UK National Fishing Month organiser: ‘We are planning long term’

National Fishing Month (NFM), the initiative driven by the Angling Trades Association (ATA), is back after a two-year break. And the UK body is appealing to the industry to help make the five-week event a huge success.

The Association is seeking funds for a communication package as well as making the trade aware of a number of sponsorship opportunities. It is also asking the industry to become an active player by promoting the event across social media and direct mail activities, and will be sharing assets to support the initiative.

Produced in association with the Environment Agency, the Canal and River Trust and the Angling Trust, NFM aims to attract new people into fishing, along with returnees and families. The event will run from July 23rd to August 30th.

“As we start to come out from under the COVID cloud and rod licence sales are showing a decline on last year, NFM is a great opportunity to showcase angling to the wider non-fishing community,” said Mike Heylin, Vice Chairman of the ATA.  “It is all a bit rushed because of late COVID changes, but we are planning long-term with a view towards NFM 2022 and beyond, with some very exciting opportunities for brand promotion around the Commonwealth Games in 2022.

“This is our [the industry’s] chance to engage with new participants and reach those who have never fished or haven’t been for some time. In particular, there is a great opportunity to promote fishing to families who want to encourage their children to enjoy wild places and could be taking their children fishing, if only they knew how.”

Supporting literature for NFM will include three introductory booklets for sea, game and coarse fishing, each with print runs of around 50,000. There are advertising opportunities within the booklets, as well as front cover positions. One of the key elements of the marketing plan will be a reverse graffiti art installation – created using high-pressure water jets to ‘clean’ an image onto a wall or pavements. The aim is to create an impact with national and local media to excite the general public about fishing, generate positive news stories around the sport and encourage people to buy a fishing licence. The image will include a QR code for people to scan to find out more about NFM.  Partners are being asked to contribute to or match fund its investment with commitments of £1k to £5k.

The ATA is also developing a brand new and up to date industry-wide database covering retailers, wholesalers, manufacturers and fisheries across all sectors. As well as providing an unrivalled benefit for member marketing opportunities, the new database will be used in support of NFM and other initiatives, putting brands front and centre in the recruitment drive. 

Anyone interested in supporting NFM can contact Mike Heylin here or call 0333 577 9970.

Those interested in the graffiti art proposal should contact Hannah Millbank at Defra Group Communications here or call 07818 577939.