Besides the beer, preparing to go fishing can be an exceptional experience if you know where to go. Chain stores and warehouses that provide fishing gear and supplies offer little more than assistance to help you find what you are looking for. Need a crab trap? That would be aisle 8.
However, Lee Fisher International’s founder and CEO, SanFu Lee, has always recognized that fishermen need more assistance and information for their fishing trips. Under the trade name “Florida Fishing Outfitters, Mr. Lee owns and operates four corporate-owned stores conveniently located in Tampa Bay: Tampa Fishing Outfitters, Lakeland Fishing Outfitters, St. Pete Fishing Outfitters, and Tarpon Fishing Outfitters.
“My vision for my stores has always been different from chain stores and warehouses serving the public. We provide our customers with regularly updated state and local fishing regulations, which change frequently and can vary throughout the state,” Lee said. “We also inform customers where they can go to get a license. We can tell them when and where to fish inshore or offshore for saltwater or freshwater fishing, and we always have free fisherman guides. We do a lot more than just help customers find the right aisle for the products they want. We are qualified and excited to deliver local fishing knowledge, sound advice, and our products’ specific features for the best fishing experience. We are also conscientious about serving our customers with competitive pricing. We can even repair customers’ cast nets.”
Lee also said his stores are the go-to places where fishermen help fishermen. He said he requires his representatives to be seasoned fishermen who are committed to continually fishing for as long as they work for the company.
Steve Powers, the company’s wholesale manager, said he’s been fishing for 49 years and began working at Lee Fisher in 2015. He described the company’s time invested in trade groups, including the Gulf Coast of Mexico Fishery Management Council. “We routinely attend various trade groups, including the Council which provides us expertise about specific fisheries and fish species. We share this knowledge with our customers.”
Tampa Fishing Outfitters, located in Tampa’s Drew Park, is known on Facebook as “the angler’s candy store.” Since 2010, it has become one of the largest tackle shops in Florida’s entire Tampa Bay region and Florida’s west coast. It boasts 7,000 square feet of sport fishing gear, supplies, and services for fishermen and licensed captains.
Beyond Lee Fisher International’s four corporate-owned stores, 48 other retailers in Tampa Bay carry Lee Fisher products. They are located throughout Hillsborough, Polk, Sarasota, Manatee, Pinellas, Pasc,o and Hernando Counties, making the company the largest privately-owned fishing gear and supply company in the Tampa Bay region. As one of the largest privately-owned fishing gear and supply companies in the U.S. and Caribbean, their products are carried in over 400 other retail outlets.
However, Mr. Lee was still inspired to offer even more to fishermen than other stores, so he began designing and making his own product lines.
In 1982, when his company launched, Lee Fisher International opened Lee Fisher Sports. It is widely respected for its manufactured product line,s beginning with its flagship cast nets. These nets are made of high-quality, durable materials that perform well for the sport fisherman’s ease of casting.
The company also makes its own crab traps, braided and mono fishing lines, terminal tackles, rods, reels and knives, along with all fishing accessories. “We will also be rolling out even more new product lines in January 2025,” Lee said. “They include a new apron made of an innovative material called “TPO,” trolling planers, de-hookers, 3-in-1 water shoes, and other items.”
Mr. Lee added that he is also going to increase the number of hardware and marine stores that carry the company’s various brands of multi-purpose products, like buckets and ropes.
In 1982, Lee Fisher International launched in a 300 square-foot storage shed rented in Drew Park, mainly for commercial fishing supplies, where today its expanded international headquarters and the Tampa Fishing Outfitters store operate.
Some of the brand names the company offers include Humpback, Ohero, Joy Fish, Bait Buster, Mako, Ronning Sharp, Yum Yum Chum, and Everstrong Rope, along with Lee Fisher Sports.
Check out Lee Fisher Sports on Facebook at Lee Fisher Sports | Tampa FL | Facebook
Customers can do their online shopping at www.leefishersports.com or www.flfishingoutfitters.com to find the most popular brand-name products. The websites also offer licensed captains the opportunity to sign up for special pricing.
Commercial fishermen can visit www.leefisherfishing.com for shrimping, crabbing, fishing, and other options.
For convenient in-store shopping, Tampa Fishing Outfitters is located at 3922 West Osborne Avenue and can be found online at www.tampafishingoutfitters.com.
St. Pete Fishing Outfitters is located at 3450 34th Street North and online at www.stpetefishingoutfitters.com.
Tarpon Fishing Outfitters is located at 1500 U.S. Highway 19 North, Holiday, and online at www.tarponfishingoutfitters.com.
Lakeland Fishing Outfitters is located at 1330 East Memorial Boulevard and can be found online at www.lakelandfishingoutfitters.com.
For fishermen who love other sports, Lee Fisher International manufactures sports net products, which can be seen at www.justfornets.com. The company offers custom-made nets for major league baseball, hockey, and soccer leagues and golf course barriers. Ready-to-use nets are also available for tennis, volleyball, pickleball, and other activities.
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