Bass Pro vs. Academy.....have you noticed

Bass Pro Pro prices have gotton slightly higher. Seagur line is 2.50 more at BP than Academy (lasted I check). BP selections are better but the prices are rising. We should start a price check thread or app w/ fishing stuff like they do the gas prices.

Awesome idea!! Then no fishing companies will make any money. Just like the communists like it!!

Why dont you just shop online?

You better hurry up and do your comparison between Bass Pro and Academy, due to the rate Academy is yanking fishing tackle off thier shelves and out of thier stores. I'm confident the WalMart fishing department will have a larger selection of fishing tackle than the 3 Academy's around me.

I have noticed this too. Every since Academy was sold to a New York investment company, the inventory has really started to shift to team type sports equipment and away from fishing, hunting, and camping equipment. Probably going to get worse. I guess the mark up on those products is better than fishing equipment.

OUR Longview Academy store has one isle in the fishing department half empty....just pegs. Been that way for a month!

Not much to price compare with it like that...plus every month they clearance items and bring in new items for a month. Never constant.

There was a post last month about the lack of Academy fishing gear. Someone posted they worked there and that they were gearing up for a new layout of the store. He assured me that they were going to have more fishing gear available in the near future.

When will the idiots that run Academy realize that we fish 12 MONTHS OUT OF THE YEAR??? This whole, "We're changing the layout" B.S. is rather old and tiring. Instead of starting a thread about price comparisons we need to start a thread with the topic of How much money did you spend on fishing this month that wasn't spent at Academy due to them not having anything in stock. Break it down so the simple minded that seem to run the store can understand it. It's a shame when I can go in to an Academy to get tennis shoes, golf balls, grilling stuff, etc. and they ALWAYS have what I need. I go in to get some hooks, crankbaits, weights, etc. and THEY'RE NEVER IN STOCK!!!

For the bean counters it's all about measuring penny profit.

They'd rather sell one pair of running shoes and make a $23.00 profit than four bags of senkos, two pkgs of EWG hooks, and a can of BANG for a $12.00 profit.

They also consider aisle space, # of items to inventory, and dead inventory (all those baits that just sit on the pegs and don't sell because they're not popular or the wrong color)

Sad, but true.

I'm not sure what Academy is doing we have reset half our fishing aisles and the amount of products not going back on the aisles is absolutely crazy, its the worse I have seen. We are down to one row of senkos, only four rows of yum, two rows of frogs, half the zoom. They keep expanding the H2O line up but they are letting the rest go away. All the stores should be setting there new plan-o-grams in fishing right now and you guys will see the decline in lots of the products you use. They may still have great prices but if they don't have the product its hard to like the prices. Hopefully Academy gets back to have a good selection but don't expect to see it this year.

I'm not sure I believe the profit margin you said on the shoes...but anyway.

I buy shoes once a year...I buy hooks and baits once a week.

Plus there are many isles in that store that is wasted space....like offering duck decoys through out the year....

They are doing it the way they do it in New York City. Academy was a family owned business up until a few years ago when they were sold to the private equity firm of Kohlberg, Kravis, and Roberts &Co located in New York City. I would expect things to continue to go down hill at a faster pace.

HasBen, meanwhile the "owners kids" of Academy are sitting on some island on perma vacation!

Way of the future...sell your parents company and retire before you actually worked!

went to Tyler's Gander Mountain this week........ 3 aisles of baits and one of those was all clearance soft plastics. Academy was pretty stripped but it was better than GM.
Gonna have to drive to Dallas now or order online.. This is really gonna suck, I'm not big on waiting for my tackle fix.

Yep, that seems to be the way of family business. The parents are invested in the business emotionally and financially. The kids, a lot of the time, only see the business as a way to cash out as soon as they can. Sad really. I hate to see Academy go that way.

Gander Mountain...even bigger joke! I often wonder why I even walk in the doors!

Every once in awhile they have a decent gun sale....bout it.

The biggest margins in the store are probably candy and soda's at the front of the store...

