13/05/2025
If your interested please take the time to read.
We hear you.
Please note this is long, but I feel it will explain a lot about us and where we are at and where we are heading.
Whilst I would normally post a wrap up of our recent expo before I write a response to comments / suggestions, I must admit that I’ve been reading your comments / suggestions and they have stuck, in fact I can’t get them out of my mind, so I thought I would write an overall response first.
Good or bad your comments & suggestions are read and are important to us. Whilst we cannot always do what you ask, but if they are possible, we will try, and they help us improve, so keep them coming.
Firstly, we thank you all for attending the expo in Bendigo on the weekend, it was greatly appreciated and for the most part, it seems that you liked what was on offer and we are slowly getting there.
When we first started the Regional Vic Fishing Expo 4 years ago, we had 3 main aims.
To be a platform / event that brings together & showcases to the community our fantastic (Aussie made) lure & rod makers (We have some of the very best makers anywhere in the world, the public just need to see them). This includes our small businesses, our hobby makers etc, guys that don’t either make enough to get into your large retail chains or don’t want to be found in them.
To be a platform that brings together as many of our recreational fishing bodies / government organizations to help educate & inform the public of what is going on around them and the fantastic work they do behind the scenes that most don’t know about.
Whilst the event is to be held in regional areas, it was to be an event that showcases all forms of fishing, be it saltwater, freshwater, fly fishing etc,
We also did not want to be like other major events across Australia that showcase all the big names and have so many different brands of boats, vehicles, campers etc that whilst it they looks visually fantastic, it really all becomes a little too confusing on the day and it costs a fortune to exhibit at one of these events. In fact, we deliberately set out to focus on being exactly the opposite, showcasing the small Aussie made guys, make it as cheap as we can to exhibitors and only have a couple of your bigger exhibitors like boats, vehicles etc on show. That way it offers these guys some exclusivity knowing that they are only competing against one other similar business but still allows us to focus on what is at the heart of what we are all about.
As most of our followers & exhibitors would know, we are not a big organization that solely focuses on organizing & running big events / expos to make money. In fact we are just a husband & wife team along with our 2 boys that still have normal 9 -5 jobs during the week, but felt that the Australian public were missing out on seeing what is truly out their when it comes to Aussie made products.
To date we have no sponsors, we don’t get any government funding etc via government organizations that maybe exhibiting, we struggle to get some exhibitors to commit every year, especially the bigger companies and are a user pays event that to date, with the door entry, has just simply covered costs to hold the event, which runs in the tens of thousands every time and if we don’t cover cost then any short fall comes out of our personal pockets. But we accept this risk every year because we believe what we are trying to do is right, showcasing the little guy and Aussie made is always right.
Have we made some mistakes “Yes”. can we improve "Yes" Have we always delivered what was advertised “No”. In order to have TV & radio ads, these must be organized and made months in advance and once up and running cannot be changed, so if & when we have business pull out at the last minute for whatever reason, there is no way to change them. For example this year we thought we had camping and some 4 x 4 covered, but then 2 weeks out they both pulled out.
Again what do we do, we can’t force anyone come and join us as exhibitors, but we will keep trying to get them there. We are also trying to encourage some retail stores, which, in turn, helps get your major brands be a part of a retail site that stocks their products. Again this is a work in progress and we are always on the lookout for more exhibitors.
Moving forward, we will be trying to add more outdoor exhibitors like camping, off-road, tourist destinations, maybe event hunting and more. As of 2026, the expo will have a name change that better reflects what we are all about and the Bendigo Showgrounds will be the home of our 2-day event when held in Victoria and will be held on the 2nd weekend in November each year.
We are currently working on several smaller 1-day events, which include a 1-day mini expo in Geelong on the 23rd of August 2025 & a 1 day event in Barham (NSW) on the 1st of November 2025 as well as looking at how we can hold a 2- day event in regional NSW & and possibly SA in the future.
In closing, we look forward to any feedback, good or bad, so that we can see what is working and build on that or what isn’t and how we can improve.
