TFP Rod Tube Manifesto
WHY WE SELL OUR RODS WITHOUT A ROD TUBE.
Knowing what you are paying for, and making your own decision on what is right for you. That is what we would want as a customer and is what we set out to provide as we continue to build and sell our rods.
The idea really came to us over the last year or two. Supply chain cost were rising, and nearly all of products were facing substantial price increases for one reason or another. We dove in to find where we could cut costs. We negotiated better with our factories, streamlined logistics, and scrutinized our product designs for any unnecessary elements that didn’t justify the higher cost. However, at no point were we going to jeopardize the performance and quality that we have set out to achieve with our rods.
It should have been more obvious at first, but eventually we realized that it wasn’t the cost of the rod blank, the guides, or the handle we should be concerned with. Those are all core components to what actually matter in a rod, and as fisherman, all that we really care about at the end of the day. So we shifted focus to the rod tube, the rod socks, the packaging, etc. Things that are important and nice to have but aren’t going to make any difference to how your rod performs when you are trying to make the cast of your life to a cruising 100 lb tarpon in the Keys. It quickly became apparent that our opportunity was in the rod tubes. In most cases the cost of the tube was adding $40-80 to the final retail price of a fly rod, which we felt was a meaningful enough difference to do something about it.
It is important to note that including a tube in the price of a rod has been an industry standard for as long as we can recall. It has its place, and we understand the benefits of including it in the price of the rod. It keeps things simple for the customer buying the rod. Less choices and decisions to make, one package deal and you are out the door. It also frankly makes it a lot easier on the dealers and fly shops to manage. Less individual rod tubes to stock, less complexity, less things to sell, explain, etc. We get all of that, and frankly agree with most of it too. You can be sure we have had many spirited debates on this subject. However at the end of the day we feel it is good to evolve, it’s good to think different, and it’s good to do right by our customers by providing an option on how they spend their money, and provide the most transparent and fair pricing we can offer by not including the cost of a rod tube in the final price of the rod.
By separating the rod tube from the total price of a rod, we have been able to price our rods to reflect what we’ve put into the rod itself, and not much else.
As a customer, you are paying only for what you need or want. We also believe that if you need a rod tube or case, that you should have a choice in what meets your personal style and functional needs. Rather than be forced into whatever inexpensive tube the manufacture wants to include with rod, we’ve chosen to let you decide what is right for you. If you would like a rod tube with your new Fly Project rod, awesome, we will have some killer options for you to pick from for an additional but reasonable cost. If you already have a closet full of old rod tubes and don’t need another one, or simply would like to save a little money and not have the cost of a tube included in your fly rod purchase, we are giving you that option with all of our new rods going forward.
