Feedback on New Business Idea

[Jakes10mm]

I am working on my business degree and must write a business plan for one of my courses. We have the freedom to dream up any business, so I decided to make mine firearms related. Would appreciate everyone's response on the "rough" plan and whether there would be a niche market for the business concept.

The Very Rough Plan:

A gun accessory, and possibly gunsmithing, business that specializes in 10mm and 9x23 cartridges. The focus would be oriented towards 1911-style pistols, but would also offer products for other pistol designs. The initial offerings would include generic gun parts and well as those aimed at 10mm and 9x23 (barrels, springs, magazines, brass, bullets, reloading dies, etc.). From these beginnings, I would like to be responsive to market demand for other specialty products for these pistols and calibers. From the gunsmithing side, initially start with conversion projects and build up to custom firearms. The business would be mailorder/internet based, so I can reduce overhead and provide very competitive prices.

I have posted on Pistolsmith.com and already received a could comments. One being an orientation towards hunting applications and 6"-7" longslides.

All comments would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Rembrandt]

It would need to be something that is unique and not currently offered to get market attention....10mm is defintely a niche market. My guess is it probably makes up less than 10% of the total 1911 offerings. Don't get me wrong, I have 10mm and love it.....but it's going to narrow your market substantially.

Do a demographic study first to see where the highest growth potential is....could be women, hunting, or a particular competitive event.

Would be nice to have an item that can be patented, that would keep the competition & big manufacturers from stealing your idea and producing for less than you can. Could eventually sell manufacturing @ licenseing agreements to other countries and/or companies.

Example: Tom Volquartsen specializes in .22 cal accessories for Rugers, makes a good business off it. Nothing more popular in .22's than the 10/22......he took a popular existing product and pushed it in another direction.

After several hundred years, very few things firearm related that are new. Advancements in plastics, cnc machining, and chip technology are only things to emege recently.

Try to market the end product through national chains that have the advertising and distribution infrastucture already in place....(ie: Cabela's etc.)

Consumable items generate more business than a fixed item. Example; do you want to be the manufacturer of a toilet.....or the toilet paper, toilet paper supplier makes more money in the longterm. Ever notice who does the most business at gun shows?....ammo and reloading vendors.

....Just a few thoughts....good luck

 

[LEWIS]

Jakes10mm
Why start out at bottom of deep hole and still have mountain to climb after you get out?
I think your business focus is much too narrow to have any hope of success. You and I may love 10's but to most shooters its just something to fill the column next to 9mm, and gunsmithing on Colt 1911's & clones has been done to death. It seems like there's a 1911 expert under every rock.
Now for a suggestion.
Shift your business plan to an indoor shooting range. Do your planning and demographics from both available approches, starting with emty lot and building entire complex or converting an existing buiding with renovations for sound, safety and ventalation. You end up with practical business plan, who knows maybe rich uncle will leave you the money to complete the project and you can't get any more firearms related than a shooting range, indoor or out.

For What Its Worth. $ .02?

LEWIS

 

[GigaBuist]

Shift your business plan to an indoor shooting range. Do your planning and demographics from both available approches, starting with emty lot and building entire complex or converting an existing buiding with renovations for sound, safety and ventalation. You end up with practical business plan, who knows maybe rich uncle will leave you the money to complete the project and you can't get any more firearms related than a shooting range, indoor or out.

Bingo! Talk about a consumable resource too! Once it's built you're selling time slices. There's lots of time, and you get more and more of it every day. Your cost is just the electricity to keep it open and the payments back to the bank after it's built. Well, employee time, insurance costs, and heaps of other stuff that the government throws at you... but you can make more "time" cheaper than any hard product that exists. Well, maybe water is cheaper.

You can then use the facility to teach classes and such after you receive certifications from the NRA or whoever. You're then charging for your existing knowledge as well as your time. They're both things you wake up with fully stocked every morning.

Once you get that going you get to sell another zero cost resource: the name. Franchise it or open up more locations under the same name. Sure, it costs more to open up a new store but having that established name is worth a substantial amount on paper. It just keeps growing in value too, assuming you run things right.

