Your company is called Bespoke baits how did you come up with the name and what does it stand for?

That’s easy. Our baits are a one of a kind, unique, special and we can make practically any requirement.

How long has your company been running?

We have been trading for almost 2 years.

The shape of your bait is very unique, how did you come up with the idea?

From a carps first feeding stage right up to adult life it will feed on thousands of Insects, Mayflies, Shrimps, Bloodworms etc. Most of which are segmented in their shape. We feel that by producing baits with a segmented effect we are making the baits look more natural and something the carp eats safely every day without getting caught.

How difficult is it to produce the shape of your bait?

Very. We have discarded more paste in the bin than your average angler uses.

Why did you start your own bait company?

From my early fishing and match fishing day’s I have always tinkered with groundbaits, pastes and flavours. This progressed into my carp fishing, firstly making pop ups and rolling boilies, then tinkering with flavours and additives trying to label my bait. People started to ask to buy bait from me so it just became a natural progression.

Tell us a little about the field-testing aspects. What stages do your mixes and flavours go through before they reach the market shelf?

Most of our baits are made with off the shelf base mixes and flavours anyway, so don’t require testing. We see no point in trying to compete with recipes that have had thousands of hours of testing and are proven fish catchers. All we do is changed the shape, added pop up, hardener or make in a different colour. Our pops ups are made from recipes collected over the years. When you get into bait making you will see a theme on levels. We have supplied some well known anglers with pop ups in their own flavours.

If you buy a Mercedes and want it to go faster you take it to AMG, this is how we see ourselves, a compliment to your chosen bait.

What is your carp fishing background?

Fishing for carp as a single species started over 20 years ago during matches on commercials such as Hayfield in Doncaster. Pegged next to Rob Hitchins was a real eye opener as every carp in the lake tried to devour his secret paste. This was around the time of the first Fish o Mania and the introduction of the method feeder.

A change in career saw my angling opportunities limited but this coincided with the night fishing ban on my local lake being lifted, so the carp rod, optonic and baitrunner that used to get slung down the edge while I practice with a pole was joined by a partner and a bivvy.

Do you have an edge you can share to do with your bait?

I use an ESP needle (the best I have used) and slowly thread the bait on turning it and checking that you are going straight through the middle. These are stiff straight and don’t bend.

Big thanks to Bespoke baits for doing this Q and A