Gander in CS was AWESOME for overstock sales...

I've got several shimano crucials and falcon lowrider rods thanks to them that I bought for $50 a piece or less...

The Academy by my house is fairly new, within 6 months. And they always have fishing stuff there. They have 12 aisles for fishing and marine equipment. Crossing my fingers that this store doesn't turn out like the rest!

Definitely have noticed. I can get segaur invisx 15lb at academy for $18 and at bass pro it's $23

I haven't notice any change in the Academy that's close to me. But, there's 4 others and I don't know what's happening there.
Oh yeah, that's right, the prices steady go up. I safe most of the complainging for gas/diesel prices. It's what's going to give us more and worser inflation.

I'd have to say the Lufkin academy is pretty solid.
but i try to buy at least half of my stuff from the local bait shop.

Too many people with bogus returns at Academy, probably most of them fishing-related. They probably lose a ton of money on returns for broken fishing rods compared to what they lose on baseball bats or golf clubs, etc. I don't blame them at all for downsizing the fishing department. Too many crook fishermen out there abusing the system for that to be a profitable endeavor.

If you've seen the Academy in Mesquite, you'll know that getting rid of the fishing department wouldn't hurt the business in that store one bit. There's always a thousand people in there and only a few in the fishing area.

I have noticed as well.

Academy 5" Senko's - $6.69

BPS 5" Senko's - $8.29

Point 1 - The store employees will tell you to bring the rod back no questions asked.....so is it really a crooked deal when they employees tell you that.....

Point 2 - We know who lives in Mesquite...

The Academy in NW Houston is doing fine in terms of stock.

The Gander Mountain across the freeway has a new manager and the fishing department is totally rocking! It's never been so well kept and stocked. They do price match Academy but carry a larger variety of baits in terms of manufactures and colors. They also have a nice lodge that the public can use for boy scout and other club meetings. I'm lucky I have both so close.

As far as Bass Pro shops goes they have a wonderful selection but man you gotta pay top dollar for it! $9 Corky's and $8.39 Senkos. OUCH!

The Conroe location is like this(Empty pegs, no hooks, weights), where as The Woodlands Academy is top notch....Bass Pro is over rated IMHO

All the brick and mortars have been consistently going downhill over the last several years... I go to them in an emergency, but when I REALLY want something and I have a couple of days to spare, it's tackle warehouse all the way....

Academy here in Nashville has a reasonably good selection of fishing stock. Their prices on the same product are way better than BPS. It does seem though that Academy is growing their H2O brand at the expense of everything else.

Point 2 - We know who lives in Mesquite... [/quote]

+1

Something else to consider. Academy, BPS, your local grocery store, and every other store in the free world are all adopting Walmart's growth and profit plan which is to essentially cut costs to an unbelievably low operating budget and discount everything as much as possible to be competetive and hope to make up the difference in margin with volume. This philosophy has had an impact on every part of our lives.

In short, blame Walmart.

Ahh yea, I'd be willing to agree with this. I haven't shopp[ed at Wal Mart since 2000 because of this. Race to the bottom. People many times choose against their own best interests in the long run. They can't see past the end of their nose.

But yes , Academy has better prices.

BBT, agreed on both points

Academy in San Angelo has a great selection.

Some of you guys are complaining about a new York owned company that employs Texas workers but will freely buy online from a California company to avoid paying state taxes...

Yea they are pushing the H2O series big time. I mean they are good lures but I started out with power worms and zoom lizards and it seems they are being shadowed by H2O. Buti must say I am anxious to buy some of the Jelly worms.

What I've noticed is that 3/4 of the time I go to Academy to buy a specific brand, specific size, or specific color bait they dont have it, its sold out, or they quit carrying it. 99.9% of the time I walk into Bass Pro Shops and find exactly what I'm looking for with plenty of quantity. I figure the extra $1-$1.50 Bass Pro charges is less than the cost of the diesel I'll burn running from Academy to Academy praying one of em has what I need. The only thing I purchase from Academy on a regular basis is Quicksliver Premium Plus oil and honestly thats because theres a store I drive right by on my way to and from work every day.

