New Xplorer Concept Store

We chat to JOHN GEILS behind the counter of his new Concept Store.

- 

TCFF: Congratulations on your new shop John! After two decades in the fly fishing industry, what motivated the move from distributor to (and) retail shop?

JG: Thanks PJ. It will be 23 years this July. Our core business is still distribution and always will be. One thing I’ve noticed with my travels to international tackle shows each year is that times are changing and the old distribution models are changing globally. As a brand and business, we too need to adapt and change with the trends if we want to be around in the next 20 years. One of the motivations behind opening a retail shop has come from the need for a dedicated fly fishing shop in Durban. There hasn’t been a proper “fly only” shop in Durban since the days of The Fly Fisherman when Roger Baert was involved with the Hilton and Glenwood shops. Durban’s avid fly anglers have been deprived of a proper local fly shop that can offer (from experience) the right advice on tackle, gear, destinations, as well as a varied range of fly tackle. This has forced Durbanites to have to travel upcountry for their fix. There also isn’t a tackle shop in the country that stocks every single product that we import and distribute, big or small, until now.

TCFF: You call this your Concept Store. What do you mean by that?