Thursday, March 28, 2024

Meets with President Trump, Vice President Pence Mauk Fishing Stuff represents Washington state at Made in America Product Showcase

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BREWSTER – When Mike Mauk first began making his fishing tackle covers in 2005 he could not have foreseen that one day his product would lead to a trip to the nation’s capital to meet the President of the United States. But that was what happened on Monday, July 23, as Mauk represented Washington state at the Made in America Product Showcase at the White House, as part of Made in America Week designated by President Donald Trump last year.

“I cannot believe the White House called me to ask my company to represent Washington for Made in the USA week at the White House,” said Mauk, after receiving a call from Alexandra Veletsis from the Office of Public Liaison at the Executive Office. “I know there are lots of companies that would be honored to do the same and most are lots bigger than I am.”

Mauk said he did not know how or why he was picked, but Veletsis told him that he was the very first one they called in Washington.

Later he learned that a member of the selection committee had used his product and was aware of his company.

Mauk’s brother, Ernie, who handles sales and public relations, accompanied Mauk to the south lawn and state floor at the White House to meet President Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, members of the President’s cabinet and Congress, and White House Senior Staff.

A White House media advisory issued on Friday, July 20 said “Businesses from each of the 50 states have been invited to display their products made and produced in the United States.”

Mauk, owner of Mauk Fishing Stuff,  whose slogan is “We Have Your Tackle Covered,” makes see-through covers that fold over to secure. Protect and organize fishing lures and flashers.

“I first started making them to keep my lures and flashers on our poles when we went fishing every morning, so they would be ready to fish when we got to our fishing spots,” Mauk said.

Mauk and his mother, Anna Marie Mauk began designing the covers in 2005 and Mauk got his business license in 2013. Mrs. Mauk passed away in November 2015, but she can still be seem demonstrating how the covers work in an online video at Mauk’s websites, luresafe.com and www.fishingtacklecovers.com.

Mauk makes covers from 2-x-2 inches up to 13-x-13 inches and sleeves that fit in notebooks to mega pocket sleeves that feature 13 pockets. He also makes dodger and flasher sleeves that have up to 20 pockets to hold small 4-inch dodgers up to 11-inch flashers.

“We now have about 80 sku’s (stock-keeping units) with products in clear vinyl, blue, maroon, and white poly/vinyl,” said Mauk. “We also have products made with Phifertex Vinyl Mesh, red, white, blue, and black that is made in the USA, which Austin Moser requested and I found to be very popular.”

Moser, of Austin’s Northwest Adventures, LLC, helped Mauk design Austin’s Bottom Walker Keeper #45 to hold multiple bottom-bounding lures.

“Several fishing guides have given me lots of ideas for products they need to keep their tackle organized,” said Mauk. “Captain Dave’s Guide Service out of Spokane helped me design multiple pocket dodger sleeves to keep his many metal dodgers organized.”

A contact at Thin Blue Tight Lines, a nationwide community of anglers from the law enforcement, fire and EMS fields turned Mauk on to covers for bass tackle spinner baits, so he now makes those.

The goal of Made in America Week is to honor “the incredible workers and companies who make ‘Made in America’ the world standard for quality and craftmanship,” Venetsis wrote.

Venetsis defined a qualified Made in America product as “all significant parts and processing that go into the product must be of US origin. The product should contain no – or negligible – foreign content.”

“I try very hard to buy only American made material when at all possible,” said Mauk. “I do feel the pressure from the companies that have their product made overseas put on small businesses.”

Mauk said that with U.S. wage scales high enough to enable workers to survive, combined with the cost of American-made goods, it is difficult to complete with companies who sell imported products.

Mauk sells to stores in Washington, Oregon, and Colorado, but most of his sales are online through Amazon, eBay and his three websites, Maukfishingstuff.com, fishingtacklecovers.com and luresafe.com.

“I have had booths at the local sports shows, the Wenatchee Valley Sports Show, the Tri-Cities Sports Show, and the Spokane Big Horn show,” said Mauk, “with plans to go to Portland and Sacramento shows next year.”

Mauk is involved in the Brewster community as Secretary of the Brewster Chamber of Commerce and sponsor of events like the annual Brewster King Salmon Derby.

“I recently joined the Central Washington Coastal Conservation Association (CCA) out of Wenatchee and sponsored their banquet this year,” said Mauk, “as well as sponsoring the Tri-Cities CCA banquet by donation of my products.”

When he finds time to fish. Mauk prefers king salmon since “they come to my front door every summer here in the Brewster Pool on the Columbia River. I also fish walleye in the local lakes like Banks Lake.”
 

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