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Megabait going out of business

6184 Views 29 Replies 14 Participants Last post by  snapper slapper lures
From Charkbait's website

We have some sad news for anglers, MegaBait is going away. Due to an infringement lawsuit from a "competitor" they have decided it's in their best interest to close up and quite paying attorney fees. It is their council's opinion that they'd win the lawsuit, but the financial cost of litigation has been too much for them to absorb any longer. So, the product that's in our inventory is all that is available. If you've been a fan of the SeaBoz trolling lures, the Tuna Candy tuna lures and the MegaBait iron, now is the time to jump on the stock while it's still available. When it's gone, it's gone.

That Sux...
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I hate that. My son Colin caught his State Record Spiney Cheek Scorpion Fish on a MegaBait jig. He also caught a nice ling on one of them. Their sardine pattern jigs were really good jigs.

LJ93
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Too many lawyers....not enough lure companies for us tackle ho's. What a pity!
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megabaits makes some awesome trolling lures that are like the braid marrauders at less than 1/2 the price......rick
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Ordered some more SeaBoz 10 inchers last night from Charkbait. They're on the Weekly Specials list, at least until tomorrow.
do you know why a shark won't eat a lawyer? professional courtesy.
One less knockoff on the market

Personally, I think they are getting what they deserve. They have came in the market and were directly copying alot of american company's lures especially Dennis Braid. Mr. Braid has worked very hard for more than 25 years promoting his products for these guys across the pond to directly copy him and sell for half the price. There are very few factories over there that have morals. It is bad enough that they steal everyones product line and sell it on the pacific rim market and most of the time you would never know. I know they had some good products but we cannot keep letting these factories think they can just take some ones original design and copy and sell it for there own. AA++ for Mr. Braid for standing his ground and fighting back. Hopefully this will send a message to the others that are doing the same thing. We have had to stop 2 chinese factories already from stealing our designs in the last 2 years.
Congrats to Mr Braid we are behind you. Just my thoughts, Capt Woody
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We had dinner with Mr Braid this Jan at the Henry's show and he was telling us about these guys. They were also at the show boldly promoting there knockoff products.Hopefully this will send out a message to the others doing the same overseas and here in the United States.That is how we know about this issue. I have seen a few here tring to copy the others products.Try to find Tsunami in academy now. They pulled the whole product line out of all the academy's for selling someones product without there permission or paying them for it and they put there own lable on it. This is not the first time we have heard of them doing this. They tried to sell our lures from our old manufacturer who is not supposed to sell to anyone else because we are OEM. They were offering our lures in a Tsunami package to academy. Thank goodness the buyer at academy told them that is wrong and they would only buy our original products. We approached Tsunami about this issue and resolved the issue. Thank goodness there are buyers like the academy ones that still do the right thing. Capt Woody
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Megabaits are awesome lures for the price.
Knockoffs

Supporting people that are directly coping others is not right no matter how much money you are saving. There are alot of hidden costs and taxes in making lures that most people do not realize. You would not like one of these factories to copy one of your products after all of your hard earned money and time has went into promoting and selling your product.Then they sell the same thing for half the price. I think you and every one else on this board would try to keep people from suporting those companys . Thanks for listening, Woody
Valkyrie said:
Megabaits are awesome lures for the price.
Capt. Woody,

With all due respect, the picture that you are painting is very distorted. How many American lure companies are buying their lures from these Asian factories and selling them as their own designs? Case in point, Shimano introduced the Butterfly Jigs to the U.S. market with much great success. These jigs have been made for the Asian markets for years and essentially Shimano repackaged them and called them their own. Now with their success, Williams, Braid, and others have run over to Asia to find jigs that they can market as their own. These same people will then complain when the Asian factory that is making the lure sells to Bass Pro Shops or Cabelas under those stores' own brand or the Asian company begins to market its own products in the U.S.

I understand your frustration because you have a good product that you have patented, so you own the design, but in 99% of these "infringements" there is no patent involved. In most cases, the American companies have strictly become marketing fronts for the Asian manufacturers. If these American companies want to resolve this issue, they need to manufacture their own products, in their own factories here in America.
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SteveB said:
Capt. Woody,

If these American companies want to resolve this issue, they need to manufacture their own products, in their own factories here in America.
It would not hurt my feelings at all if I was not put in the position ever again to have to buy any products sold by US companies made in China. IMO it's a sad state of affairs when those in our country have to have "chinese factories" build their products. Wouldn't it be nice if US dollars could be kept in the US.

