Kevin VanDam

KVD, Strike King And Sexy Sell

February 26, 2008
(fishpaa.com, February 26, 2008)

No angler brings more value to his sponsors than PAA board member Kevin VanDam. If that was ever in doubt, Strike King’s Chris Brown will set you straight:

Even though KVD didn’t win the 2007 BASS Angler of the Year title, as far as Strike King is concerned his season was all-world. His two key tour wins both came on a new lure, painted a color that Kevin invented himself, the notorious “Sexy Shad.”

“That had a huge value for us,” Brown said. “Not just the two wins, but all the mentions. Sales of the crankbait just skyrocketed. If I get 15 calls in a day, then 10 want to know where they can get the Sexy Shad.”

Even if anglers don’t know what it is, the name sticks in their head and piques their interest. “I get a lot of calls from folks who don’t know what it is,” he added.

It was a perfect storm of events that propelled it to record setting sales numbers. “Kevin’s wins, plus all the press, definitely helped. Then there’s the fact that it works coast to coast.” Unlike some tackle manufacturers, who either intentionally or inadvertently create a situation of scarcity, Strike King was ready to have them on the marking while the iron was hot. “We made them as fast as we could and got them to the market as soon as we could.”

Could another angler generate the same level of sales as KVD?

“Probably not. Kevin is in a class by himself,” Brown said. But the lesson to be learned is that tournament success drives the bass tackle market, and proper branding, personalization and marketing savvy need to be employed to give baits a “character” and “profile” translate the pros’ success to that of the everyday angler.

Even Brown, a seasoned veteran of the tackle wars, admitted that he “learned a whole lot from the past year.”

http://www.fishpaa.com/news/article/kvd_strike_king_and_sexy_sell/

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