With Combs, Scott Fly Rods aims for continuity, innovation | Hatch Magazine

News last month that longtime Orvis design and development director Shawn Combs was migrating to Montrose, Colo., to work with Jim Bartschi at Scott Fly Rods raised eyebrows across the fly-fishing industry. With Orvis undergoing a significant restructuring in the fall of 2025, many wondered if Combs’ move to Scott was the result of corporate turmoil at the venerable Vermont-based outdoor company that endured layoffs and store closures in 2025.

While that might have played a role in Combs’ eventual decision to make the move after 15 years with Orvis, it turns out the partnership with Bartschi is the result of a slow-boiling process — the two have been friends for years.

“We’ve known each other for many years,” Bartschi said this week, as he discussed what Combs’ move to Scott means, both for him, and for the Colorado fly-fishing institution based on the northern fringes of the San Juan Mountains. “We’ve talked over time about eventually working together, and I let Shawn know that when he was ready for a change, to get in touch.”

And Combs did just that in late 2025. He started the new year as Scott’s new vice president, and he’s spending his first few weeks at the company absorbing the Scott culture, meeting with the tight-knit Scott team, and just taking it all in. But his new office Montrose isn’t his first official contact with Scott. That came as a teen in Kentucky when he was learning to fly fish.

“I got my first Scott fly rod when I was 16,” Combs said, “and, long story short, I fished Scott fly rods for years, before I joined the team at Orvis.” As for why he chose to reach out to Bartschi late last year?

“It just seemed like the right time to make a move,” he said. “I think it’s a great opportunity to work with Jim and to help continue to build Scott’s brand. I’ll be honest. It was a tough call, walking away from Orvis. But it was the right time, and this is the right place.”

Nevertheless, conjecture abounds. Some might say Bartschi is hiring his replacement, and that may not be too far from the truth.

“I’m getting older,” the president of the highly regarded fly-rod brand said. “I’m going to be 60 soon, and I want to make sure I have time to fish and do the things I love to do. That said, I’m not going anywhere anytime soon, but it is good to have Shawn here. His experience in the industry is invaluable, and I’m looking at this from the long-term perspective. And I want to be clear — not only was it a good opportunity for Shawn, but it was a good opportunity for Scott, too. And when an opportunity like this comes along, you’d be silly not to find a way to make it work.”

So what is Scott going to look like with Combs’ influence and experience in the office and the factory every single day?

Well, at first, the brand’s customers likely won’t notice too many changes. Combs hasn’t come in and blown up any long-standing corporate processes or put his stamp on anything just yet. First things first, Bartschi explained, Combs will immerse himself in the Scott culture and absorb as much of it as he can. There are no major collaborative projects in the works, aside from what’s already on the company’s production calendar. Instead, Bartschi said, he and Combs are aligned on the best approach, which, more or less, is an organic one, where Combs learns all he can about Scott and then inserts his experience and credentials into the actual rod-making process when the time feels right.

“It would be totally absurd to rush something right now,” Bartschi said. He said there’s no sense trying to push out a project in 12 months or less just because Combs and his experience making fly rods are in the building. “A 24-month concept-to-market approach probably makes the most sense.”

Combs agreed, saying “I’m not coming in here and telling people we’re going to make Orvis fly rods. But, when the time is right, we’re probably not going to make the same Scott rods either. I’m going to go with ‘option 3,’ which is to make fly rods following an evolution of the Scott bloodline, with innovation at the forefront.”

Bartschi put his stamp approval on that approach. “When we start collaborating, it’s going to be super fun,” he said. “And I’m excited to learn from Shawn. I’m excited to be the old dog learning new tricks. We’ve got some fun years ahead of us.”

Right now, though?

“I’m slow-rolling this,” Combs said. “I’m fishing Scott rods and learning everything I can.”

Bartschi’s been at Scott for 35 years, and, while he embraces the notion that he’ll be ready to step down at some point, it’s not going to happen in the near future. Instead, he said, he’ll take advantage of having Combs on site and he’ll spend more time visiting Scott dealers and connecting with the Scott community. But make no mistake about it: Combs’ hiring comes with the long-term expectations that, when the time is right, he will lead the company.

And Combs recognizes that pressure that comes with those expectations.

“I’m not coming in here with an ‘I know what I’m doing’ attitude,” he said. “There’s a genuine curiosity on my part, and I like to look for opportunities rather than problems, so I’m going to approach this with open eyes, and open ears. And not a lot of mouth.”