How Archery Sarasota Started
Archery Sarasota didn’t start as a business plan. It started as a dad coaching his four sons through competitive archery. Rob Gilbert got into coaching because his boys were shooting, and once he started, he never looked back. As the kids grew and the team. Sarasota Archery Academy, developed, so did the work, tuning bows, building arrows, dialing in equipment, and coaching archers who wanted more than a standard pro shop could offer.
The turning point came from a friend, an FWC officer who knew what Rob was doing with tournament archery and bow setup. He asked Rob for help with a string replacement and full tune. When the work was done, the officer told Rob he needed to offer this service to others because he couldn’t find it anywhere locally.
As the business grew, Rob was booked seven days a week, taking on bow builds, intro lessons, tuning, and advanced coaching all by himself. Something had to give.
Scott Reed was one of the dads on the archery team. He would listen, watch, and help the other kids during team practice when Rob was stretched thin. Rob saw what Scott was doing naturally and talked him into getting certified as an instructor. As Scott grew more confident, he took over all beginner and introductory lessons, freeing Rob to focus on builds, tunes, advanced coaching, and running the shop.
What started as one coach helping a friend became two partners building something together. Rob asked Scott to become a partner in the business, and now they’re on this journey side by side, a friendship that turned into a service business built on trust, faith, and doing right by every archer who walks through the door.
For a plain-language explanation of how we work with every archer, our service model, pricing, and what to expect when you book, see How We Work.
