Fishwithme.net, the Rockford-based website looking to help avid fisherman enlarge their circle of fishing buddies nationwide, was picked to be part of a State of Illinois pilot program meant to boost new business ventures by minorities, women and veterans.
Stacy McCaskill, a Rock Valley College (Rockford, Ill.) business professor and founder of Fishwithme.net, was chosen to be a part of Advancing the Development of Minority Entrepreneurship (ADME), which will give her specialized mentorship and training as well as access to a variety of funding programs to help her scale her business.
McCaskill is an avid angler who noticed the many boats that sit idle in docks across America. She discovered that for many the high cost of marine fuel and having to work around the schedules of increasingly busy fishing buddies was keeping many people off the water. Stacy’s 76-year-old mother lives in Florida and would fish every day if she had a larger circle of fishing friends.
McCaskill worked with Thinker to create a platform that can match avid fisherman with other enthusiasts anywhere in the United States. The site’s potential is huge. According to the American Sportfishing Association, more than 60 million people in the U.S. fish at least once a year, and they spend more than $50 billion per year on fishing equipment, transportation, lodging and other expenses.
Stacy is heading to Peoria Feb. 9 for the official announcement and kick-off event where she’ll meet Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner and the Illinois ADME team.
Great write.