'See a need, fill a need': Couple opens bait shop near Benton

Don and Samantha Lafontaine are hoping to catch the attention of local anglers.

The couple recently opened Lafontaines Livewell LLC in a trailer parked outside the home at 5976 Marion Melmore Road, Sycamore — just south of Benton, in northwest Crawford County.

"Well, there's no local bait shops, so I decided, let's open a bait shop," Don Lafontaine said. "I don't know if you've even seen the movie 'Robots,' but there's a cartoon character on there, he's named Bigweld, he says 'See a need, fill a need.' We see the need, and we filled the need."

They currently stock wax worms, night crawlers, meal worms, minnows and some tackle. They may add leeches and crickets if customers show an interest, Don said.

"I've been trying to get a feel for it, see what people are going to be asking for," he said.

Hours are 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week.

"It's kind of little," Samantha said.

There's room for a counter, a live well full of minnows and a refrigerator filled with large, squirming worms. Some tackle hangs on the walls.

Reservoirs in Bucyrus and Upper Sandusky are popular with anglers, as is the Sandusky River, he said. And there are plenty of small ponds.

But there weren't any bait shops. Don said the closest ones he could find were in Fostoria and Fremont.

Lafontaines Livewell opened May 27, just in time for the start of summer.

They purchased the trailer that houses the business in September. "We were going to open then; we decided to wait until the next fishing season," he said. "Here we are."

Business got off to a slow start the first weekend, but they're counting on word of mouth to bring in customers. They didn't advertise their plans much in advance because they were concerned an established business would jump on the idea, he explained.

"We kept it hush-hush until the very last minute and then we just opened up," Don said. "Word of mouth will spread; people will come eventually."

The bait is purchased from a wholesale company based in Reynoldsburg, he said. "So the money's staying in Ohio, at least."

Samantha said they hope to grow their own eventually.

Don works at Tiffin Metal Products. Samantha is a stay-at-home mom, so she's able to help customers whenever they show up.

They aren't what you'd call experienced anglers, though they enjoy dropping a line occasionally. "When we've got time," Don said.

"We're not very good," Samantha said.

"We like fishing; we're just not very good at it," he said.

For information about Lafontaines Livewell LLC, call 419-310-4583.

ggoble@gannett.com

419-559-7263

This article originally appeared on Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum: Couple angling for success with new bait shop on Marion Melmore Road