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Since 1942, Cast Net King has been providing fishermen with handmade mullet nets, bait nets, and seine nets.
Handmade Fishing Nets - Cast Net King
For more than 80 years, our family has built cast nets by hand for the fishermen who depend on them. From the tar dipped nylon nets of the 1940s to today's premium monofilament cast nets, every net carries on a tradition started in Clearwater, Florida and continued today in Taylor County. Whether you're chasing bait, mullet, or making memories with your kids, we're proud to build the net you'll trust on the water.
Our Mission
At Cast Net King, building cast nets has never been just a business for our family. It is a tradition that dates back more than 80 years.
Our story began in Clearwater, Florida, in 1942, when G.T. Whitaker started crafting quality fishing nets. By the 1960s, his sons, Mutt and Jeff Gilliam, were helping with the family business. In those early days, the nets were handmade from nylon, and part of their job was dipping the finished nets into vats of tar to protect them from rot.
As the years went by, while the materials changed, the tradition remained strong. Mutt continued to build nets and eventually transitioned from nylon to monofilament.
By 1990, Mutt and his wife, Pat, were running the net shop in Clearwater full-time. It became much more than just a place to buy cast nets. Fishermen from around the area knew where to find us, and the shop was often filled with both quality fishing nets and captivating fishing stories.
Rachel was born in 1993 and grew up immersed in this family legacy. In the early 2000s, the family business made its way from Clearwater to Taylor County, carrying decades of knowledge and experience with it.
Today, Rachel runs Cast Net King full-time alongside Kody, while another generation is learning the craft. Mutt remains an integral part of the business he helped establish, along with Rachel's uncle Mark and Rachel and Kody's daughter, Audrey.
Four generations after G.T. Whitaker began building nets in Clearwater, we continue the family legacy.
Our mission at Cast Net King is to carry that tradition forward. We aim to build quality cast nets that recreational fishermen can rely on, share the knowledge passed down through our family, and ensure the next generation has the chance to learn the art of creating handmade bait nets.
Much has evolved since those first handmade nylon nets were dipped in tar over 80 years ago. The materials have changed, the shop has moved, and new generations have taken their place around the table.
But we are still building nets, still telling fishing stories, and still passing this valuable tradition down.