Stores limiting Ammo Sales- Agree or Disagree?

[gpb]

It's their store, their goods, and their customers. In a supposedly free country they should be able to sell their goods anyway that they want to.

If I owned a store and was planning on future business, I would look at replacement costs and adjust my prices accordingly and then restrict sales to try and provide a larger number of my customers with some goods. I would think that having some items available would generate traffic and customer good will that would be of present and future value. While this approach would not maximize my current profits, I would view it as an investment in future profits

 

[Browning]

Whether it is fair does not matter. This is about a merchant's right to do business as he sees fit. Fairness may or may not matter to that merchant, and perceived fairness may matter to his customers in the long run, so the wise merchant takes that into account.

But in this context--acceptability to a single buyer--fairness is irrelevant.

If the LGS merchant wants to keep doing business in that community it matters a great deal. To a merchant on the web with a larger customer base less so.

Most firearms and gun related items are sold to repeat customers, not to the panic buyers who might only come in once a year (if at all). His or her business is dependent on good will from those repeat customers. If that good will vanishes, so does the business.

Buying guns and ammo isn't like other businesses. Quite a few people in the US will buy a gun, ammo or mags from a gun store at some point in their lives, but there are only so many really active shooters in a given area.

I've seen it before. Local gun store owner gets a reputation as a jerk or a price gouger and he/she won't be there for very much longer.

 

[xfyrfiter]

I think that we are seeing the results of "on time delivery" where there is very little to no backstock, the manufacturing side has been doing this for years. Now when it hits the distribution side, the public sees what could happen if the supply chain was cut. It can happen with any consumable, even groceries.

 

[2ifbyC]

It's the store option but sometimes it depends on the commodity to make the right/smart business choice.

I remember the gasoline lines in 1973 and 1978. If they didn't ration gas, people would have brought in tanker trucks and bought as much as they could haul. Johnny Carson joked about a toilet paper shortage and the next day people made a run on toilet paper and cleared the shelves. Gas is a necessity; there are other options for toilet paper.

We are dealing with panic buying; panic buyers are irrational. Stores that want repeat customers or who want to ensure they can offer ammo for guns they sell, would be wise to institute some form of rationing.

 

[Bubba613]

They also alienate there customer base. I've already started keeping track of retailers that are gouging on prices and plan on never doing Buisness with them again, even after there prices return to normal.

Yeah, I hear that all the time. And I give it no credence whatsoever. If a retailer has the right product at the right price at the right time the customer will buy from him. CTD pissed off a lot of people in the past. And they don't seem to suffer from it.

 

[Zardaia]

I think rationing is better than hoarding. Rationing keeps prices sane. Some people like to stock up when prices are good, but if a small group buys more than they need just to profit from a shortage, then you have a problem. Should I be able to walk in to Walmart and buy 1500 rounds? Sure, but it's better that everybody can go in and get 100-200 rounds at the normal price than one person buying it all and sitting on it raising the price for everybody else.

Nothing wrong with hoarding in normal times, but anyone just starting to hoard at panic price must be either insane or far richer than I. Only part that bothers me is the major mark up people r demanding on resale after they buy out every shipment a store gets the moment it goes on shelves.

 

[ScrapMetalSlug]

We have 3 Wal-Mart's in the immediate vicinity. 2 of them have 4 box limits on ammo but they are completely cleaned out of everything except some odd ball hunting ammo like 44-40, 22lr shot shells, and .410 bird shot. When I went in to the stores with the limits there are literally people hovering around the gun counter waiting for something to be put on the shelf.
I went to the other Wal Mart with no limit and they actually had a pretty good variety of ammo on the shelf all at pre-panic prices and it was the only place I could find 380.

 

[easyg]

I think that they should be able to sell as they wish.
Businesses already suffer too much regulation.

 

[bulletboy]

Agree! There's nothing worse than going to the store to buy ammo before you go to the shooting range and some <deleted> in front of you is buying every box of ammo in the place. These morons aren't actually going to shoot this ammo they're just paranoid <deleted> with a hoarding problem.

 

[mcdonl]

A lot of the arguments against are so the store can sell faster. BS... It will ALL sell fast even with limits. If they have 1000 boxes of ammo and one guy buys all 1000, or 500 guys buy 2 boxes each it will still sell in short order except they will only alienate that one guy who would have bought it all to re-sell instead of the other 499 who left empty handed.

Look at all the stories of "The shelves were bare" they are not all bare because one or two people got all of the inventory.

 

[Fishslayer]

If I'm first in line I disagree with limits.

If I'm second in line then I agree.

One time in '09 I actually split the last of their .22 bricks with the next guy. He was very grateful & said I was a great guy. I didn't bother to mention how many bricks I already had at home...

 

[beatledog7]

Local gun store owner gets a reputation as a jerk or a price gouger and he/she won't be there for very much longer.

That's his risk to take.

