What if your lodge’s past was the strongest marketing you have? We sit down with Willie “the Oilman” to unpack how a northern lodge thrives today by selling a lifestyle, telling its origin story with pride, and using trade shows as a stage—not a hard sell.

We start where many operators wonder: do trade shows still pull their weight? Willie explains the shift from booth-first selling to a blended strategy where a clean, portable display supports the real engine—TV segments, YouTube reels, and podcast appearances that drive measurable spikes in website traffic and bookings. He walks through smart show prep, from pull-up banners and looping promos to skipping pricey power with a battery and inverter, then makes the bigger point: shows matter when they reinforce a brand people already trust.

The heart of the episode is pure lodge lore. A single Facebook post sharing vintage maps, logos, and photos draws in the Kozak family—descendants of a former owner living across Estonia, Alberta, and the Philippines—who reveal the lodge’s hidden smoking room, original landing, and the legendary “weatherman” guide who checked an AM radio at dawn. These stories turn cabins into chapters and meals into museum tours. We connect that heritage to guest experience design: capping capacity so every guest has their own room and bath, staging fuel and supplies in winter, switching to salted shiners to cut bait waste, and recruiting an elite staff including a Keg head chef and celebrity guides. It’s a playbook that keeps calendars full years out while protecting the magic that keeps guests returning.

By the end, you’ll hear a simple truth: a lodge is not a hotel. It’s a promise you make at first contact—and keep on the dock, at dinner, and around a wall hung with real history. If you care about outdoor hospitality, backcountry logistics, or how story-driven marketing wins loyal guests, this one is for you. Subscribe, share with a lodge owner who needs a spark, and leave a review telling us the one story that would make you book a trip today.

The floor may be buzzing, but the best trade show wins often happen in quiet moments—over a handshake, a shared story, or a thoughtful follow-up that arrives right when someone is ready to book. We open up about the early missteps, the pressure to sell fast, and why we chose a different path built on trust, clear expectations, and experiences we could control.

Rather than pushing deposits, we focused on unique selling points that never go out of style: great food with a sit-down lunch, comfortable cabins, and an atmosphere guests wanted to return to. We dig into the tools that turned browsers into warm leads—simple giveaways with clean consent, consistent emails that deliver value, and visual storytelling that works even when you step out of the booth. If you’ve ever wondered whether a packed bookings book is real or just theatre, you’ll appreciate our commitment to underpromise and overdeliver, which kept satisfaction high and repeat visits strong.

The real multiplier came from networking. We share how meeting TV hosts, writers, tournament anglers, and tourism leaders led to televised visits that filled calendars and boosted search visibility. Saying yes to last-minute media, then delivering a flawless stay, paid off far more than squeezing a few walk-up deposits. We also cover the operational side: aligning staff language, avoiding costly mixed messages, and building a simple follow-up system so promising conversations don’t go cold. If you’re a lodge owner, outfitter, or small tourism operator weighing show costs against digital marketing, this story gives you a practical blueprint for turning trade shows into relationship engines that pay off all year.

If this resonates, follow the show, share it with a friend who’s prepping for trade show season, and leave a quick review with your best booth tip—we’d love to learn what works for you.

Ever seen a town pop up on a frozen bay? We sat down with Donnie Crowder of Hot Box Huts to explore how a three-hut hobby became “Hogtown,” a 52‑hut ice fishing village on Lake Simcoe built around safety, comfort, and catching more fish. An early cold snap laid down a rare shelf of white ice, and Donnie explains how that milky layer creates low light cover in three feet of water—turning the shallows into one giant dock where perch and pike cruise all day.

We dig into the nuts and bolts of an on‑ice operation: staging lightweight huts during a soft start, running covered sleighs for short, safe rides, and staffing the village so someone actually knocks on the door to help you dial in your rig. Donnie shares the “runway” layout along a gradual drop that tracks how perch move from shallow to deep, why schooling behaviour makes efficiency everything, and how a beaded spoon out-fishes bait when the school arrives. For families and first‑timers, sight fishing in clear, shallow water becomes an instant tutorial. For gearheads, underwater cameras reveal tiny tells—gentle flares, bloodworm rooting—that change your presentation and your results.

Predators add drama and insight. Pike ride high, hunting shadows under the ice, so quick‑strike rigs set inches below the surface can be startling and deadly. We also get into harvest choices on a heavily fished but healthy bay, why leaving 14‑inch breeders helps the biomass, and how short modern seasons compare to those in the ‘80s and ‘90s. Donnie’s tech philosophy is practical: live scope for specific situations, cameras for learning, and a 24/7 YouTube lake cam that doubles as a safety update and a front‑row seat to passing bald and golden eagles.

If you’ve wanted a winter day that feels welcoming instead of punishing, this one’s for you. Warm huts, clean washrooms, kids fed through a new on‑ice food partner, and nonstop lessons that make your next drop better than the last. Hit play to learn how to read white ice vs black ice, set up for perch that won’t sit still, and turn a frozen bay into a place your whole crew can love.

Enjoyed this conversation? Follow and subscribe, share it with a friend who needs a winter adventure, and leave a review to help more anglers and families find the show.