My Fishing Cape Cod Chronicles: Bruno Demir

Speaker 1 (00:00):
The My Fishing Cape Cod Chronicles are brought to you by the Goose Hummock shops, Cape Cod's largest outdoor outfitter serving New England since 1946. Shop them online at themightyfish.com. Welcome to the My Fishing Cape Cod Chronicles. The My Fishing Cape Cod Chronicles podcast profiles, impactful members of our fishing community and beyond. Now here's your host Kevin Collins.

Kevin (00:35):
Hello and welcome to another edition of the My Fishing Cape Cod Chronicles here on myfishingcapecod.com. This is your host Kevin Collins back with you for episode number seven of the MFCC Chronicles and boy, what a show we have in store for you today. We hope these have been helping you break up the winter a little bit. I know we don't have our usual MFCC weekly podcasts to look forward to. Those will be coming around again in the near future before you know it. But we've been doing these Chronicles podcast and releasing them throughout the winter just to give some interesting content and to try to profile some unique contributors to the Cape and Islands community, both business, fishing, and community service wise. And we've got a great interview lined up for you today. We've got a story of a fantastic journey from halfway around the world, Istanbul, Turkey, all the way to Cape Cod.

Kevin (01:29):
And that family journey is just a taste of how interesting the story is of our podcast guest today. And that guest is none other than proud of MFCC member Bruno Demir, who is also the owner and general manager of Cape and Islands Mitsubishi down in South Yarmouth. Bruno's a very successful car dealership owner and general manager, but also an extremely accomplished angler. And we'll find out a lot more about his fishing background dating all the way back to his youth spent around the Mediterranean Sea in Turkey as well as time that he spent down in South Florida and Miami before making his home here on Cape Cod. So let's dive right into this amazing story and welcome Bruno into the podcast. Bruno, welcome to the show. We're glad to have you.

Bruno (02:16):
Thanks for having me. I'm excited to be on the show.

Kevin (02:19):
When we introduce you, Bruno, to our audience here, we want to go all the way back and start from the beginning if we can to try to tell your story a little bit. Can you explain to us a little bit about where you grew up, what it was like, and how you got involved in fishing?

Bruno (02:33):
Oh geez. I mean I was born and raised until I was about nine years old in the Mediterranean and Istanbul, Turkey. We were surrounded by water, and fishing was just part of life. If you didn't catch fish, you didn't eat. I even had an uncle that was a commercial fisherman, so it was just something that a part of life.

Bruno (03:01):
And then we immigrated here to the States and we ended up in Worcester, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island, and Narragansett Bay wasn't that far away. And from there we started into the striper fishermen as kids. We started striper fishing down there in Rhode Island, and then basically back in the nineties one of my uncles bought a hotel here in Yarmouth, about 30 years ago. That's where Cape Cod came into the mix with our family.

Kevin (03:34):
Talk a little bit about the decision to relocate the family. What was that like for you and your family during those times?

Bruno (03:42):
So my mother's side of family is Armenian and my father's side is Turkish. There's a huge population of Armenians in Worcester, and that's kind of where we ended up. When you don't speak English and you've got to just figure it out. You've got to learn the language. You got to start from scratch. It's tough. My father always said when he came to the country, we rented a two bedroom apartment, got a mattress, and he had $100 left in his pocket and people said, "Welcome to America." The work ethic was always there as a kid because you had to work, everyone had to work if we're going to make it, you know. But yeah, that was many years ago and here we are today.

Kevin (04:31):
So Bruno, you end up in Worcester, Mass. Not too much saltwater in that region. Talk a little bit about how you get into striper fishing.

Bruno (04:39):
Well, you know, when we were out there, you, I don't know if familiar with central mass, but we've got to Quabbin Reservoir, and it's some of the best large lake trout fishing around. And we did a lot of that as a kid until my father made it on his feet enough that we could afford to buy a boat. And once we got the boat, it was a matter of taking an hour south down to Rhode Island. And that's how we learned how a tube and worm works.

Kevin (05:12):
Tube and worm is a great way to fish. And I know Ryan and I spent a lot of time in our formative years fishing tube and worm, and it's still an enjoyable way to fish, especially if you just want to kind of go out in the boat and relax a little bit while you're fishing.

