Alvey Reel at Courier Mail
Dec 27, 2015 6:24:08 GMT 10
Post by Mauricio on Dec 27, 2015 6:24:08 GMT 10
Queensland Business Monthly: Alvey reels in the years as iconic manufacturer keeps anglers hooked
Bruce Alvey, chief executive of Alvey Reels, that has been manufacturing in Brisbane since 1910. Picture: Jono Searle.
IT’S a Queensland icon up there with Fourex, Bundaberg Rum and the Ekka. Yet but for fate the famous Alvey fishing reel may never have been created. When Charles Alvey stepped off the boat from England in 1910, he planned to start a business manufacturing pearl buttons. Unfortunately, his business partner died, leaving him without any funds for the new venture.
After various odd jobs including fixing bicycles, he started making fishing reels with a primitive treadle lathe, betting the Sunshine State would never be short of anglers.
He was right. Almost a century later, the Alvey family is still making fishing reels, albeit with new technology and materials. The Queensland National Trust has listed Alvey as an icon of the state along with the Fourex man and the Ekka. Operating from a small workshop at St Lucia, Charles originally produced about 20 reels a week and would catch the tram into Brisbane to deliver them to the warehouse.
Charles bought his son Ken into the business in the 1920s as custom grew. Ken, a qualified pattern maker and draftsman, helped the business ramp up production and marketing efforts.
When Charles dies in 1945 aged 80, his grandson Jack joined the company. Bruce and Glenn Alvey, the great grandsons of Charles, now run the family firm from a factory at Carole Park, shipping the reels around Australia and the world. Some of the original equipment used in Charles Alvey’s day is still used in the factory, which employs 26 people.
Bruce Alvey notes that the company is so old that its original advertising slogan ‘An Alvey reel fills the creel’ is not readily understood today by anglers. A creel is a wicker basket used by anglers to hold fish.
Despite its iconic status, times have become increasingly tough for Alvey. It is facing a variety of headwinds including cheap imports from Asia, rising manufacturing costs, the economic downturn and restrictions on recreational fishing.
This is probably the toughest time we have ever experienced as we face the rising costs of manufacturing, labour and rates,” Alvey says.
Alvey credits the longevity of the family-run company to the quality of its products, with everything from the smallest nut to the largest component still manufactured in house. The design of fishing reels has not changed as much as the materials. The original Alvey reels were made of timber rather than steel or plastic.
But he notes that the obsession with quality may also have come back to haunt the company. Unlike most modern products, Alvey reels tend not to have an in-built obsolescence.
“We have probably made our reels too well over the years,” Alvey says. “We have people using the same reel that their grandfather used. We really want them to buy a new one.”
He says the retail market for fishing equipment is increasingly being dominated by “big box” retailers and this posed challenges for small manufacturers like Alvey.
“We pride ourselves on our products being made in Australia but some in the industry have shifted overseas,” he says. “The retailers like the cheaper imports because they can mark them up.”
The economic downturn also meant people were reluctant to splash out on a top of the range Alvey Reel for $500.
He says Queensland’s $1 billion recreational fishing industry still played a major role in the local economy, with an estimated 650,000 anglers in the state.
But the industry was facing its own challenges, the chief being government restrictions on where people can legally fish.
“Twenty years ago, you could go fishing where you liked,” Mr Alvey said. “Now areas such as marine parks are closed and you can get a massive fine (for fishing in them).”
Alvey says that despite tough times the company remains committed to manufacturing in Queensland.
Resilience in fact has been a byword of the family for generations. During World War II, when materials were not available for fishing reels, the Alveys started making aircraft parts, gun switch boxes and steering boxes for landing barges.
“The family is very proud we have been through some tough times and are still here,” he notes. “We just hope the economy will improve in the near future.”
link
Bruce Alvey, chief executive of Alvey Reels, that has been manufacturing in Brisbane since 1910. Picture: Jono Searle.
IT’S a Queensland icon up there with Fourex, Bundaberg Rum and the Ekka. Yet but for fate the famous Alvey fishing reel may never have been created. When Charles Alvey stepped off the boat from England in 1910, he planned to start a business manufacturing pearl buttons. Unfortunately, his business partner died, leaving him without any funds for the new venture.
After various odd jobs including fixing bicycles, he started making fishing reels with a primitive treadle lathe, betting the Sunshine State would never be short of anglers.
He was right. Almost a century later, the Alvey family is still making fishing reels, albeit with new technology and materials. The Queensland National Trust has listed Alvey as an icon of the state along with the Fourex man and the Ekka. Operating from a small workshop at St Lucia, Charles originally produced about 20 reels a week and would catch the tram into Brisbane to deliver them to the warehouse.
Charles bought his son Ken into the business in the 1920s as custom grew. Ken, a qualified pattern maker and draftsman, helped the business ramp up production and marketing efforts.
When Charles dies in 1945 aged 80, his grandson Jack joined the company. Bruce and Glenn Alvey, the great grandsons of Charles, now run the family firm from a factory at Carole Park, shipping the reels around Australia and the world. Some of the original equipment used in Charles Alvey’s day is still used in the factory, which employs 26 people.
Bruce Alvey notes that the company is so old that its original advertising slogan ‘An Alvey reel fills the creel’ is not readily understood today by anglers. A creel is a wicker basket used by anglers to hold fish.
Despite its iconic status, times have become increasingly tough for Alvey. It is facing a variety of headwinds including cheap imports from Asia, rising manufacturing costs, the economic downturn and restrictions on recreational fishing.
This is probably the toughest time we have ever experienced as we face the rising costs of manufacturing, labour and rates,” Alvey says.
Alvey credits the longevity of the family-run company to the quality of its products, with everything from the smallest nut to the largest component still manufactured in house. The design of fishing reels has not changed as much as the materials. The original Alvey reels were made of timber rather than steel or plastic.
But he notes that the obsession with quality may also have come back to haunt the company. Unlike most modern products, Alvey reels tend not to have an in-built obsolescence.
“We have probably made our reels too well over the years,” Alvey says. “We have people using the same reel that their grandfather used. We really want them to buy a new one.”
He says the retail market for fishing equipment is increasingly being dominated by “big box” retailers and this posed challenges for small manufacturers like Alvey.
“We pride ourselves on our products being made in Australia but some in the industry have shifted overseas,” he says. “The retailers like the cheaper imports because they can mark them up.”
The economic downturn also meant people were reluctant to splash out on a top of the range Alvey Reel for $500.
He says Queensland’s $1 billion recreational fishing industry still played a major role in the local economy, with an estimated 650,000 anglers in the state.
But the industry was facing its own challenges, the chief being government restrictions on where people can legally fish.
“Twenty years ago, you could go fishing where you liked,” Mr Alvey said. “Now areas such as marine parks are closed and you can get a massive fine (for fishing in them).”
Alvey says that despite tough times the company remains committed to manufacturing in Queensland.
Resilience in fact has been a byword of the family for generations. During World War II, when materials were not available for fishing reels, the Alveys started making aircraft parts, gun switch boxes and steering boxes for landing barges.
“The family is very proud we have been through some tough times and are still here,” he notes. “We just hope the economy will improve in the near future.”
link
