff, they have been very nice and ordered it for me and sent it directly to my home. I’ve been lucky that that usually happened when they had free shipping over a certain $$ amount. Trick that I have learned when I want to pick up some certain items, but still want to just spend some time in the store checking out other stuff (my wife likes to shop there too). I hop online a couple of weeks before I plan to go there, or before I NEED the stuff, order it to be shipped to the store (no shipping charge), wait until I get confirmation that it is in, then head up there. We always make a day of it. There are a couple of other stores in the area that my wife really likes to shop in, a couple of good places to eat, and it’s just a nice trip to get there, especially in the fall with the autumn colors along the river. Another advantage to ordering it that way is that if there is something I want to try on for size, I might order it in a couple of sizes and try them on right there in the store. They will take back the one that doesn’t fit right there, and I have what I need.
CJ
cabelas is primarily an outdoor outfitter who happens to dabble in fly tying/fly fishing equipment and materials and as such is NOT a true fly shop. the cabelas in east hartford, ct is the closest one to me and just doesnt carry everything thats in the catalog and most of it is of mediocre quality at best.
Considering that Cabelas started as two brothers selling fishing flies out of the back room of their fathers furniture store in Chappel, Nebraska, and is now a world wide, public traded company, I wouldn’t second guess their business sense. They sell what people will buy. There’s no way every store can house everything that is in their catalog … hence… the catalog.
As much as I’d like to see the store here carry everything fly fishing … it’s just not what the general public in this part of the world will purchase. They will, however, turn themselves totally inside out, to order what you want, in a reasonable length of time, and make sure you are completely happy with your purchase.
You guys are shopping at the wrong Cabela’s store.
When our Cabela’s store opened a few years ago, I was somewhat disappointed at the quality of help available in their fly shop - until I dealt with Bob. Bob would be an asset in any fly shop, and he has clearly made a difference in this store. He’s knowledgeable, friendly, most helpful, and goes to any length to help you get what you need - fast. I’m sure he hasn’t done it all himself, but the fly shop in the Hamburg Cabela’s has gone from a confused mess, to a well stocked and orderly shop. There are only a few fly shops in the state that can compete with it, and I give a large part of the credit to Bob. Cabela’s should promote him.
Since first meeting Bob, he has become a fishing buddy, and an FAOL member. He attends the PA Fish-In, and his photo appears in our albums, as well as many photos he’s contributed himself.
Other than the immediately preceding post by Heritage Angler, I haven’t seen where the lack of selection was brought to the attention of the store management team. That might be a good place to start. They will do what they can to accommodate the consumer. I have looked for things in Cabela’s and at times, not found them. My next stop was the customer service desk where, to my complete satisfaction, the items were ordered. When the ordered items arrived, I got to look them over or try them on before I purchased them. With as many “sports” or “outdoor” items as there are marketed (to the most gullible segment of the market), I think Cabela’s does a pretty good job at both selection and customer service. Short of you stocking your own store, you will seldom find every item that you want. Best Regards…
I’ve still got the first thing i ever bought at a Cabela’s, (Sidney) a backpacking frame and the last thing, zip off leg pants. The only thing i ever had to return was a fly rod blank that was accidentally misrepresented…Cabela’s sent me a call tag and credited my account. The last time i went to an actual Cabela’s store was in '71. Maybe i should buy some stock.
I went to the same Cabela’s as Denny. I went there to find some rod building supplies and found that the entire selection had been moved to a smaller area and they had about 1/4 of the things they used to have. I was told by the sales rep that Cabela’s was in the process of returning all their rod building supplies to the factory, and that if you want anything in the future, you would be better off ordering from the catalog or online and have it shipped to the store. That is NOT to me a viable option. I live only about 4-5 miles from that Cabela’s shop, but I’ll probably be ordering from Hook & Hackle or another one of our sponsors in the future.
