Does anyone know what the typical retail markup is on fishing tackle?

At a guess it is probably about 100%

Good guess Pegsguy. I do a lot of flea marketing selling fishing tackle and know the wholesale prices. What's interesting, is I can price lower than Wal-mart, and still make money...and I'm even paying more for the product than them!

One big exception to that is anything Shimano. I have a fishing buddy who has a side business selling Great Lakes trolling spoons, lures etc and while he normally doesn't deal in rods and reels he can get almost anything from his wholesaler. He informed me that there is very little markup for retailers on Shimano gear, and recent research has proved this out. Ever notice that a Curado reel is within pennies no matter where you buy it?

Bullseye Pegsguy, I forgot about Shimano too. There isn't much room on their stuff, but it sells good. There's one Shimano reel I buy for $9 and Wally sells for $12. Not gonna get rich there, huh?