Bruno (05:27):
I've got to tell you, I've been picking up those ugly worms with claws on their head since I was 12 years old and throwing them on a hook on a burgundy tube, you know?

Kevin (05:39):
Exactly.

Bruno (05:41):
When kids do it now, it's funny. I see my little seven year old, I see a grown man next to me. He won't touch the worm, but my six year old will grab that worm, put the hook right through its head.

Kevin (05:52):
Now you're fishing with your family and you've got a boat and things are going and then you head off out in the world on your own. You're a very successful businessman and run a very successful car dealership, which we'll get into in a little while. Can you explain a little bit about how you became involved with My Fishing Cape Cod and how you connected with Ryan?

Bruno (06:14):
Just to back up for a sec. I left Massachusetts for about 10 years.

Kevin (06:19):
Wow.

Bruno (06:20):
And I went down to Miami, Florida. I spent 10 years in Miami, Florida and an opportunity came for me to purchase a dealership on Cape Cod where I spent all my summers as a kid because like I said, with family purchasing a hotel here in Yarmouth, all my summers were spent here. And a lot of fishing was done here as a kid from that point on.

Bruno (06:48):
And so when I got an opportunity to come back, what I consider home, after 10 years of Miami, I packed up the wife and the kids and we invested into our own business and came back up to what I know. And you know, I've got to tell ya, it was very funny when I got back to the Cape after having been gone for so long, how much the Cape had actually changed because I've got to tell you, I mean 20 years ago when I was at... More, 30 years ago when I was a kid on the Cape, I don't remember Great White Sharks.

Kevin (07:32):
Exactly.

Bruno (07:33):
I don't remember having a seal problem. I remember going down to the Chatham fishing pier and buying cod and haddock as much as we wanted. It's unbelievable how much of a difference 10, 15 years could make on a place, especially Cape Cod. And so when I first got back, it's funny because I went down to the Chatham Fishing Pier, and I was looking to see if I could buy some cod and haddock. And the guy looked at me, he goes, "Where the hell have you been for the last 15 years?" I said, "Florida, why?" He goes, "We haven't had cod or haddock on these piers since the 90s."

Kevin (08:17):
Yep.

Bruno (08:17):
He goes, "I could sell you some skate and some dogfish." So it was quite a shock. And then finding out this, all these Great Whites everywhere, it was like being in a cave for 10, 15 years and you come back out into the world and everything's changed. You know? So coming back to the Cape, it was surprising how much it changed, but right away we adjusted. Right away we got a boat. Right away we started going back to fishing the grounds that I grew up fishing, and now my kids go with me all the time. And then that's part of why I'm so passionate about trying to conserve the fishery and try to keep the stocks at high levels so that my great grandkids could take me out fishing someday. You know?

Kevin (09:14):
Yeah. That's what My Fishing Cape Cod is involved in doing as well. So I can see why you hit it off with Ryan so well, Bruno. I got to ask though, when you made the transition from Miami back to Boston, that had to have been a little bit of a shock after spending 10 years down there in the Florida heat.

Bruno (09:33):
Well, see the funny thing is, so my wife is born and raised in Miami, so she's Cuban Colombian, born and raised in Miami. And I don't know if you've ever been to Miami, but Miami is like a bubble. It's like basically another country. And for me it wasn't so much a shock because I grew up in it, but for her to leave Miami and come to the Cape, it was like a whole other world for her. And it took a while for her to get used to it. But now she's a full blown Cape Codder. There's nothing that would stop her. If it's a sunny 45, 50 degree day in January, she'll go for a walk on the beach with the dog. I think when you become a full blown Cape Codder.

Kevin (10:20):
Yeah, and I was in Miami actually earlier this week for work. It was 85 degrees. The Palm trees were gently swaying in the breeze. And I tell you what, I didn't want to come home.

Bruno (10:30):
Yeah, look, it's nice. It's beautiful. But it's a jungle. It's a full blown city. It's nonstop. It's always go, go, go. And it's nice to be on the Cape now where it's not always go, go, go. And we have plenty of time to spend time with my kids, my family, and on the water, you know.