I’ve only been to the Dundee. Mi and the Wheeling ,WV Cabela’s stores and both have distinctly differently fly shops. I’ve been to 11 different Bass Pro’s plus the catalog center and they are the same way, all different. What I’ve noticed is that the stores of both chains are geared to the area making each one unique. BP’s White River fly shops don’t stock near what the web site lists. I’m not sure id either offers a store pick from their website like WalMart, but it’s worth asking. You get free shipping if nothing else.
I’ve only been to one Cabela’s store, the one they opened a few years ago in Phoenix.
I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by the in house ‘fly shop’ there. It wasn’t the best stocked fly shop in the valley, but it was way ahead of most of them, and far exceeded what was available in any fly shop in Tucson. I’m usually only looking at materials, not ‘gear’, and they had lots of that, at decent prices and with some really good ‘sale’ deals going on.
I’ve had a similar experience with the ‘White River Fly Shop’ in the Bass Pro in Phoenix too. They have a well stocked ‘fly shop’ that’s a separate room and they carry more fly tying materials and gear than you’ll find in the Bass Pro catalogs.
I was kind of surprised at this, from both ‘mega stores’, since Phoenix is not what you’d call a fly fishing meca in any sense.
In any event, I try to get by both of these stores whenever I find myself in the area (I really don’t like to go to Phoenix, so it’s not often).
I have only been in a couple of Cabelas stores, Phoenix and KC, but have visited a bunch of BPS and always check out their fly shops. I think Cabelas focuses a little more on the fly shop side of the business. But all of them have good stock of about everything I have needed. In MHO the best BPS is the Foxboro, MA store, it was the first 2 story store I have visited of theirs. They have a 40+ ft. whale model hanging from the ceiling and and birch bark canoe that I thought were great. The only thing that denied me total enjoyment was the fact there would be a credit card statement in 30 days and my wife would not be buying why I needed another (fill in the blank).
I don’t think that the problem is just Cabela’s. I’ve yet to find a genuine “mortor and brick” fly shop that regularly stocks a reliable assortment of hook styles and sizes that I may require. Similar problems occur with synthetic wing materials and color selection. The problem also occurs with new fly fishing or fly tying books that I might want to buy, even when I’m wiling to pay full list price for the book. I think the problem comes down to space and cost. Even big stores can’t carry every single thing that a fly tyer might want—Cabela’s is no exception to the rule. In fact, I find myself pleasantly surprised when I go into any fly shop, big or little, and find exactly what I wanted. Just my experience and my 2% of a dollar. 8T
My local Gander Mtn store, just closed out all of the fly fishing department. It was a business decision based on numbers that the bean counters came up with. The problem that I see is that they have people managing these departments that don’t fly fish. They weren’t selling very much fly fishing stuff because they didn’t have much fly fishing stuff.
I do have to comment on sporting good stores in general though. In a day and age when these business places could sell office equipment instead of sporting good and be less politically sensitive to some groups, I’m glad that there are still places like Gander, Bass Pro and Cabelas. They still service our community and sometimes it always doesn’t add up for them but they continue to do it to have a rounded out selection.
I love and I hate em. i live about 20 from the Dundee store and I’m a little jaded. If I have to go there it’s a hit and run. i don’t stop to look at the stuffed animals or try the fudge. I go in get what i need and leave. Yes their rod building dept has shrunk over the years and getting someone in the fly area that knows what they are talking about is 50/50. a few years ago they were closing out one of their fly reels. went to the store and it was $10 more than the catalog. they are supposed to honor the catalog price. Had to get the manager and an act of congress to to get the deal. Most times they don’t carry everything that’s in the catalog so i either call ahead or order online and ask for a store pickup which saves shipping costs. There is a Bass Pro about another 30 min away and I actually like their shooting dept. a little better as the service is more knowledgeable but their fly shop is staffed by people who only know about walleye fishing on Lake Erie.
I susually order fromthe ctalogue if I am getting something from Cabelas. Have been to a few and their stock varies in every store. The wharehouse is a couple of miles from the Store in Sidney from what they told me.
Rick
PS Bob, an employe there, wason the list for a while and still may be.
