Ready for the Season!

Here we are at the end of September. Fall fishing is in full swing, which means that the ice fishing season isn't far away. I'm happy to say we're READY!

As planned, I used the "offseason" to restock our Orange Top Fishing inventory. My goal was to essentially double the inventory that I created for last ice fishing season. Since I work alone, that was a tall task - one that took considerably longer than I anticipated. But, I did it!

Here's a look at the process, from start to finish!

PREPARATIONS

Preparations began in March and spanned through mid-July. I started with cutting orange fabric for the flag bodies, then moved on to the silver borders and the red and white reflectors.

Here's one (!) of the 10-yard fabric pieces that eventually became a pile of flags:

Big pieces of orange fabric eventually became piles of fabric pieces for 4" X 4" (left) and 3" X 4" (right) flags:

Here are some photos from making Reflector stickers:

Packaged and ready - that's a lot of bags!

Everything was prepped and ready on July 12, 2026:

PRODUCTION

Once everything was prepped - and, admittedly, after a much-needed break, it was time to construct the flags. Here are some photos from the production process:

Here are some photos of completed flags - making progress now!

With each completed batch of flags, I packaged the finished products, including the flags, reflector sets, and paper labels (inserts):

Packaged sets were added to my display rack - and a then a box for restocking:

THAT'S A WRAP

In the end, I finished making and packaging square (4X4) flags on August 25, and I finished the rectangle flags (3X4) on September 26. I hope this gives you a sense of what goes into making Orange Top Fishing flags. It's quite the process, to say the least. Phew!!!

I feel really good about what I have accomplished. Every flag was made with pride - and reflects an unwavering attention to detail. All of this is to say that I would happily use any of the flags that will eventually be shipped to buyers - because I know I did them the right way.

With that, it's time to focus my energy on marketing and sales. Ice fishing will soon be here.

I'm ready. Are you?

Flags up,

Paul