Rapala and MarCum Technologies Form Strategic Alli

Rapala buys Marcum …. This isn’t going to end well ….

Rapala, the world’s favorite fishing lure and Versa Electronics, the owner of MarCum Technologies and Showdown brands, industry-leading fishing sonar and underwater viewing systems, have formed a strategic manufacturing and exclusive distribution partnership.

Under the agreement, the two well-known Minnesota-based companies, Rapala and Marcum, will combine forces in a shoulder to shoulder partnership. Marcum is a respected manufacturer of world class fishing electronics and is known for their innovation and high quality products. Rapala is the world leader in sales, marketing and distribution of leading fishing brands.

In the partnership, Marcum will maintain all responsibility for product development, production and customer service. Rapala will take over all sales, marketing and distribution, effective April 2, 2012.

“MarCum’s products are cutting edge and of outstanding quality, in a class of their own,” said Tom Mackin, president of Rapala USA. “We’re excited to provide anglers with top-of-the-line technology products for both open water and ice fishing. Together, we will become an unbeatable resource for our customers in the trade and for anglers around the world.”

“Rapala products and the Rapala brand are truly unmatched,” said Versa CEO, Kevin Johnsrud. “We are thrilled to combine efforts and provide anglers with a product offering that is unrivaled.”

MarCum Technologies – the fastest-growing company in sonar technology – is devoted to offering angling innovations including sonar flashers and digital fish finders, underwater cameras and more. With products made primarily in the USA, its latest offering, the LX-7 Sonar System, is a radically groundbreaking system that features over a decade of advanced sonar design, with multiple industry-exclusive features.

Rapala was unofficially founded in 1936 when Lauri Rapala invented the Rapala fishing lure. Rapala has grown from humble beginnings to become a market leader in the fishing tackle industry.

The Rapala brand’s functionality and high quality are known by fishermen around the world. Rapala maintains its strict standards of craftsmanship while delivering its fishing products to anglers in more than 130 countries.

Versa Electronics, in operation for over 50 years, acquired the MarCum and Showdown brands in 2009. Versa has been responsible for the manufacture of MarCum products since 2006, and with the introduction of the latest digital sonar product, has demonstrated its commitment to continuing innovation and growth in fishing electronics.

For more information on Rapala, please visit http://www.rapala.com or http://www.facebook.com/RapalaUSA, and for more information on MarCum Technologies, please visit http://www.marcumtech.com, showdownfishfinder.com, or http://www.facebook.com/marcumtech.

http://rapala.createsend1.com/t/ViewEmail/y/BC37C53D46864274/1F9952AD528C6A0F81176E9AA71FFAE9

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Rapala buys Marcum …. This isn’t going to end well

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Rapala DID NOT buy MarCum.

Rapala assumes responsibilities for sales, marketing and distribution.

Direct quote from the presser >>> “In the partnership, Marcum will maintain all responsibility for product development, production and customer service. Rapala will take over all sales, marketing and distribution, effective April 2, 2012.”

I understand what the Presser says… Rapala ain’t no Rep Group though…..

I hope it works out well…

The worst thing I could say about Rapala is that some of their baits are expensive. But their baits are awesome, so you get what you pay for. MarCum is pretty much the same thing — my LX-5 was expensive, but well worth the money. The LX-7 is even more expensive, but I understand it’s even better yet.

Bottom line: If Rapala were to buy MarCum, I wouldn’t have a complaint. They’re two good companies.

Regardless, Rapala didn’t buy MarCum. So what was the point here?

While its probay big news for Marcum, it really isn’t big news for those of us that know the Marcum product already. The only thing that can happen here is that Marcum has a better opportunity to expand their sales and marketing, and that’s it…

Local company growth is a good thing!

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I understand what the Presser says… Rapala ain’t no Rep Group though…..

I hope it works out well…

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James is correct… Rapala assumes responsibilities for sales, marketing and distribution for many tackle companies… Sufix line, Terminator, VMC, Storm, Luhr Jensen and Blue Fox (to name a few)while some of the components are shared, Rapala doesn’t manufacture those products directly.
I’m sure Marcum will continue to produce an excellent product while enjoying a much broader for sales, marketing and distribution base in the future.

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I understand what the Presser says… Rapala ain’t no Rep Group though…..

I hope it works out well…

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James is correct… Rapala assumes responsibilities for sales, marketing and distribution for many tackle companies… Sufix line, Terminator, VMC, Storm, Luhr Jensen and Blue Fox (to name a few)while some of the components are shared, Rapala doesn’t manufacture those products directly.
I’m sure Marcum will continue to produce an excellent product while enjoying a much broader for sales, marketing and distribution base in the future.

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If you look at the Bottom of Rapala’s site it says under the company’s you mentioned in your post ” Respected Rapala Brands” Just say’in.

IF–Look at it this way, if sales and marketing are the lifeblood of any commercial venture, they why would you turn these functions over to an outside company? If a company abdicates its revenue generation and its voice and public image, it IS taking the lesser side of whatever the corporate realtionship is called, regardless of the attached spin. It doesn’t matter how they twist it, like you, I too think that Marcum just became part of Rapala…not that that’s a bad thing.

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IF–Look at it this way, if sales and marketing are the lifeblood of any commercial venture, they why would you turn these functions over to an outside company?

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MarCum is retaining its full sales and marketing staff to guide Rapalas efforts. Turn over? Hardly.

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IF–Look at it this way, if sales and marketing are the lifeblood of any commercial venture, they why would you turn these functions over to an outside company?

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MarCum is retaining its full sales and marketing staff to guide Rapalas efforts. Turn over? Hardly.

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James–It doesn’t matter, if the bulk of the sales efforts and relationships to the customers reside (or evolve to that over time which is the case when leadership and boots on the ground are split) predominately outside of an organization, that too is where the “stroke” ultimately resides.

FWIW, I actually think this merger (call it whatever you will) will probably be a good move for Marcum given their seemingly manufacturing focus and background and from what little I know or perceive of them. When one is not as strong in one or more functional areas, a method of growth is to find a suitable merger/acquisition/angel partner, otherwise why do it? Doing so obviously comes at a loss of control if the new party/functions are not brought in-house over time.

Personally, and in a generic situation, if I were at the helm, I would put manufacturing higher on the to-be outsourced list than sales and marketing, but S&M (okay, that was just a little attempt at humor) is my background. All are obviously important functions but I would have more comfort knowing that I owed the customer relationships, and ultimately my revenue stream, going forward. If the organizations are truly independent going forward as you say, Rapala would certainly be in the catbird seat if something should fracture the Marcum/Rapala relationship. Not a position that I would want to be in if I were Marcum.

Just my two cents for whatever inflation/deflation is valuing it these days.

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IF–Look at it this way, if sales and marketing are the lifeblood of any commercial venture, they why would you turn these functions over to an outside company?

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MarCum is retaining its full sales and marketing staff to guide Rapalas efforts. Turn over? Hardly.

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But you stated in your first post …

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Rapala replaces Slater Rep. group and assumes responsibilities for sales, marketing and distribution.

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The way I see it ..after April 2 Marcum will become a “Brand” of Rapala …

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The biggest news to come out of this deal is probably Wollner finally upgrading his flashers.

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I will be throwing away the rock and string! Started fishing the MarCum stuff in December and I love it!