The buyers for Academy control everything in the stores. Trust me they are not sportsmen...

Box store 101.... So many people are buying their gear online that it is hurting in-store sales.

Most of us have a store that we prefer to go to for what ever reason...For me, its Cabelas. Cabelas has a price match garuantee for any item so long as it it is not an online only company such as Tackle Warehouse.I am sure that Bass Pro has something similar.

Personally, i try to support my local store. In my own little way, I hope that it will keep a good selection and also generates a little tax revenue for my area.

Went to the little tackle store inside FunNSun in Hurst over the weekend. Sorry, I can't remember the name of the store. If you live in the area, or are willing to make the drive, they carry plenty of unique items. It's a great little store with things on pegs I've not seen in any other store. I don't know what the prices are like. I don't worry much about it. I know exactly where that money goes, so...it's worth the extra dimes. Anyway, if you're tired of BPS and Academy, give them a shot. Lots of unique product.

I always love when Im at acadamy and I am stewing because of all of the above, and some poor shmuck comes up and asks me... sir are you finding everthing you need?.... Boy, they sure dont stick around long.

Amen Brother!!!

Anglers Pro Tackle and they have a good online store with more tackle.

Bob, I know all the buyers very well and they are huge sportsmen. Academy is right in the middle of one of their biggest POG changes I've seen and it will be better than before - which was good. That's why you see the section in disarray. Give it a few weeks and you will be very pleased if you shop there. They just issued their new PO's to their vendors for the new POG, and they are not playing around.... Thanks.

Jerry, what's a POG?

Plan-O-Gram (Isle layout plan)

Now they only have cheap rods, Abu rods, or their own brand.

Seems like Academy is gradually trying to reduce the rods down to All Star and H20. The rest are random.

In the past you could get any Falcon Lowrider model and many Caras.

Great Idea. Do it like Gasbuddy.com to find the cheapest prices.

Academy will blow bps everything...if they carry it it will be cheaper than bps. I was buying a browning o/u shot gun last year and found one at academy. I called bps and cabelas and was advised by both stores that they could not even touch academy's price on firearms. The gun manager at cabelas told me to go to academy if they sold it.....I once asked a manager at bps why their prices were so high. He told me bps was like Disney, bps was more of a resort or destination to some people and they would rather sell to those people...I thanked him for the truth and went to academy.

The last few times i haven't been able to find the hooks or weights that i wanted, and the crankbaits other than H20 were pretty skimpy. I don't have a problem with H20, but there are a few Bombers and other brands that I have too much confidence in to quit buying.

hales tackle in nacogdoches is my main place although the lufkin academy is decent

Have you met any of the buyers??? Doesn't look like it.

Academy does seem to be pushing their brand much harder and I also wish Academy carried more 7' and over rods. I have been shopping at Bass Pro shops more for fishing items since they are just as close to the house as Academy, but I usually have to hit up Academy, Bass Pro, and Gander just to get the things I am looking for.

I need to start ordering baits online, but it is easier for me to keep the impulse shopping in check when shopping online.

I really wish Cabelas would come to Houston!

As an employee we were not allowed to talk to the buyers..

Great spot, glad to hear it's still around. I buy alot from Lufkin Academy and it's always been decent. Noticed is was a little thin last trip, hope its the postivie change coming.

The last three times in Academy (three diff. locations) have absolutely SUCKED! Clueless guys at the reel counter, Zombies for staff and one totally out of touch Manager. I drop $200.00 plus every time I am there, I can do that somewhere else...

No matter which of these two you pick they are both ten times better than gander mountain!

It is getting bad. I have been to a couple different Academy multiple times in the past week and each day it seems to change and less in stock. They appear to be dwindling down to Wal-Mart selection levels soon.

Pretty soon it wont be worth the time to stop in at Academy. I am better off just heading to BPS or order from TW if don't need something that day.

