Gun shop owners: What will I need to start my own business?

[bogie]

Right. Don't get bent out of shape that Bubba wants to save $1.95 over what you're charging for a boomstick. Happily take his transfer fee - because that's darn near a zero paperwork, zero hassle, zero cash out of your pocket exchange. I don't see why so many gun shops veg out over those... And while he's in the store, sell him a scope, mounts, sling, swivels, and a few boxes of ammo.

ADVERTISE. A lot of places don't do that. And they wonder why nobody knows that they're there...

 

[mikec]

Regarding transfer fees, some states have more BS paper then others. What a dealer does in one state, with little or no paperwork, can't be compared to a state like MD where a handgun purchase can kill a new pen.

 

[Nomad101bc]

Calling CT peoples republic of CT is a little harsh. We have very good firearms laws compared to our nieghbors and more freedom than Vermont on some laws such as being allowed to own silencers if you jump through the class III hoops.

But yes wait several years to accumulate some wealth for this venture.

 

[ilbob]

So, we have pretty much established that to operate a conventional brick-and-mortar business will cost an arm and a leg, with little return unless I were to open a side business related, like a range. I figured as much.

what makes you think a range is such a great money maker? I have a real good idea what it takes to build a modern range, and they ain't cheap. You are looking at something like $500,000. To pay for it, you would need to do probably $7-10,000 a month in range business. At ten bucks a head, it is unlikely to happen.

I am not saying you should not look into such a business, but be realistic about it, and get past the "it would be nice to buy cheap guns" side of things.

You will probably find that a serious gun dealership needs at least rudimentary gunsmithing services as well. If you can't do that yourself, you will need to find someone who can.

 

[mikec]

The indoor range/shop near me is owned by people who own two shops, both do transfers and have the licenses to handle class III as well, they also have a separate shop that sell safes and deliver them.They also offer various training classes.

The range rents time in 1/2 hr blocks, no flat fee unless you pay for some level of membership.

 

[arcticap]

delete

 

[mp510]

Calling CT peoples republic of CT is a little harsh. We have very good firearms laws compared to our nieghbors and more freedom than Vermont on some laws such as being allowed to own silencers if you jump through the class III hoops.

I would much rather have Vermont's laws than ours. Would they be interested in swapping? The fact of the matter is, DPS SLFU is RENEGADE and is known to exceed the statuatory enumerations of their authority. IIRC there is currentely at least 4 seperated state and federal lawsuits pending (by at least 3 distinct plantiffs) regarding unlawful refusals to renew, unlawful revocation, unlawful threats of revocation, unlawful threats of arrest, failure to notify individuals that their permits were (illegally) revoked, illegal confiscations of legally posessed firearms, violation of due process by BFPE, illegally determining what is or isn't an assault weapon, and repeatadly giving erroneous advice to citizens of CT attempting to find out what exactly is and isn't legal (some of their advice could, if followed, land somebody in the clink for a very long time). Go to the Ye Connecticut Gun Guild Site and read about the Goldberg, Peruta and kuck cases. This all on top of the states ludicrous assault weapons ban and discretionary issue carry permit system.

Then of course, there's the general leftist mentality within the government of the state and state as a whole

 

[CWL]

45 minutes isn't very far to drive, especially to access 3 major gun dealers in your area. I wouldn't give a thought to drive that far in order to have more selection or save $ on a gun or ammo. I like to see the variety laid out in front of me.

You already have 2 local gunshops in your area? Have you given any hard thought why they don't carry a large selection of inventory? Is it because they can't compete with the bigger operations so they stick with the smaller service-oriented business in order to survive?

Sorry, but it sounds like your area is already innundated with competitors who already have years of business relationships, goodwill and loyal customers.

It is obvious you don't have any experience in running a business (yet).

My suggestion is to learn about the business first. You should get a job at one of the local or larger gunshops. Work hard to learn everything you need to know about the business, meet & develop relationships with the customer base & distributors.

After you do this, you will either know enough to survive running your own business, or you'll have decided it isn't worth it.

 

[Airman193SOS]

45 minutes isn't very far to drive, especially to access 3 major gun dealers in your area. I wouldn't give a thought to drive that far in order to have more selection or save $ on a gun or ammo. I like to see the variety laid out in front of me.

Bass Pro told me specifically that they do not carry anything with barrels shorter than 4". They cater to hunters and hobbyists only, not collectors or enthusiasts per se. Gander Mountain has a reputation for being overpriced in general, and the one in Chambersburg mostly deals in service-size handguns, which for most people are a no-go for CCW. Trop has pretty much all of what I'm interested in getting into, but if someone can go 5 minutes away instead of 45 minutes away it's a competitive advantage.

You already have 2 local gunshops in your area? Have you given any hard thought why they don't carry a large selection of inventory? Is it because they can't compete with the bigger operations so they stick with the smaller service-oriented business in order to survive?

One is gunsmithing only, occasionally moving something for someone on consignment, because that's the business he wants to do. It's a low-key business in a small structure that is fairly difficult to find. The other guy does smithing in the basement of his bike shop and is nothing more than a hobby for him. It has little to do with fear of competition and everything to do with what they want to do.

It is obvious you don't have any experience in running a business (yet).

That is correct. I never claimed otherwise. That said, when I'm not in school or flying with the Guard I'm working the same job I've been doing for the last 12 years: running a restaurant for my boss in the evenings. I have done everything that there is to do in the business, and what I know should translate well with minor adaptations, so I'm not entirely naive.

 

[mikec]

One possible option, why not see if the shop 45 minutes away wants to open a second location. Maybe get into business with that gunsmith only guy. You do retail sales and stuff, the guy offers scope mounting and whatever else. There was a shop in the area that was open 5pm-9pm M-F. As long as you have "regular" hours, ATF should have no issue.

(Before anyone questions why the 5pm-9pm shop closed the owner told me that he wanted to close, he and the wife both were retired from the 8:30-4:30 job for a long time. They wanted to be retired full time.)

 

[PvtPyle]

The most often overlooked and area that is cut the quickest is advertising. Do you know anything about advertising in the local market?

 

[koginam]

One thing that I didn't post earlier and you did touch on yourself is the need to have more merchandise on the sale floor then guns, Clothing has a very good markup but the inventory requires space. Internet sales is becoming a very profitable part of a growing business and requires much less space. I pulled in about $ 25,000 a year doing metal coating for my shops and several others, business I got through the Internet.
A range is more of an pain then it is worth with cost of construction and liability insurance costs,