Agree! There's nothing worse than going to the store to buy ammo before you go to the shooting range and some <deleted> in front of you is buying every box of ammo in the place. These morons aren't actually going to shoot this ammo they're just paranoid <deleted> with a hoarding problem.

If you waited too long to roll into the store, is that the merchant's fault, or the <deleted> fault? No, they had nothing to do with your timing; that one's on you. And what the <deleted> plans to do with that ammo, as long as it's legal, is none of anyone else's business.

 

[Jlr2267]

Agree with their right to do either.

If it was my store, I would limit sales right now.

 

[soonerfan85]

I went in to our local WM this weekend looking a box of 38spl or 357 ammo to test fire a pistol I'm looking at buying. Of course they didn't have it, or any other pistol caliber, or 5.56, 7.62x39 or .22lr. I asked the clerk if they were still receiving ammo and she said yes, but it sells as soon as they get it. In fact, she said they sell it right off the shipping pallet. Usually one or two guys will come in every night to check for new ammo, and if there is any they buy it all. I suspect it's our local pawn shops buying at WM and reselling it for double what they pay. I really don't understand why WM doesn't limit daily purchases on ammo right now. I guess they don't care about their regular customers.

 

[12131]

Their store, their policy.

 

[beatledog7]

What percentage of Walmart customers do you think ever buy ammo? It's pretty low, I'll bet.

The simple truth is that they don't have to care about their regular customers because for every one they disappoint there are a hundred more that will just keep happily coming back for the low prices they perceive they're getting. These folks are not buying ammo, and they're not going to start buying it.

If Walmart stopped selling ammo nationwide, and every ammo buyer that ever went to Walmart stopped going there forever, they'd still be enormously profitable.

 

[gego]

I really don't care one way or another as long as the store is making the choice and not the government. I will say that if they need to ration by limiting how many boxes you can buy, they probably have set the price too low to let the market place do the rationing.

 

[Redlg155]

I've reviewed the posts and it seems large majority support my local Walmart 's.decisio to ration.

I do applaud Walmart for offering ammo at a fair price that is not inflated "just because" people still buy at a higher price.

I was in Jacksonville this past weekend and got to visit a local shop. There were very few weapons and zero AR types. They are making their money on overpriced ammo and indoor range fees.

What I found strange is that the had far wall lined with ARs., scars and the lile, buy these weapons were all owned by the.employees

 

[Browning]

That's his risk to take.

Yes, it is. His/her store and they're free to do whatever they want with it.

Just like it's their customers right not to shop there if they feel that they're being treated unfairly. Sword cuts both ways.

-
I'm not talking about large stores like Walmart where the vast majority of their sales come from nothing even remotely sporting or guns/ammo related. Was talking about local gun stores.

Stores like Walmart can survive gun owners avoiding shopping there because they sell so many other items. The same can't be said for a mom n' pop Gunstore that counts entirely on the sale of guns, ammo and gun accessories as their bread and butter.

 

[Deer_Freak]

The LGS around here don't care. The are charging $60 to $70 for 100 rounds of FMJ 9mm target ammo. I don't care what they charge. I stopped buying from all the LGS's this summer. I get better prices online and they get an FFL here and there. I don't have to deal with their bad attitude or high prices. Make them an offer on a gun and if you are lucky they will cave 3 months later. Screw that I can get the gun for the offer I made them today. I don't mind paying a little more for good service. If you have a problem with a gun you bought they act like you are asking them to plow a field when you ask for a box to ship the gun back to the factory in. Forget using their UPS drop or any help in making the return.

You have to get to Walmart at 7am to buy ammo. You see all the bad attitudes waiting for the clerk to bring the ammo out. At least the sporting goods manager makes them wait until just regular customers get their ammo.

 

[chipcom]

They have the right to sell however they want or to not sell at all. If someone doesn't like it, they should shop elsewhere.

and the answer is ^^^^^^^

 

[soonerfan85]

IF you live in a town where WM sells probably 80% of all ammo sold in that town, and the nearest option is at least 40 miles away, then the manager's decision to not limit the number of boxes does impact their customers. I'd guess that close to half of WM customers here buy ammo from time to time. I say that because there are many hunting clubs and an active shooting range here. Luckily there is no shortage of shotgun shells so I'm shooting more sporting clays and trap until inventories build back up.

 

[snuzzo29]

I agree that stores limit ammo sales. You may not get as much as you want but its better than the guy in front of you getting it all and you getting nothing.

Now I just need to find the store that has .22lr along with the rifle I want.

 

[Bmont2409]

I heard a fellow in a Cabela's start getting a little testy because they had just started a limit of 1 AR per person. He said that he wouldn't have stood in line so long if he knew he couldnt buy 3 of them. He was told that if everyone that bought AR's that morning had been allowed more he wouldn't have had to stand in line because they would have all been gone before he got to the store. He thought about it and said he would be happy with the one.

 

[sappyg]

Snuzzo29.

You're a little late to the party.