Have had first hand experience with a jig I make being outsourced to a factory in China.

Funny thing ??? -- Recently when I contacted a local company about a problem occurring with their product made in a chinese factory one of the comments about the cause of the problem was the quality control in chinese factories. Jay
Yea good idea but the price of materials in the usa and the shotty work from the american factories have forced most of us to have them made overseas. The chain stores and the public will not pay the price a company would have to charge for having products made in the USA. Most of companys that are claiming to make them here are having them made over there and either packageing or having something small added to lure here to get over on the made in america thing.. Believe me I know there are a bunch of generic lures that anyone can make. Take our cedar plugs for example. They have been around for tons of years and anyone can make them. My problem is when they take something that is specifically made for 1 company only and sell the item as there own in there package. It is not only the guys overseas there are a bunch of scum bags here tring to sell other peoples product as there own.There is plenty of room for everyone in the business as long as they are playing right. Just because there is not a patient on something does not mean you can copy the design. Usually the items are covered by copywrites and trademarks. Also that would be a trade dress issue which is another way of getting the copying party to stop knocking you off. Mega bait had some great baits but I guess they did not have enough originals to stay in business.All I know is when they were very stand offish in claiming all of there product line as originals and there own even though we all know alot of there stuff if exact copys of Braid products.Thanks for listening , Woody
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Also all the american companys are getting the new products at the Big chinese show in feb of every year. Actually everyone from all over the world goes to that show. That is all fair game. Woody
The quality control is about 5% or more but you have to take that out of your profit. It is not like you can send a shipment back to them. We tried to have them made here and almost went out of business. Between the high prices on materials ,outrageous trucking cost and all import,customs taxes there is not much left. We truely only make a little over a dollar per lure after the smoke clears. The price we were paying to have them made here is the price we have to sell wholesale so the chain stores to have enough mark up to resell them.I do not like out sourcing but it is either sub it out or go out of business and we have way to much time and money to quit now. I can say though that when we pick up lures at the port you would be amaized at the thousand of warehouses and shipping and workers running them I think with modern machines now the american factories would employ alot less people due to automated factories.
Woody
Braid and Yozuri both make what is essentially the MegaBait SeaBoz. There are a couple of other brands that are also making similar lures but they are not made as well. I don't see any difference in this case and the cedar plug analogy. I think the loser here is the fisherman. I suspect Braid's lures are made down the street in China from the MegaBait production.
The difference is that braid and yozuri have had them out for years. Mega bait is relatively new. I only remember seeing them at the ICAST the past few years and that is the premier show for the world. But you are right about being right down the street. It is a very small world in the manufacturing business and alot of the same factories make alot of the same lures for different companys. I know the factory that makes snapper slappers also make alot of braids products.Woody
I have both the mega bait & braid marauder - very similar.. If they(mega bait) can turn a profit selling the mega bait for $20 - Braid must be killing it selling them for $35.. I can see a few dollars diff but not $15.. I'll be sad to see them go. Capt. Woody, you have a reasonably priced lure that I'll continue to use and buy...but $35 dollars or an injected molded diving plug is bit over the top IMHO.
Thanks for the support. We are just glad they stayed off us. That is why we are making our new jet heads for 2007 alot cheaper than the ones on the market now. We do think the price of trolling lures has gotten crazy.We are willing to make very little per lure in hopes of selling big volume. Hopefully everyone will be happy with pricing and it is our own design . We are all for more reasonably priced fishing lures so you can be able to have more lures for same price.Capt Woody
Ono Loco said:
I have both the mega bait & braid marauder - very similar.. If they(mega bait) can turn a profit selling the mega bait for $20 - Braid must be killing it selling them for $35.. I can see a few dollars diff but not $15.. I'll be sad to see them go. Capt. Woody, you have a reasonably priced lure that I'll continue to use and buy...but $35 dollars or an injected molded diving plug is bit over the top IMHO.
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There is a reason I like live bait. You never no where the imitators of live bait realy come from.
But, If you have to use a lure might as well go with a good one.

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