Fishing Charter Business

Knowing your expenses is critical not only to making a profit but also, to make sure you avoid financial trouble. It is easy to dream of doing something you love and how easy it is to build a business out of that dream. I mean you are a great fisherman, right? Well, if you are not business savvy, being a great fisherman may not make it in the charter business. Here are some expenses you need to know: boat payments (if you own your boat you are ahead of the game!), boat and liability insurance, boat maintenance, if you dock your boat, slip payment, rod and reel upkeep and fishing tackle. Don’t forget advertising. Website(s), magazine and other print media, business cards, brochures all add to [...]

As I stated in PART 1, the charter fishing business is more about entertainment than catching fish. If you are new to the business, you may have difficulty believing that: but it is true. Suppose you are running a trip and for some reason, any reason, your clients are not catching much and sometimes nothing. If you are a good conversationalist, you can still save the day. Tell some of your fish stories, ask about their work or interest; anything to get them talking about something in which they are interested. Open conversation helps pass the slow times and makes the trip more enjoyable. All right, you have your boat, you have your captain’s license, and you have your insurance. Now you need your fishing gear. [...]

My name is Capt. Rick Bennett, Ret. After 25 years as a banker, where I ended up my career in Wilmington, NC, I decided to pursue my lifelong passion: FISHING! I had a 17’ skiff and I thought I had the fishing knowledge to make it work. I quickly found that catching fish was just part of the “business”. As my new career progressed, the first thing I learned was that I was in the entertainment business and that fishing/catching was a sideline; important yes but a sideline none the less. More about that later. Over the next twenty-two years I have gone through six boats; thousands of charters; different advertising methods; and a close relationship with a highly qualified CPA firm. The net result was [...]