First Winston Rod and now Orvis. MidCurrent reports that Orvis has laid off 27 salaried employees from the Manchester office, and an additional 12 positions from the rod shop.

Luxury items are the first to go, and with everyone tightening their belt, this is expected.

Luxury bellweather Tiffany’s reported a 30% drop in US sales, and nine hundred dollar fishing rods have little place given the current economic climate. My expectation is there’ll be a lot more layoffs announced by rod companies this year.

Orvis is especially vulnerable – a combination of high end clothier and rod merchant, with a penchant for undercutting their own margins via “warehouse” sales resold on eBay.

Getting a $600 rod for $49 bucks ensures us newly cost conscious anglers defer to the electronic marketplace.

The “fun” is just getting started, tighten your belts and hang on.