While the lingerie things was hilarious I don't think it'd be....can't think of a good reason to say no, it just doesn't feel like a fit is all.
There is a mix of hunters. The pawn shop is not too far from my law school and close to a diner where I find some of the best burger specials for lunch and I talk guns with lots of hunters, vets, and recreational gunnies in general. Problem is it is Orlando not too far from Downton Orlando and the uglier parts of Orange County where all the drug dealers live.
If the guy can undercut the prices on Sig at the other shops it'd be a great idea I think, not by much but $50 bucks cheaper (well advertised on the internet and gunbroker) would help with sales. While guns are going like crazy in our area (was at the range when it first opened and just got home after picking up a few hundred pieces of brass that wasn't mine, and did some double-tap time with my snubby .357 and a little fun with the 12 guage) where I saw three gun sales in less than an hour on ten+ capacity semis, I hope this guy understands that folks buy what they feel they need, not what you want to sell them necessarily.
I like the books idea, especially letting folks with old shooting and collecting books sell them to the shop for store credit, maybe even a silly rental reading system with paid membership. If he's not going to stock a large selection of guns from the beginning then the archery range idea would be a good one, there's a bass pro shop ten minutes away so fishing supplies might not be a big seller. Hunting is not big so unless there are consignments(also put them up on gunbroker as well as in the shop) I don't see there being a lot (already know a guy with a Remington 700 who wants to bring it by when the shop opens it doors, wants 600 for it or more if he can get it, not including the scope). ARs and Aks are hot items in my area and the guy has three Ruger Mini-14s he picked up at $400 a piece he's holding back to sell at $700 a piece.
I'm getting dinner with the guy tonight (he's paying) so I'll write up a proposal like this:
-A few mags of each popular Sig model, as well as offering to order items for customers at 15% above cost when the customer pays ahead of time.
-Minor reloading supplies, a few thousand cast bullets of 9mm, .45 ACP, and wait to see. Lee reloading equipment that isn't too expensive that if doesn't sell the shop could use to offer "Reloading Services" like say if you bring in the 9mm brass and if it is good condition(and they sign a lengthy waiver) the folks can buy reloaded ammo at 20 cents a round reloaded as opposed to 27-30 cents a round in Winchester White Box that it goes for at Wally World. Have a couple part-timers be reloading monkeys when the shop isn't busy. Also if a good supply (I might know of one, have to wait for the projectiles to arrive and load them before I know) of .223 projectiles can be secured and the rounds can be loaded for twenty-five cents a round, then to those who have bought a new gun from the shop (or one of a value greater than $600) you sell to those folks reloaded .223 at thirty-five cents a round (it's only a fifteen cent savings but every little bit matters for a lot of folks).
-If there aren't going to be a lot of guns in the shop then a respectable book section of the more popular and noted writers and professionals in firearms i.e. Massad Ayoob, Jeff Cooper, Jerry Miculeik, etc..---Also if he won't go for a indoor shooting range (which he should really jump on) then a small archery two lane range (is twenty yards half-decent).
-Also milsurp rifles like the Mosin-Nagant can be gotten relatively cheap along with ammo, tac-ti-cool them out and sell them for a reasonable markup (only a couple rifles to start).
-Get in AK and AR rifle kits, and sell receivers, contact a gunsmith who can assemble them and sell the kits in dissassembled or offer an additional charge for gunsmith 922lr. compliant assembling services (also throw out the full-auto FCGs for the AKs and sell TAPCO parts with the kit[become a distributor for TAPCO]).
-Let folks with "collector" non-Nazi militaria put their items up for consignment.
-Get a gunbroker account and sell items over gunbroker, put consignment items up on gunbroker.
-Get a website and allow for online sales.
Just to start. Thanks everyone, keep them coming if you can.
