July 2008

Gun dealers selected the Ruger LCP as the best 2008 new product on Shooting Industry’s Web site blog in April. The much-praised pistol captured 17.5 percent of dealers’ “votes,” overwhelmingly outdistancing all other products in this first-ever, Shooting Industry-sponsored blog.

“In our April issue, we featured ‘Dealers’ Picks,’ a report on what dealers considered the best new products at the SHOT Show. With our blog, we opened up the selection process to dealers throughout the nation. And dealers had strong opinions,” said Russ Thurman, SI’s editor.

“Sturm, Ruger & Co. has successfully entered the small-gun market with a superb product, the Ruger LCP. This excellently appointed and designed firearm is filling a very strong niche in our inventories at Myrtle Beach Indoor Shooting Range (MBISR) in sunny South Carolina. The price-points are good and the quality is excellent,” said Ted L. Gragg, CEO MBISR.

Dealers selected Taurus’ The Judge .45/.410 as the second-best new product for 2008, netting 8.73 percent of the votes.

Remington’s 2008 new products were cited by a number of dealers as the best, with voting spread among 11 products.

“The Remington 700 VTR is definitely one of the best products of 2008 with its unique triangular, ported barrel,” wrote a dealer.

The Model 700 VTR was the most-mentioned Remington product, followed by the Model R15 and Model 11-87 ShurShot series.

Smith & Wesson’s .357 Night Guard and M&P .45 were selected by a number of dealers as “the best” for 2008.

Ruger also scored high with dealers with its Charger .22.

“The Charger is high on the fun factor, and with the high prices of ammunition these days, it’s a cheap date to shoot,” read the blog entry from Wrenco Arms LLC.
During the month-long blog, dealers mentioned 81 products from 48 companies.

Dealers selected products from virtually every product category: firearms, ammunition, optics, high-tech, accessories, knives and airguns. In some cases, dealers selected a product type as best sellers, including one who wrote, “The best new product is anything pink for the ladies. I can’t keep them in stock.”

The blog also provided dealers an opportunity to voice an ongoing concern. Ted Gragg, of MBISR, while highly complimentary of the Ruger LCP, also wrote, “The only drawback is an extremely limited product supply. Hopefully, this will change soon.”

Other dealers were more blunt.

“I hope the manufacturers read this blog. I get so discouraged because they advertise six months before production of a firearm and then dole out six to 10 guns to the wholesalers,” a dealer wrote. “Firearm manufacturers don’t realize how bad they look when a dealer has to tell the consumer the item has been on backorder for three months.”

With the success of the “Dealers’ Picks” blog, SI is considering additional Web-site surveys.

“We’re especially interested in what dealers think,” Thurman said. “Yes, we address the entire industry; however, it’s the independent dealer who must ‘live with’ all the innovation, promotions and grand, sweeping programs. That’s why we asked gun dealers, ‘What are the best new products for 2008 — and why?’ We appreciate their input.”

Smith & Wesson, Remington and Mossberg were the top-selling firearm brands in 2007, according to Southwick Associates. Remington was also named the best-selling rifle ammunition, while Winchester Ammunition ranked the highest in handgun and shotgun ammunition.

Southwick reports the data was compiled from the 19,288 surveys hunters and target shooters completed last year on the Web sites: www.HunterSurvey.com and www.TargetshootingSurvey.com.

The Web sites, launched in 2006, ask hunters and target shooters a variety of monthly questions, which Southwick Associates assembles into a number of reports. For more information on Southwick’s data services, contact Rob Southwick via e-mail at: rob@southwickassociates.com.

The National Association of Sporting Goods Wholesalers (NASGW) has launched an online member directory that combines the “look and feel” of a printed book. NASGW officials point out that the online directory has an array of powerful interactive features, making it easy to locate, contact and do business with the organization’s members.

“We set out to combine the impact of our traditional printed directory, complete with high-impact color advertisements, with the power of the Internet. This new tool achieves our goal, and it will make it easier for the industry and our members to do business — whether they’re on the other side of town or the other side of the world,” said Wayne Smith, NASGW president.