Load up on ammo for the range, that's a consumable. You buy it, you sell it. They come back for more. Charge a small markup on your firearms just to get people in the door and coming back every now and again.

Looks pretty much like the business model of the local indoor range that just opened up near me. I love 'em... wish I had had the foresight and cash to do it myself now.

 

[manwithoutahome]

Since you mentioned the 9x23 cart., I am assuming this includes the 9mm Largo.

Gear up a business toward repairing the C&R type guns, having parts and assor. for them (even if you make them in your machine shop).

C&R seems to be "catching on" and more and more people on the boards are getting them. Yet, getting parts and especially ammo is a pain in the butt.

So, you invest in about getting as much brass for all these types (the Nagant 1894 and the 9x23 Largo come to mind) and reload them and sell at prices that really undercut the few boxes on the market today. Build a machine shop that can duplicate any piece on any older gun. Also, since the Star Super can handle 9mm Luger barrels, make them also.

with C&R's there is a great demand for parts, ammo, and speciality parts but the prices make them change most C&R owners minds. Since ammo is so expensive, you don't see "Nagant field tests" or the "Star Super 9mm Largo field tests" because the ammo is just too darn expensive.

Once your name was spread around, then your business could boom. But then again, with any business, it could Ka-Boom.

M.

 

[Standing Wolf]

...whether there would be a niche market for the business concept...

I think there would be a niche market, but it would be extremely small: the more specialized the firearm, the narrower the market for it.

 

[Jakes10mm]

Good Feedback

Thanks to all. Good feedback. Please keep it coming. Sifting through it all, I will definitely find that niche that I can build a business plan around and astound my professor.

Thanks and keep it coming!

 

[7.62FullMetalJacket]

I like the idea of an indoor range connected to firearms and accessories sales.

Every time I buy a firearm I cringe cause it may not be what I was expecting. It would be nice to rent the same model, buy some ammo, and fire it before I buy.

In fact, that may just work.......

 

[Rembrandt]

Setting up a shooting facility can produce some interesting obstacles. Three most important things in commercial real estate is ....."location, location, location". One could stick a range in the country away from your client base or place it in a busy strip mall next to a freeway where everyone can see your lighted signs. Let the location also act as part of the advertising.

Do a population study, where would you prefer to set up a range?...a population base of 100,000 people in a 50 mile area?...or 3,000,000 people in a 25 mile radius? Go where the most people are.

What is the percentage of active shooters per 1000 population? The market potential will be quite small for shooting sports compared to the potential number of people who buy hamburgers. You will have to rule out the under 21 crowd as a target audience.

Environmental issues, local codes, and insurance can be an expensive cost of starting and maintaining a range.

I know of a couple of indoor ranges that pull in close to $3 million a year gross sales....they also rent machine guns and do not allow customers to bring their own ammo. Make a lot of their income from rentals and tourist clientel.

 

[The_Antibubba]

UPSELL!

A shooting range is great, but for real money, make sure you're selling $4.00 espressos!
Nothing like downing a triple cap before rockin & rollin with that rental MP5!!!! WHOOOOEEEEEEEEE!!!!


Seriously, i don't know what size market you're looking at, but there's no reason you can't make this place stand out in the market. Why NOT an upscale shooting range, or a place for the family. I mean, once you get past the firearms liability costs and insurance, etc, the rest is easy. Shooting safety and operations classes. Basic maintenance. Intros to reloading. The viewing gallery. You can do as much or as little as you want. Too many of the shooting ranges I've been to had no amenities past a soda machine and a pit toilet. If were going to move firearms into the mainstream again, we've got to make the range a lot less...stark.

Just my deranged two cents.

 

[sm]

I have always thought:

1) More .22 ammo is fired yearly than most everything else. A .22 rimfire ammo only "course". Think minature golf + sporting clays. Get the family involved, take a day shooting various sumulated targets from small game to bottles off a fence post type stages. [ Using simulated targets of course]

Lots of folks are not being brought up with firearms and learning to shoot. This would teach, be fun, prep for hunting seasons, be a family deal, and perhaps lead to more RKBA and CCW folks.

