How profitable can a Gun Store and Outdoor Range be?

[Straight Shooter]

Regarding matches:

At the ranges that I have been to, indoor, for profit, not clubs, the matches are held pretty much the same:

Although they all offer yearly memberships and hourly rates, these fees don’t apply to the matches.

There is a fee to compete, usually somewhere around $15 per match/run. An average shooter can complete a match in about 20-30 minutes so you can complete 2 runs in an hour. The same ranges charge around $15-$20/hr normally to shoot, so in essence during the days they hold matches they are doubling their fee.

Setup can be done before the range opens, none of the indoor ranges around me open before 10am.

I have never been to a match at a club (although that may change soon ), I’m guessing they are more involved.

 

[NelsErik]

An easy way to find out would be to hire an MAI appraiser or some other qualified person to do a feasibility study! Let me know if you are interested, I can provide a referral.

 

[Sam1911]

Hey SS,

What kind of matches are those? I'm imagining they must be PPC or similar?

That sort of thing wouldn't/couldn't work with the more popular IDPA, USPSA, and SASS formats, as, not only does the set-up and tear down of complex stages take quite a few hours (many clubs do set up the night before the match), but the shooters are assigned to a squad and the squad moves from stage/bay to stage/bay together, so while it might be possible to shoot the whole match in 30 minutes, by yourself, your actual time spent is more like 3-4 hours.

I've shot PPC type matches before and that kind of square-range shooting can lend itself to a quicker format.

It might still work out for the range owner, though. Say he's normally getting 20 shooters coming by throughout the day on a Saturday, paying $300 total. Then he starts holding IDPA matches and charges a $15 dollar match fee. If he gets more than 20 competitors to show up, it really doesn't matter if they shoot in 30 minutes or 5 hours, he made more money.

However, if on a Saturday he normally sees 5 shooters an hour, for 10 hours ($750 income for the day), unless that IDPA crew brings him 50 competitors -- no one else can shoot that day and he lost money.

But maybe the match shooters will come EVERY month all year, and otherwise his Saturday attendance is variable. Then it gets to be a harder calculation to make.

Hard to say...

-Sam

 

[Straight Shooter]

Sam,

IDPA

Below are the pertinent parts from one range’s web site:
Here is a link to the page, also here is a link to some of their stage descriptions.

The others don’t have detailed descriptions but one stated that it is “IDPA Style”. They hold their own matches and don’t submit results.

The match runs from 4:00 PM to 9:00 PM. The format is open squadding which mean you can show up, shoot, and leave. Typically shooters can show up and shoot the match twice and be done within an hour. Please show up no later than 8:00 PM so that we can complete the shooting by 9:00.

Match Format: The match format is typically as follows. Generally we run 4 IDPA stages. The stages are overlapping, meaning we reuse targets from stages 1 and 2 for stages 3 and 4. If available, we will run two shooters at a time. Shooter 1 will shoot stage 1 and 2. Then shooter 2 will run stage 1 and 2. This gives the first shooter time to reload speed loaders, magazines, or moon clips. Then shooter 1 returns to shoot stage 3 and 4, followed by shooter 2 shooting stages 3 and 4.

My exposure is limited to the few ranges around me, maybe because they are indoor and have limited space they are not "full" IDPA matches? I may be missing a whole other world out there…

 

[Sam1911]

SS,

Wow, that is a cool way to do things with limited space and time! Neat! I've never shot one like that. Sounds like they've gotten quite creative and have a range owner that is willing to work with them.

I see that they're running their matches on Monday nights, which is probably a great way to work things to everyone's benefit. The range owner probably is thrilled to get that many customers in the door on a Monday night.

You should run up to Lower Providence and some others to try a more conventional format, if just for the experience. Of course you will have a great time and get a sense of how the game is usually played. As far as being a "Full" match, you'd really have to attend a "Sanctioned" match (a major regional or national match) for that experience, but PA is host to lots of those, too. (IDPA Nationals was held just north of Allentown at Guthsville two years in a row, 2007 & '08). Usually you're facing 12-15 stages, well-constructed set pieces, decent props, cool moving targets, and several hundred shooters.

Aaaaanyway, back to the OP: Well, SS has given you at least one possibility for getting match shooters in your door and possibly boosting attendance during otherwise dead time slots. Very cool!

-Sam

 

[BullfrogKen]

I have never been to a match at a club (although that may change soon ), I’m guessing they are more involved.

Damn straight they are.

You're forgetting to factor in a cost that's hard to compute - the cost of bad P.R.


At a sportsmen's club - a non-for-profit association of like-minded people with very similar goals in mind - the membership expects to have the occasional inconvenience of a range, or a series of ranges, closed to the general membership for the activity of the day.

At a for-profit business, the paying customer won't tolerate it. He'll bitch about it, and word will get around.


The sense of community at a non-for-profit doesn't exist at a for-profit facility. One truly is a community of people gathered together to enjoy the activities they constructed the club to enjoy. The other is a for-profit business run by a businessman, staffed with low-paid employees. The sense of community will be absent, and the paying members won't like having weekends closed off to them every month.

 

[b_s_c1]

Is there anyone that knows what a public range might gross and net? I know it will vary due to location, setup, and all sort of other variables. I am just wanting an idea. If someone does know and does not want to post it please PM me.

 

[Pweller]

I've had my own business for 14 years now, full time. I admit I don't know much about the gun business, but it seems (in general) very few people that go into the gun business make very much money. I see quite a few gun stores going in and out of business, which I consider to be a bad sign. (I like to see a business where the average schlub makes a decent living, and the best businesses make very good money. This way, even if your business is average, you will still be OK.)

You're talking about a considerable investment, with probably a very high risk. Personally, I wouldn't invest that kind of money in anything unless there was at least a good probability of it being very, very profitable. For a big investment, I need to see a big profit potential - it's the tried-and-true risk vs. reward.

Even though this is something that you want to do, think about what it would be like if the project tanks. Your dream of a gun range could turn into a financial nightmare in short order.

I'd advise you to step back a minute and think of the other things you could do with the money. At least compare it to the return on some standard investments which would carry a much lower risk. Can you afford to lose most of that money? If not, it's probably not a wise thing to do.