Tackle Trade World - March 2024

FEATURE
Gone Fishing
WHY GONE FISHING
IS A NAME TO TRUST
Johnny Onslow, the managing director of Kenyan fly tying firm Gone Fishing Limited,
explains why it is trusted worldwide to deliver the best fishing flies time after time.
The Gone Fishing family
Just over 20 years ago, I was mulling
plans with a great friend with
whom I had grown up here in
Kenya.
We had accompanied each other
on many fishing expeditions from a
young age, ranging from the wild forest
trout streams of Kenya at high altitude,
dodging the odd elephant and buffalo, to
the deserts of Lake Turkana in the north
of Kenya in search of 100lb-plus Nile
perch and on to the coast looking for
sailfish and marlin... all on fly (or at least
most of the time!).
I had just retired as the principal of a
school in Nairobi and was casting about
for ideas as I completed an MBA. Why
not export fishing flies, my friend had
suggested – a crazy idea in my mind, as
my ability to tie flies is laughable even to
this day.
This casual comment and a series of
coincidences led to the foundation of
Gone Fishing, which now employs about
100 people and exports flies all over the
world.
I am glad to say that every tyer has
44 www.tackletradeworld.com
infinitely
more skill
at the bench
than I do.
My task is to
ensure they
receive the
support and
resources to tie flies so that our customers
can confidently compare our flies with
the best commercially tied flies from
anywhere in the world and, perhaps just
as importantly, get a sense of real value
for money.
FRIENDLY AND PROFESSIONAL
The fact that Gone Fishing has
developed a network of wonderfully
loyal customers, some of whom order
tens of thousands of dozens a year and
some only about 100 dozen, but of
their own bespoke and very demanding
specifications, speaks for itself.
The hallmark of doing business with
Gone Fishing has always been one of
open, friendly, and quick response. We
have been complimented on:
• Our ability to meet timelines.
• The consistent high quality of our flies,
order after order.
• Straightforward approach to handling
the occasional quality issues that do
occur and are inevitable with a totally
manual process.
• Pleasant and quick communication.
• Ability to supply top-up orders at short
notice.
Twenty years on, Gone Fishing is still
developing and is always keen to help
both those in wholesale and retail develop
their sales and range of patterns. We
would love to hear from you.
GONE FISHING
jeonslow@fishingfliesandlures.com
flies@fishingfliesandlures.com