Family-Owned, Fishing-Inspired: The Start of RNR Fishing

From Sketchpad to Serious Skills and Unserious Shirts: How Our Family is Building RNR Fishing Together

When we launched RNR Fishing, we weren’t just starting a business — we were trying to build something with meaning.

Truth is, this didn’t begin with a master plan. It began with parents  trying to bond with a kid who loved fishing. I wasn’t even much of a fisherman myself. But I knew what mattered: showing up, leaning in, and building something together — hooks, laughs, chaos, and all. Now it is something the whole family enjoys building together.

At first, the idea was just to create funny shirts about fishing. It felt like a light-hearted, low-pressure way to learn e-commerce while doing something fun with my youngest. But the more we worked on it, the more it grew. Not just in concept — in people.

Everyone has a role now.

• Our youngest has become our Social Media Assistant. He scrolls TikTok anyway, but now he’s helping the business by following, liking, and commenting on other fishing pages. That small act doubled our followers in a day. He’s also quite the Brand Ambassador when fishing out on the lake in our gear. And more importantly — he’s part of something.
  
  

• Our middle child has stepped in as our Digital Media Assistant. He helps test the site, gives feedback, and keeps us on top of meme culture and trends. He’s smart, needs direction, and now has a real purpose tied to real results. I certainly can’t keep up with pop culture, so this is a big help.
  
  

• Our oldest, a talented teen artist, just turned in a new original sketch. It’s not quite print-ready, but it’s good. Really good. The kind of good that tells me: we’re on the right path. With the right support, her work will define the look of this brand. We’ve added the sketch below.
  
  

• My wife got on board when she saw the real potential. The education, the discipline, the financial opportunity, and the way this brings the family together. That felt like a win all by itself.
  
  

• Even the cat (Robert, aka “the young wolf”) shows up in our posts. He’s a visual Easter egg, a part of our branding, and a symbol of the weird little details that make our business feel real.
  
  

Why this matters.

There’s a lot of talk online about passive income and “starting a business with your family.” But most of that advice is theoretical. We’re doing it. With limited money, no background in fishing, and very real fears of failing — we’re still showing up every day.

We’re learning real skills: design, marketing, SEO, business structure, even retirement planning. We’re teaching our kids what work can look like when it has meaning — not just tasks for allowance, but roles with purpose and outcomes.

We’re also not hiding the reality. This isn’t some overnight success. We haven’t even made our first sale (yet). But we’ve made progress every week. We’ve learned. We’ve grown closer. And we’ve created something we’re proud to show people — not just for the jokes, but for the journey.

We’ve spent money, yes — But now we’re building a system that gives those expenses structure and long-term benefits giving the kids real purpose and real life experience.

We’re documenting it all — from the first sketch to the final shirt. We want people to see this isn’t AI slop, or a faceless brand. It’s us. A real family, working together on something creative, smart, and fun.

If you’re here reading this — thank you. You’re part of the reason this matters.

We’re RNR Fishing. And we’re just getting started. Check out our first samples and our newest sketch from our impressive Junior Designer!