The 2008 NASGW Online Member Directory offers FlipPage E-Directory technology that allows readers to “turn” pages with the click of a mouse. Online viewers can zoom in and out on pages, view page thumbnails or “jump” to other pages. Pages can be printed or e-mailed with the click of a mouse.

“Advanced interactive functions make this online directory far more useful than any book. It is organized to make it easy for online visitors to get right to the meat of their member search,” Smith said.

Smith points out that one of the most valuable services the online directory provides is the direct links to members’ Web sites and e-mails.

“With the touch of a finger, potential customers can instantly go from looking up a company or product to surfing their site or contacting them with a question or business proposal,” Smith said.

NASGW’s members include wholesalers, manufacturers and independent sales representatives, both national and international, in the hunting and shooting sports, fishing equipment and accessories industries. The 2008 NASGW online directory is featured on www.nasgw.org and www.itemhq.com.

“We’re very proud of this online directory and the great benefit it provides to our members and everybody in the sporting goods industry,” Smith said.
For more information, call (772) 621-7162.

At the 2008 SHOT Show, Kimber owner and CEO Leslie Edelman presented a check for $35,000 to the Los Angeles Police Memorial Foundation. The presentation marked the beginning of a partnership with the foundation. For each Kimber SIS .45 ACP pistol sold, Kimber will contribute $15 to the foundation.

In announcing the partnership, Kimber officials note that the “contribution and ongoing commitment gives the foundation added assurance that financial assistance will be available in times of greatest need.”

For more information, visit www.kimberamerica.com.

Leupold & Stevens has purchased the Redfield brand, including all intellectual property and associated assets, from Meade Instruments.

Redfield was founded in 1909 and was a leading U.S. producer of optics until it closed in 1998. The Redfield brand subsequently changed hands several times before being acquired by Meade Instruments.

“Leupold & Stevens is pleased to have had the opportunity to acquire one of America’s leading sporting goods brands. For half a century, Leupold respected Redfield as a leading innovator and competitor in the sports optics industry,” said Tom Fruechtel, Leupold president and CEO. “The opportunity for Leupold to rescue this American brand from dormancy could not be missed. As we carefully consider how to proceed, we will be very cognizant of Redfield’s historical significance and the position it fills in the hearts of millions of dedicated American sportsmen.”
For more information, visit www.leupold.com.

Brownells has launched www.gunsmiths.com, a Web site designed to “enrich and promote the trade.”

Company officials say gunsmiths can boost their business by registering with the site’s gunsmith locator and find a job or an employee, all with free postings for resumes and job openings. They also can expand their knowledge with a number of features.

“Brownells traces its roots to Dad’s gunsmithing,” said Frank Brownell, company chairman and CEO. “He used to say, ‘Show me a town without a gunsmith, and I’ll show you a town without hunters or shooters.’ We want to help gunsmiths in every town succeed.”

The site features a gunsmith locator where customers can search for gunsmiths in their area or specialists throughout the country. The locator also has a five-star rating system that allows users to rate a shop.

For more information, call 1-800-741-0015 or visit www.brownells.com.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) has announced a new program designed to help local public and private ranges increase participation in the shooting sports.

The Range Partnership Grant Program makes available $250,000 per year for projects that address one or more of the following objectives: recruitment of new shooters, reactivation of lapsed shooters and increased opportunities for active shooters to try another discipline. The NSSF, officials emphasize, is especially interested in new, creative approaches to these challenges.

“This program was inspired by the success of our Hunting Heritage Partnership grant program, which funds recruitment and retention efforts conducted by state wildlife agencies,” said NSSF Senior Vice President Chris Dolnack. “We are confident this concept will also work for shooting ranges.”

Eligible organizations are limited to public and private ranges and clubs, or educational institutions with hunting or shooting sports curriculums and faculty.
Grant guidelines and applications are available at www.rangeinfo.org/grants.

LaserMax
Hires PR, Marketing Assistant



Scotesha Harris has joined LaserMax as a public relations and marketing assistant. She is responsible for the planning and implementation of public relations and trade show activities and other initiatives in the marketing department.

Harris has more than six years of business and marketing experience. Prior to joining LaserMax, she was studio manager at Quikpix Photography Inc., where she also generated concepts for radio and TV commercials, wrote press releases and produced graphic and logo designs.