One-on-one with Quantum's VP of Marketing, Bob Bagby (continued)

JIP: Can you offer us any insight about what we can expect to see at the upcoming ICAST.

Bagby: I am keeping ICAST a secret, but as always we will have a number of new products for both the recreational angler and the avid angler. And as always, there will be some technology that is new to the fishing industry.

Here's a nice Brown trout caught on Quantum spinning gear

JIP: We have noticed Quantum is very involved with pro anglers on the tour, and you have a very impressive pro staff that includes some of the biggest names in the business, like Kevin Van Dam. What role do they play in the product development, if any?

Bagby: Our guys are involved in the whole process. Not only do they represent us, we rely heavily on their input in how our products perform and any upcoming trends. We have a formal meeting every year as well as attend tournaments to see them frequently. Each of the marketing guys has a close personal relationship with them and there are frequent phone calls. They were responsible for identifying the need for faster retrieves and the result was the Tour Edition Burner. Most of them were involved in developing their own rod actions in the new Tour Edition PT Signature Series. We truly let them develop and spec their own rods and we must have built hundreds of samples before we got them dialed in and everyone thought each rod was perfect.

A nice Red landed on Quantum light tackle

JIP: In 2005 we saw a significant Quantum push into saltwater, which is traditionally a challenging segment to play in because of brand loyalty, stricter requirements placed on reel durability, etc.. Has the introduction of your new saltwater products been successful?

Bagby: We have almost surprised ourselves at how well our products have been received and the amount of buzz created around Quantum saltwater products. It just reinforces to us that if you do your homework in understanding the market and build the right product you can earn your way into a market. We definitely look at it that way; we are earning our way in by doing the right thing.

Bob Bagby plays tug-o-war with a huge sturgeon

JIP: You really started something with your distinctive titanium vacuum deposition coating on your PT reels, and not only does our staff like them but we get many positive comments about the unique finish from our readers too. Can you tell us how you came up with the design, and is it something that we can expect to see more of in future products?

Bagby: We were looking at various coatings and materials that could help in protecting our PT products and improve the performance. We were looking at the titanium coating because it is very durable and corrosion resistant. However, we were nervous about the colors thinking that many macho anglers would not like a reel with pink and purple in the coloration. Ironically, we had a pro staff meeting and had this reel in the industrial design area. Some of the guys saw it and insisted that we introduce it stating it was the coolest thing they had ever seen. They were right, and it has become one of our best selling spinning reels. You will definitely see us focus on innovative materials and finishes in the future. The Tour Edition blue finish is another type of titanium coating and our innovative Saltgard finish on our PT saltwater line-up features six different layers of corrosion protection.

Using a Quantum Saltwater Cabo PT trolling reel, Bob was able to land this huge white sturgeon that weighed over 200 pounds

JIP: In closing is there anything else you would like to say to TackleTour readers?

Bagby: In closing, let me assure the readers that we are firmly committed to building the finest, most innovative fishing products that we possibly can. We continue to invest more each year into product development and will be introducing a steady stream of new products in all our brands for recreational to avid anglers, salt to fresh. Also expect innovation in particular specie markets like the Zebco Slabseeker line which has taken the panfish market by storm. We listen to the market and try to stay current with trends so if any of the readers have a suggestion of how we can improve or make a product better just drop us a line.

TackleTour would like to sincerely thank Bob Bagby for sitting down with us and answering questions for our readers during our one-on-one session.