Kevin (10:53):
So I've got to ask you, Bruno, when you were down in Miami and before we transition into what your fishing life is like now, up here on Cape Cod, did you do any fishing down there or were you [crosstalk 00:11:03], yeah? Can you explain a little bit what your fishing life was down there?

Bruno (11:07):
Oh yeah. I had a beautiful classic 80's MAKO center console that I had completely redone. We'd go out for mahi mahi, dolphin, and wahoo. I don't know if you've ever hooked up to a wahoo.

Kevin (11:24):
I have not had the pleasure.

Bruno (11:26):
Oh my. Man, do they swim fast. I mean it's a torpedo. I did a lot of that and took some trips out to the Bahamas with guys with bigger boats. So you know, no matter where I've lived, it's always been in me to be on the water. You know? But it's totally different fishing. I mean, in my personal opinion, Cape Cod is ground zero for sport fishing. I don't care what anybody says. We have the best fishery in the world right here in our backyard. Hey, you can get some mahi mahi, and that's not bad on the grill, but you can basically take anything out of the Cape Cod waters put it on a grill and it tastes good.

Kevin (12:12):
So let's talk about now your life here on Cape Cod. You mentioned you had an opportunity to come back here where it all started when your family came to America, and you acquired a car dealership and it was a very unique opportunity for you. And just talk a little bit about that opportunity and how that all came about and how it's led to where you're at today in your life.

Bruno (12:36):
You know, it's funny because, so I got into the car business when I was 18 years old. I had just come out of high school. I was hired by the same guy who's now my partner in the dealership.

Kevin (12:54):
Great.

Bruno (12:55):
So he mentored me. He was about 10 years old than me. He mentored me, and I worked with them for about 10 years, and over the years we never lost touch. Even when I was in Florida, I finally got a phone call one day and he said, "Look, would you consider an opportunity to become my partner in a dealership?" And so my mentor ended up becoming my partner.

Bruno (13:25):
In the car dealership world, I guess that's like a typical Cinderella story of what every guy wishes would happen. You know? And so we took advantage of it and transitioned back over here. I've been doing this now for 24 years. So I think by now I should know what I'm doing.

Kevin (13:46):
Yeah.

Bruno (13:46):
And the reason... Obviously we sponsor My Fishing Cape Cod and Ryan's a great guy and we're a big fan of him. And one of the biggest things was, the dealership, it's a Mitsubishi dealership, but one of the things we offer is obviously our new cars are Mitsubishis. They're great cars, they're extremely affordable, extremely safe. They're about $8,000 less than a Honda/Toyota. So they had great cars. But the other thing we do is we specialize in pre-owned pickup trucks. We're actually a pickup truck outlet. And a lot of people on the Cape know that if you get off exit 8 off Route 6 and you see the pickup trucks all lined up.

Bruno (14:35):
And the reason we decided to sponsor My Fishing Cape Cod is obviously because of my personal passion for being an angler. And the other thing is, I mean, I don't know about you, but I don't know too many fishermen driving around in Priuses.

Kevin (14:49):
Exactly.

Bruno (14:51):
A lot of guys that are fishermen have pickup trucks. So pickups are big business here on the Cape, and we pride ourselves on being the truck kings of the Cape. And that's kind of how that whole sponsorship came about.

Kevin (15:04):
And Bruno, being a fisherman yourself, I would make the argument, and maybe I'm a little biased, but after hearing the rationale in the relationship between My Fishing Cape Cod and your dealership, if I'm a fisherman on Cape Cod and I'm looking to either upgrade my truck or maybe I just bought a boat and I'm switching from driving a minivan or a family car to a truck, something that can pull my boat, there's no better guy to go buy a newer used vehicle or truck from than a fisherman himself. And the fact that you are a fisherman and such an avid angler and a member of MFCC, you can speak to these guys about kind of what they need and get them outfitted for what they need to fit their fishing lifestyle here on the Cape.

