Hardy Brothers is founded in 1874 in Alnwick, England.
Earnest A. Pflueger starts the Enterprise Manufacturing Company in Akron, OH to make fishing tackle.
The William Shakespeare, Jr. Company is founded Kalamazoo, MI, and a patent is awarded for the original Shakespeare fish-line reel.
AB Urfabriken is founded in Blekinge, Sweden as a manufacturer of watches and telephone components. The company will later refocus on fishing reels.
Machinest Otto Henze founds the PENN Fishing Tackle Company and completes his first two reel designs in Philadelphia, PA.
PENN introduces the legendary Senator reel.
The Berkley Fly Co. is founded by 16-year old Berkley Bedell in Spirit Lake, IA with $50 in paper route earnings. His first flies are created from hair clippings from the family dog and feathers from backyard chickens.
Göte Borgström refocuses his company on the manufacturing of fishing reels.
Upon the death of Otto Henze, Martha Henze takes over for her husband as President of PENN. The company continues to prosper.
Johnson is founded when Lloyd Johnson and Henry Warren Denison build their first fishing reel in a basement in Mankato, MN.
Göte Borgström presents the revolutionary Ambassadeur reel.
Fenwick is founded by 5 Seattle businessmen and is named after a lake in Kent, Washington.
Stren is created 20 years after the invention of commercially viable nylon and becomes a household name in fishing line.
Berkley introduces Trilene fishing line.
Shakespeare acquires the E.A. Pflueger Company.
Greys of Alnwick is founded by former Hardy employee Malcolm Grey.
Shakespeare moves its base of operations to Columbia, SC.
Fenwick is the first to market an all-graphite fishing rod.
Shakespeare creates the Ugly Stik rod by perfecting a method for manufacturing fishing rods invented by Dr. Arthur M. Howald.
ABU acquires it’s US distributor, Garcia, and is renamed ABU Garcia, Inc.
Berkley acquires Fenwick and becomes Outdoor Technologies Group
Berkley creates PowerBait Trout Dough, revolutionizing the fishing bait industry.
JRC is founded in Hatfield Peverel, Essex.
Abu Garcia joins Outdoor Technologies Group
House of Hardy acquires Greys of Alnwick. 4 years later the company will rename itself Hardy & Greys Ltd.
Outdoor Technologies Group becomes Pure Fishing and acquires Mitchell, Johnson and SpiderWire brands from Johnson Worldwide Associates.
Allstar is acquired by Shakespeare.
Stren is acquired by Pure Fishing.
JRC is acquired by Shakespeare.
Pure Fishing and Shakespeare merge. Pure Fishing becomes the world’s foremost purveyor of fishing tackle and related merchandise.
PENN Is acquired by Shakespeare.
Pure Fishing acquires Hodgman & Sebile
Pure Fishing acquires UK brands Hardy, Greys, and Chub.
Private Equity firm Sycamore Partners acquires Pure Fishing.
Pure Fishing acquires Van Staal and Fin-Nor.
Pure Fishing acquires Plano and Frabill