2).22 rimfire with rubber bullets. Just like the rubber or wax bullets one can shoot indoors. Some restraints for lead, ventilation are really expensive for indoor ranges. Some folks can't or won't get involved in shoting due to cost of ammo or guns. I dunno but if a rubber bullet in .22 rimfire was available this "might" be less restrictive in some areas. Introduce new shooters, which may lead to other interests in shooting.

In a basement, warehouse, out on one's property what a way to learn trigger control and pop some cans out the back door.

I have shot the .38 spl and .45ACP rubber bullets indoors. Travis McGee reminded me of the wax bullets for same use.

I am not aware of any rubber or wax bullets for ,22 rimfire. In centerfire these are primer fed only. Since we can't re-prime the cases...and therefore components would not be sold ...sell the cartridge, dunno which would work better , rubber or wax...just a thought.

 

[sitkablacktail]

My businesss venture would be to open a indoor range were you can rent full auto guns and sell the ammo to go with it and other hand guns of course. This would be best in a area that get's lots of Japaneese tourists, they love that stuff. Rent the full auto for say $20 and let them blast till thier hearts content, then at the end of the shooting session just add up all the ammo. It will go something like this "OK Mr. Chang the rental on the gun was $20 and the 300 rounds you used was $84 would that be Master Card or Visa". Along with this range you sell T Shirts, live fire vidoes of the person, pictures, acessories for guns and lot of guns too.

 

[GigaBuist]

A shooting range is great, but for real money, make sure you're selling $4.00 espressos!

And beer! LIcenses to make/sell your own beer are easy to come by unlike your typical liquor license that lets you sell other people's stuff.

Indoor range, shooting classes, "sampling" room for the taps at $3 a pint, reloading supplies, home brew supplies, beer making classes... hmm.

Hey, in SHTF scenario the guy's that you do not want to kick out of your new upstart town definately include:

- The guy that can shoot.
- The guy that can make ammo.
- The guy that can make beer.

Be all of 'em.

They can that makes soap definately gets to stay too.

 

[Waitone]

Range---that's the ticket. You want frequent repeat business.

My secondary dream is an indoor range located in Yuppieville, Anywhere. The key is lots of lunch busness from the cliff dwellers. Make it upscale with a nice waiting area, nice selection of firearms to purchase or rent, nice furniture, well-dressed, clean employees who speak in complete sentences.

Now here is the key! Co-locate the range with a deli preferrably Noo Yark style. Lots of smells, great sandwiches, soups, expensive coffee. Set the deli and range up to attract women. Interior decorating would need the feminine touch. Nice, clean bathrooms.

Now co-market to the cliff dwellers. Take reservations in and around lunch. Offer selections such as "Crock and a Glock" where the customer gets a crock of french onion soup, a Glock of his / her choice, and a box of appropriate ammo. Bersa expresso get the customer a Bersa, ammo, and a great expresso. Those wanting a sandwich could ask for "Kimber and Cornbeef."

Before or after lunch market to the business entertainment crowd. Peddlers are always wanting to entertain customers yet customer increasingly are without time. Can't afford the time to play golf during work hours, don't want to take up family time. Package up range time perhaps with onsite instruction to attrack the peddlers who has limited entertainment time with his costomers.

Immedialely after work be prepared to sponsor training classes catering specifically to women. Why women? Nature, that's why.

 

[Rembrandt]

P.T. Barnum has been credited with being the father of modern day business promotion....even he would be shocked how far it's gone in today's society. Madison Avenue has a long standing line that "sex sells" product.

We once had a quick oil change business that came to town called "Boob-N-Lube".....topless gals would service the car while drivers happily handed over the credit cards and cash. City officials weren't impressed with all the publicity and found some obscure laws to shut it down.

I suppose someone could open a gun range (Hooters & Shooters) that's a combination of "Hooters Girls" and shooting.....take the patrons minds off the cost of ammo.

....or have a gun range geared for women clientel, guys dressed like "Chipendale Exotic Dancers" to introduce the ladies to the wonderful world of shooting sports. You'd see women who never had an interest in firearms flock to such a range.