Episode Thirty Five : Fish City - Founding Fathers

Reel Tails with Sweens - Podcast By Dwayne Sweeney

Episode Thirty Five :

This episode I sit down with the founding fathers of Fish City Ross, Jono and Kev.

All three share the highs, lows and their learnings of 30 years in business together.

We discuss a range of topics such as, how the business came to be, Jono becoming New Zealand’s first ever Marine Technician apprentice, the focus they have on creating a strong team culture and the joy it brings them to see their team develop.

We also discuss how much the business has had to move with the times, the strangest requests from customers, displaying their personal fishing gear to make it look like they had more stock and so much more.

@fishcityham

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Show Notes:

2:13 - Introductions and how the business came to be

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17:39 - Their passion for boat racing, the knowledge gained helped develop FC Boats and how you never know what a day fishing is going bring

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31:01 - The number of people from the industry that have worked at Fish City at some point in time, the pride they take in seeing their staff develop and grow

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39:35 - Managing their team dynamic, playing to your strengths and how important culture is

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56:27 - The changing environment with customers having more and more access to information

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1:02:19 - The fishing tournaments and trips they have been able to go on and how fishing techniques have developed over time

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1:11:30 - Jono becoming New Zealand’s first ever Marine Technician apprentice and how the outboard motors have developed over the last 50 years

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1:23:50 - How big Mercury is as a company and the amazing trips they host for their dealers

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1:30:46 - Mini Chiefie and what that boat has been able to help me enjoy, The development of the new Four stroke outboards and how good they really are

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1:37:43 - The development of the online store and how it has changed the way they do business, how our passion for the outdoors has increased as a country

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1:47:48 - The introduction of the club card loyalty program and how it was ahead of the times, keeping up with the changing times and having customers that have been with them since opening day

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1:53:04 - Their 30th birthday celebration and how it will be awesome to have everyone together

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1:58:56 - Sponsorship over the years and the universes currency

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2:01:39 - Some of the interesting sights that have come through the service department, how to maintain your boat to get consistant performance

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2:13:40 - The development of the Auckland store and what they learnt

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2:16:20 - The strange requests from customers, how many roles they have within the business, the reliability of of the new outboards across all brands

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2:24:27 - Their recent trip to Rarotonga to celebrate 30 years in business not going to plan

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2:26:37 - Final thoughts