As 2011 draws to a close we would like to pause for a moment to look back on the year that was and share some thoughts on our plans for 2012.

Thankfully 2011 was a good year for the store on a number of fronts. Perhaps most importantly, after launching our new webpage on December 1, 2010 we immediately focused our efforts on launching a new ecommerce page which eventually went live on August 13. This event has proven to be one of the most important in our store’s history and it is quickly becoming the new foundation upon which we are building the future of the store. We are thankful we recognized some time ago that the future of fly fishing retail is online and we are delighted with the response we have received. We have some design issues yet to sort through and product lines to add (flies and fly tying materials in particular) but we are confident we are heading in the right direction.

Another piece of the puzzle that fell into place this year was our travel program. We now have almost 50 lodges participating and an increasing number of anglers looking for a great way to save money when booking their vacation are discovering the value of the program. If you have not checked out this part of our website of late we encourage you to do so.

From an inventory perspective many of our customers know we have the best selection of fly fishing gear in Canada – but it just got better. We recently decided to bring back Hardy and Greys and we have also decided to become a Winston dealer. Needless to say we are delighted to have their products in our store.

Our other product lines have also been performing strongly. Sage, Thomas & Thomas, G. Loomis, Orvis and St. Croix rods have all been selling well and our reel lines have been hitting it out of the park! Abel, Hatch, Nautilus, Orvis, Ross, Sage and Saracione have all performed well for us and the addition of Hardy and Greys have been an immediate draw for our customers.

This year we also made a huge commitment to Simms by increasing our inventory by almost 40% and we are delighted that our sales this year established WILSON’S as one of the top 20 Simms dealers in North America. To put this into perspective, Simms has over 500 dealers in Canada and the United States so being in their top 5% of dealers is a great accomplishment by any measure. Because of this success we are now working with Simms on another project that will add even more value for our customers – stay tuned!

So what does 2012 have in store? Your crystal balls are likely as good if not better than ours but there are a few things we can share. First, we are continuing to work on improving our online store and will soon be implementing a new online marketing program for the members of our Fly Fishing Club that will involve ‘flash’ sales and promotions. What this means is that if you have not signed up you should do so now because it will be worth your while (!).

Secondly, we are looking at our inventory and deciding what holes need to be filled, what products need to be beefed up and what lines we should consider dropping. Our manager Bill has done an excellent job of jockeying our suppliers and the support he has received from the rest of the team (Hugo, John, Danny, Sheldon and Joel) has been instrumental in keeping the store on track.

Thirdly, we are looking at the presence of the new ‘Big Box’ retailer in the GTA. With 2 locations now open in Vaughan and Oshawa and 2 others planned for Etobicoke and Burlington in the spring of 2012 their presence is certainly going to have an impact because they carry many of the same lines. However, what we discovered when we visited them is that their focus is more on clothing, camping, hunting and conventional fishing and their selection of fly fishing gear is limited. For example, they carry Simms waders priced the same as us but they only stock small, medium, large and extra large so anyone looking for specialty sizes such as a medium king or a large short will have to come to us. They are also focussed on entry-level to mid-level products and clearance items and while the people they have behind the counters in their fly shops are nice and helpful they lack the knowledge and experience many hard core fly anglers desire. So while the entry of this new competitor into the GTA was initially a concern for us it is quickly becoming a non-issue.

In the immediate future our fly tying program is gearing up in January under the able leadership of Sheldon Seale so we look forward to having customers both old and new come into the store for our open vise sessions on Saturday afternoons. If you have not attended we encourage you to drop by!

On that note we hope everyone has a safe long weekend and we wish everyone a Happy New Year!

You may not be aware that 3M (the owners of Scientfic Angler amongst hundreds of other companies) recently purchased Ross Reels and they are in the process of absorbing Ross into the mother ship. Everything we are hearing and seeing from our end is positive and we hope this change means even better service from a company that is already one of the strongest brands in the fly fishing industry.

By the way, this is their new logo – we will keep you posted on further developments.

One of the aspects I like about fly fishing is that regardless of how long any of us have been involved in the sport there is always something new to learn. Some of us focus on casting and teaching. Others prefer to focus on mastering the art of catching a certain species and still others prefer to master the art of fly tying. The list truly is endless but it has one common thread – we all love fly fishing and that bond and the mutual respect upon which it is based is what creates friendships at club meetings, fly fishing lodges, industry shows and chance encounters on a river.

I am not one to make New Year’s resolutions but as this year draws to a close two of the things I would like to learn more about in 2011 are fly tying and entomology.These aspects of our sport are inseparable and while endless in their complexity they also give us countless hours of enjoyment at a tying bench and on a river. I was told when getting into the sport that catching a fish on a fly you have tied yourself provides one of the greatest senses of accomplishment you can experience as a fly angler. Over the years that comment has haunted me and I have decided that 2011 is the year that I will improve my knowledge of both.

To that end, one of the best online entomology resources I have seen over the years is troutnut.com and if you have not bookmarked this website you should. Created and maintained by Jason Neuswanger, troutnut.com is a fly tyers dream come true because it has over 3,700 pictures of 748 subjects and a growing library of behavioral information to help fly tyers understand and better imitate the things trout eat.

To see what I mean go to www.troutnut.com

70 Fahrenheit (21 C):
Bahamian flats guides stay on the dock because their sunscreen is chilled.
Canadian anglers put ice in their hats to prevent heat stroke.

50 Fahrenheit (10 C):
Italian anglers stop fly fishing because their wine gets too cold.
Canadians anglers stop wet wading.

32 Fahrenheit (0 C):
British anglers stop fly fishing because their beer freezes.
Canadians anglers don’t have that problem because they drink Canadian beer.

0 Fahrenheit (-17..9 C):
New York City landlords finally turn on the heat.
Canadians anglers put on a toque.

-60 Fahrenheit (-51 C):
Santa Claus abandons the North Pole.
Canadians anglers pull down their earflaps.

-109.9 Fahrenheit (-78.5 C):
Carbon dioxide freezes.
Canadian anglers skip school to go steelheading.

-173 Fahrenheit (-114 C):
Ethyl alcohol freezes.
Canadians anglers get frustrated because they can’t thaw the keg.

-459.67 Fahrenheit (-273.15 C):
Absolute zero; all atomic motion stops.
Canadian anglers start saying “Cold, eh?”

-500 Fahrenheit (-295 C):
Hell freezes over.
The Toronto Maple Leafs win the Stanley Cup…

We hope you wake this morning to find everything you wished for under the Christmas tree and that you have friends and family with whom to share the day. Merry Christmas everyone!