Bruno (15:51):
Absolutely. I've got to tell you, a lot of my relationships out on the water, getting on the radio and tipping each other off has started in my showroom. I guess, you know what it comes down to? Fishermen by nature are pretty frugal folks. I've noticed that through my 40 years on earth, and are you going to spend $60,000 for a new pickup truck when you can get one off lease that's two years old for half that price? So it's a pretty easy sell for us. We sell about 300 a year. It's worth checking out.

Kevin (16:34):
Well Bruno, with your very busy lifestyle, you're not only the owner but the general manager. Can you talk a little bit about how fishing fits into your life? How often are you able to get out on the water, get out on the boat and just kind of the mix of boat versus surf casting, if there is any mix, just talk about all the different types of fishing you do.

Bruno (16:51):
I would call myself a typical Cape Cod fishermen. I'm out there once or twice a week, at least once a week. I start my season usually little after Easter for haddock up at Stellwagen. Then I'll transition to our unbelievably awesome black sea bass season down in Buzzards Bay when that kicks off, usually end of what, May beginning of June.

Kevin (17:20):
Exactly.

Bruno (17:21):
I would say that's my favorite fishery on the Cape just because it's so much fun to get the kids out there, and it's really just lock and load fishing. It's just lights out fishing for like two or three weeks. You know? And then from there we start focusing on our Stripe bass as they start coming through the Cape, and it seems like last year that party ended pretty quick for us. And then we'll start with our fluke fishing.

Bruno (17:51):
I would say that's probably my best strong suit is fluke fishing down in the Nantucket Shoals. That's some of the best fluke fish in my opinion in the world is right here in our shoals out in Nantucket. As a matter of fact, last year my nine year old got his personal best at 24 inches. This fluke had a mouth on it, like a striper.

Bruno (18:17):
From the fluke season will start going east of Chatham and that's when we get into some bluefin tuna and some bottom fishing for cod and haddock and such. Haven't got a halibut yet. I'm looking forward to getting lucky with a halibut. I actually got some tips from guys on where I might find them. So I'm looking forward to that next year or this year I should say. And then we usually close out our season with tuna and seeing if we can get a little bit of that Stripe for fall run.

Kevin (18:51):
You talked about getting the younger generation involved in fishing and your passion for fishing along to the younger generation. Talk a little bit about how you're able to do that right now.

Bruno (19:04):
You know, one of the things I try to do is I try and take my kids. I have three kids, and I try to take them out as much as possible, weather permitting. I think you've got to be cautious with, conscious with bringing your kids out on the right days. You've got to keep it fun for them. I take them out to, like I said, Buzzards Bay for the sea bass season. I think if you've got an opportunity to take your kids for that sea bass season down in Buzzards Bay, that's probably going to hook any kid into fishing for life. It's just that much fun.

Bruno (19:49):
I'm lucky that all my kids love the sport, and they love being out there with me. You know? I certainly can't come home after fishing all day without them, without them giving me some crap for it. You know, "Why didn't you take me, Dad?" So I think it's important to get the kids out there, especially the newer generation with all the technology that's available and iPads and iPhones. It's good to get them out of the house and get them on the water and get some fresh air and take them out of that trend. You know?

Kevin (20:23):
We couldn't agree with you more, Bruno, here at My Fishing Cape Cod. That's something we talk about very frequently. And I know it's something Ryan is really passionate about, getting the younger generation involved and he loves to take young people fishing, whether it's out on his boat, the Miss Loretta, or taking them on surf casting adventures down toward Barnstable or fishing the Brewster flats. I know it's something he's really passionate, and so it's a great thing that you guys have in common.

Bruno (20:51):
I don't know if you guys know it, but Danny from Goose Hummock does a thing where he takes a bunch of, I think Cubs Scouts, out trout fishing if I'm not mistaken. It's stuff like that that guys do that's a true passion for angling when you're able to take the time to make sure you pass that baton onto the next generation. You know?

Kevin (21:13):
Yep. And I know that the Goose also does a great job. They usually host a, like a little bit of a youth grade school fishing derby every summer, and they give out a bunch of great prizes for that as well. We usually have someone on from the Goose on our weekly, My Fishing Cape Cod podcast to give the results and the winners from that. So the Goose Hummock and the folks down there in Orleans, they just do a great job, Phil and his entire crew, of trying to pass the baton onto the younger generation.

