A Short Background Connected With Rapala Fishing Lures

There are numerous manufacturers of fishing equipment, and they produce everything you may need in the branch from lures, hooks, and rods to beginner fly fishing rods. Among the oldest companies in this business there are Heddon and Rapala. And the history of the Rapala company is told by some of the oldest items they produce such as the Rapala fishing lures. The company started the lures production some 60 years ago. The products are clearly crafted from experience and the company’s track record and current unique distribution network, brand portfolio and manufacturing brand gives it a great position for further growth.

Rapala fishing lures came from Finland, originally. Fishing and farming was the occupation of the man, Lauri Rapala, who founded the company in his native country Finland. The creation of improved lures came from the practical necessity of improving productivity. In 1936 Lauri Rapala finally created a carved rough-looking lure which would produce an off-center and entice wobbling action. This initial model makes the basis for a lot of the Rapala fishing lures.

Rapala company won most of its fame after the Second World War. We could actually speak of a revival of the small Rapala business. In the very beginning, all the Rapala fishing lures were made by the founder himself and later on he involved the members of his family in the process as well. Lauri always wanted to test each and every lure to make sure it worked properly. Even at present all Rapala fishing lures are first tested and only afterwards packed.

The international episode in the Rapala fishing lures story started after the Olympic Games of Helsinkin, 1952, when foreign visitors took some of the products abroad with them. From this moment, exports started, initially toSweden and Norway and then to the USA. In 1957 the business got formalized and the Rapala and Sons / Rapala-Uistin company was established. In 1962, Life Magazine published a long article about Rapala products. It was perhaps because the same magazine issue wrote about Marlyn Monroe’s death that Rapala fishing lures increased their popularity in America, even if the quality of the products contributed most to the market impression.

The rest of the international market opened a lot more easily after success of Rapala products in the United States, but there appeared lots of imitators too. The company has defended itself against these copies both by taking legal actions and, more importantly, by continuing the production of consistent high quality equipment that has always made the difference between the original products and the copies.

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