On The Fish started with one pretty simple idea: I wanted to make our family fishing trips even better.
My kids have always loved fishing. I encouraged it because, like most parents, I was very happy to see them outside doing something that didn't involve a screen.
They are far more obsessed with fishing than I am, if I'm being completely truthful. But I love the time it gives us together. We're outdoors, we're making memories, and we're doing something that teaches a few useful lessons along the way.
Fishing is very good at reminding you that things don't always go your way. Sometimes your mate catches the fish and you don't. Sometimes yours gets away right at the last second. You learn to laugh about it, congratulate your friends, and keep going because eventually your turn comes.
As my kids got more into fishing, so did their friends. Before long, they were heading out together, comparing catches, making fun of each other when a fish got away, and generally having a great time.
And that's a big part of what I like about fishing. Yes, there's the fish, but there's also everything that happens while you're waiting for one. You spend a fair amount of time staring at a rod, so having good company helps.
The moment it became an app
The idea for the app really started with a very familiar fishing argument:
"What is that?"
We'd catch something new, then spend the next few minutes debating whether it was this species, that species, or something none of us had ever heard of.
It was always good-natured, and usually quite funny. But every so often we'd pull in a fish and genuinely have absolutely no idea what we were looking at.
At the same time, I started noticing how social fishing had become for my kids. They'd post their catches on Instagram or TikTok, their friends would pile into the comments, and the usual banter would begin: great fish, tiny fish, lucky catch, terrible photo, and everything in between.
That was the point when the idea started to come together.
What if one app could help you work out what you'd caught, save the memory, and share it with the people you fish with?
That became On The Fish.
What On The Fish stands for
On The Fish is really about three things: getting outdoors, sharing the experience with other people, and keeping the memories.
It's not about telling you how to fish or pretending there's one right way to do it.
The app is still developing, and it probably always will be. We're constantly improving it, trying new ideas, and learning from the people who use it.
So if there's something you love, something you don't, or something you think would make On The Fish better, please tell us.
We'd genuinely love to hear from you.