I DEFINITELY agree that Bass Pro is significantly more expensive. It's a true gamble on getting what you need. I go to Bass Pro knowing they'll have just about EVERYTHING I need + the employees there specifically work in the fishing section and are fisherman who can give a rookie like me some advice (even though this forum has helped me leaps and bounds). Unfortunately, the academies here in San Antonio don't have a ton of equipment either.

On another note, since this topic is about prices between the 2, does anyone here get their gear from Walmart? It's alot cheaper than both Academy & Bass Pro, however the selection is limited. It's definitely a good place for leaders, weights, and certain hooks.

Jerry, I went to 3 Academy's (Selma, San Marcos, Perrin Beitel) and those stores no longer carry the Honcho. They have about 5-6 pegs with rattlesnakes and some pegs had maybe 2 - 3bags on them and that is it.
Will your baits no longer be available at Academy?

OK guys, here is what you need to do; if you don't it's your own fault; kinda like voting!!!!

Academy has three options on their main webpage to contact them. You can call them, the number is there, you can write to them the address is there, or you can send a message directly to the corporate customer service. If you want to talk fishing just let them know you want your message to go to someone in the buying department for fishing. It WILL be forwarded.

Now they have jobs just like you do, so if you don't hear from them in what you think is an acceptable amount of time. Send a FOLLOW-UP message via the customer service message link. You will get an answer "if you care enough".

All this talk about KKR buying out Academy and the culture changing is just that "talk"! The same people are still working at Academy, KKR likes the way Academy does business or they wouldn't have "invested" in the company.

The Plan-O-Gram (POG) explaination is spot-on. Is it a little late in "our" fishing season to be setting a POG for fishing; I think it is, but I don't know the issues associated with buying goods from whomever or whereever. Customs can be an issue, purchasing budgets can be an issue....whatever. Point is Academy has not gone away from what they do best.

Use some patience and USE the Customer Service Contact provided. If you don't or haven't, you haven't voted!!!

I haven't noticed any inventory changes in the local Academy. They still have better prices than BPS. Walmart has become almost irrelevant when it comes to fishing tackle.

Academy is not getting out of the fishing (or hunting) business. It is the time of year for the product reset so many stores have pulled stock off to reconfigure the pegs, etc. Depending on the store and dept. manager this could could go smoothly or be chaos for weeks. My local store is about done with it and they added more Zoom, Havoc, and Big Bite plastics, more Pradco, the new Ike Rapala DT's, War Eagle spinnerbaits they haven't had in a year, etc. There are new guns coming in, including Core and Red Jacket AR's, the new Ruger 10/22 Takedown and some new handguns and ammo. It appears they are expanding the area, not cutting back.

Academy has many more locations and they definitely have lower prices. Sure, BPS has a wider selection, but most of it is stuff I don't buy. Academy has all your necessities. I can't remember a time I bought something at Bass Pro that I couldn't get at Academy for a cheaper price.

One factor is they each have their own brands. BPS has some low quality hard baits and average soft plastics. They also have pretty good rods and reels, which I have used with success.

Academy has their H2O Express brand. I love the H2O hard baits, especially their cranks. They are almost all $3.99. All their hard baits are fantastic. They too carry their own line of rods and reels. I have not had the pleasure to use one of their rods, but they sure do look good. I have 4 H2O Mettles and they perform outstandingly.

I always make my normal Thursday trip to Academy every week and go crazy on purchasing stuff. I sometimes will make the trip to BPS on rare occasions just for a few things I have noted were not at Academy, but Academy normally does have something similar. Academy has a smaller supply, but it is a supply of great quality and for a cheaper price.

On a side note: Has anyone had problems when browsing fishing stuff in BPS with that dim light? In the Garland BPS I always grab a basket and take a bunch of stuff into a different part of the store so I can actually look at it carefully. It makes it difficult to just make a quick trip. I can't even tell the difference between junebug and green-pumpkin in that light.