Kevin (21:40):
Bruno, you've been very gracious with your time here on this edition to the My Fishing Cape Cod Chronicles. We really appreciate your visit with us. And before I let you go, I just want to ask you a general question that I ask a lot of our guests here that take the time to sit down with us on this podcast. It's a little bit of an introspective look on your life, business wise and fishing wise. Just tell us a little bit about where you'd like to go and where you'd like to take your fishing life with My Fishing Cape Cod and where you'd like to take your dealership as well.

Bruno (22:10):
You know, the dealership has grown year over year and it's doing really well, and I'm lucky enough to have really good people working for me that allows me to take some time to get away. And taking that time to get away, I'd like to not only take that time to get away to get on the water and pursue my passion of fishing, but also I'd like to, in the near future, I think you're going to see me get involved a little more with the conservation of our fishery on a state level.

Bruno (22:48):
I'd like to be the local voice for Cape Cod for the recreational guys to help make some of these rules and regulations to preserve the stocks. I just feel like a lot of times it's a lot of politicians and lawyers getting involved, and sometimes the local guys that are always on the water that see it firsthand, they're the voice that doesn't always get heard.

Bruno (23:16):
So with the dealership being able to operate with some of the good folks that I have here, I'd like to take that extra time to try to put it towards a good cause. And as far as my personal fishing, I think I'm due for an upgrade next year on a boat. I think the warden, which is my wife, is going to give me the green light on that one. So I see a 35 Duffy along the lines and hopefully get in more and more into the tuna fishing for the bluefins off Eastern Chatham and up in Stellwagen.

Kevin (23:51):
Well Bruno, on behalf of the entire My Fishing Cape Cod family, including Ryan, Lauren, myself and all the members, I just want to take a moment to thank you for all the time that you granted us to tape today's edition of the My Fishing Cape Cod Chronicles.

Kevin (24:06):
It was fascinating learning about your story and how your family arrived here in America as immigrants from Turkey and your personal journey taking you from Worcester down to Miami back home, so to speak, to Cape Cod was just absolutely fascinating to learn about.

Kevin (24:24):
I want to tell folks where to find yet down at Cape and Islands Mitsubishi. If you're in the market for a newer used pickup, especially head down to see Bruno down at Cape and Islands Mitsubishi there at 527 Station Avenue in South Yarmouth. They also have a great website, capemitsu.com. That's Cape, C-A-P-E Mitsu, M-I-T-S-U.com, where you can browse the selection of new and used pickups that Bruno and his wonderful staff down there at Cape and Islands Mitsubishi have to offer.

Kevin (24:54):
So Bruno, thanks again for joining us here on the My Fishing Cape Cod Chronicles and thank you for everything you do for My Fishing, Cape Cod in the greater Cape and Islands community.

Bruno (25:04):
Thanks Kevin. Thanks for having me. You guys do a fantastic job with MFCC and I'm glad to be a member.

Kevin (25:11):
Thanks again to Bruno Demir, the owner and general manager of Cape and Islands Mitsubishi for joining us here on today's edition of the My Fishing Cape Cod Chronicles. It was a wonderful conversation and great to learn about Bruno's heritage and what brought him here to Cape Cod and what makes him tick fishing wise. I hope everybody that took the time to listen and download this podcast also enjoyed getting to know our interview subject. That is the goal here on the My Fishing Cape Cod Chronicles is to just kind of interview and profile interesting members of the Cape and Islands community who do a lot to give back to the community and to the fishery here in general.

Kevin (25:48):
Once again, thanks to all of you for taking time out of your busy schedules to listen to the podcast here on the website or however you consume it. It's a pleasure putting these together for you throughout the winter to kind of make the time go by a little bit quicker hopefully until we can get back out on the water and chase some Stripe bass around. So that's going to put the wraps on episode number seven of the My Fishing Cape Cod Chronicles. This is your host, Kevin Collins signing off until we chat again, tight lines and take care.

Speaker 1 (26:16):
Thanks for listening to the My Fishing Cape Cod Chronicles from all of us here at My Fishing Cape Cod, tight lines and take care.

Speaker 6 (26:26):
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