Last time I was in Academy with a a friend to help him get his first setup we had a bad experience. The guy in the sporting section was telling him a Shimano Citica was not a good reel. Never seem someone try to talk someone out of something. He didn't want to spend a lot of money on his first setup and the Citica was in his price range. This dumb a$& sounded like an idiot and couldn't back up what he was saying. If your going to bash a reel manufacturer, you better have used it and other brands to know the difference.

My store was mentioned a couple times in the thread so I thought I would chime in.

Being a small business owner, and relying on folks like you for our success, I felt it necessary to speak my mind. I've always been a fan of private business. When I recently had some work done on my house, it was my customers who did the work. Tile, plumbing, floors, counter tops, and painting. All those people where folks who shop in my store and I felt obligated to shop with them.

I didn't question the price they quoted. I expected them to make a profit, and I felt they were reasonable. When they shop with me they are the same way.

We operate under a simple principle at our store. Treat people fair. Make a fair profit. And try to have the best selection we can.

I will never be a BPS, nor would I want to. Being so would mean I would have to change that philosophy. Once you reach that size the business controls you, you don't control it. Decisions get made by the business, which takes customers out of the equation. It becomes about squeezing another dime profit out of a dollar.

The only way we as anglers will change the world is to support your locally owned businesses. All of the private owners are in it because they love it. They care about their customers.

Yeah, sometimes I'm a dime more on something, sometimes I'm a dollar less (Seagur ). The only way the independent dealers will survive is if you support them. And believe me we get graded on our performance every day. We get beat up by the suppliers too. We don't buy as much as BPS, so we pay more. It's hard to charge more though. We all know the price of of a bag of plastics. So our profit gets squeezed, making it harder to pay the overhead.

Don't get me wrong....I love the challenge, and I absolutely love working with the customers to get them what they want.

I remember when I was a kid, the local tackle and sporting goods stores dominated. The place you hung out. Told fishing and hunting stories. Got the latest gossip.

We can have those days back, but it takes the anglers supporting their favorite independent dealer. If we do maybe we can hang on to what we enjoy. If not we will all be shopping at Walmart for whatever they decide they want to carry.

Thanks for listening to my rant. Thank you for being a customer, and please find a local dealer in your area to shop with.

Update- Went to the Conroe location yesterday morning and the "POG" was in effect. I've noticed that the product is pegged with more space between each other, not crammed as previously. The selection was about the same as usual though. Lacking Grande Bass and LFT stuff, very limited selection.

i stopped wasting gas and shop online better prices and selection.

Prefer BP to Academy and Gander just because of the much larger selection but I have to drive 1.5 hours to get there so it ends up cheaper at Academy or online. Where Im at we have a Gander and Academy right next to eachother and it funny because I can always start at Gander and get certain things but then Ill pick the stuff I know Academy has and go right next door because it a dollar and a half cheaper

It sure was nicer when Smitty's in Oak Cliff was in business. They had everything you needed and if they didn't they would get it for you and stock it if demand required it. I'm going to have to try the tackle store at Fun-n-Sun in Hurst. Sounds like it may be closer to the way Smitty's use to be.

Yes, they have a large selection of H20 stuff, but they are always out of the best selling (and working) baits, and they have tons of the baits no one is buying. Also, there doesn't seem to be any method to how the have the baits placed on the shelf. How about all the 1.5 square bills together. All the 2.5's together and so on. It should not be that hard.

I don't know how Smitty's was, but we are a true tackle shop. Stop by and check us out. We are located inside Fun N Sun.

In sherman we have a Gander Mountain and Academy, I think Academy has more and some better stuff.
Only thing better at GM is rod selection.
As far as BPS goes, i think im going there over academy.

AMEN. If you know what you want, you save time, gas, and frustration. I don't know that you always save money with the postage costs, but it sure is the easy way to get what you want.

I love Academy. I've got a good one near me I guess. I haven't had the supply issues like some have discussed. But rule #1 at Academy is to ignore the help. They're high school kids or brain dead rejects for the most part. Lets face it, those are minimum wage jobs and you get what you pay for. You might find the occasional shining star, but they're rare. Just educate yourself before you go.