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Independent Long Island firearms dealers try to survive in battle

Long Island Business News, Oct 29, 2004 by Ken Schachter

Independent Long Island firearms dealers are staring into the muzzle of a Howitzer.

In a gunfight played out throughout the country, the biggest, baddest dudes in retail - the Big Boxes - got the drop on the mom- and-pop shops.

The shadows of ubiquitous Wal-Mart department stores, the 100,000- square-foot Roosevelt Field store of Galyan's and soon Cabela's, which is building a 175,000-square-foot store in East Rutherford, N.J., loom large over the independents, much as Home Depot and Lowe's Home Improvement have eclipsed local hardware stores.

Local retailers are trying to fight back, but on some counts the showdown is a clear mismatch. By buying in bulk, the chains can pass along volume discounts that the small shops can't match.

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I buy one gun; they buy a thousand, said Cliff Eberhard, proprietor of Ye Olde Gun Shoppe in Deer Park.

As a gunsmith who hand-crafts custom rifles costing up to $5,000, Eberhard is insulated from the impact of the mass merchants, but others are not so fortunate.

There aren't too many left on Long Island, the manager of one Long Island gun shop said of the independents. It's a tough business. It's a very restricted business. It's very hard.

Gone is the Edelman's store in Farmingdale, once a major destination of Long Island gun shoppers. Telephone calls to other shops, such as Collectors Firearms Limited in Mineola, Lad's Firearms & Trading Post in Medford and M&S Firearms & Militaria Limited in Kings Park, reached non-working numbers.

Testy workers at some gun shops were hesitant to talk.

I won't talk to the media because they take it all out of context, said a person at a Bohemia gun store before slamming down the phone.

Frank Briganti, manager of industry research and analysis for the National Shooting Sports Foundation, a nonprofit trade association, noted that data from market tracker SportScanINFO shows that while weekly sales of shooting gear is almost flat, the big-box stores are grabbing market share.

Retail sales are up 3.1 percent overall year-to-date, he said, but sales by full-line retailers, such as Wal-Mart and Dick's Sporting Goods Inc., the parent of Galyan's, increased by 18 percent.

We recently did a survey of small, independent dealers within a 50- mile radius of these mega-dealers, Briganti said. We found that about half had estimated they lost 15 percent or more in market share to the larger stores.

As many politicians who have tangled with the National Rifle Association have found, the market is substantial.

Market researcher American Sports Data Inc. found that there are about 15.2 million active hunters in the United States and 13.8 million target handgun shooters.

One issue not affecting local firearms dealers is the expiration of the federal law banning the sale of semi-automatic assault weapons in September. In 2000, New York State made it a felony to possess or sell assault weapons or a large-capacity ammunition magazine.

Who's the king of the hill? Briganti said discount giant Wal-Mart ($258.7 billion in revenue for the fiscal year ended Jan. 31) likely holds that title for volume sales in firearms. While Wal-Mart may offer rock-bottom prices, it may not have the selection of a 3,000- square-foot independent, Briganti added.

Giant specialty stores like Cabela's, however, can offer a massive selection of guns and accessories along with a retailing experience no independent can match.

Long Islanders who venture to the East Rutherford Cabela's, scheduled to open in 2007, can expect to find a mountain replica with waterfalls, streams and a trout pond; a 40,000-gallon aquarium; a diorama of African game animals and a shooting gallery.

These are destination places, Briganti said. They have beautiful, elaborate displays of wildlife. They have museums. It becomes an experience rather than a store. That attracts a lot of non-shooters as well.

Even store hours can work against the independents. Briganti said research shows that the mega-stores are open an average of 85 hours per week, versus 52 hours for the independents.

Lots of times the small guy isn't even open Sunday, Briganti said.

All of the mega-stores have Web sites, Briganti said, versus 35 percent of the independents.

Still, the independents can fight back, Briganti said. For instance, small shops can offer personalized service that retail giants would be hard-pressed to match. The NSSF also advises offering more upscale merchandise and accessorizing every sale.

Typically, any small business will do the same thing no matter what the merchandise, said Randy Smith, manager of the Mineola-based gun shop Michael Britt Inc. You give yourself an edge through customer service, providing information about the product, explaining the product as opposed to putting a gun in a box and sending them on their way.

Finally, the NSSF suggests that independents take a page from Wal- Mart by maintaining databases of customers and other key business information.

The business has changed, said Eberhard, who has been making and selling firearms for 40 years. The hunting season is not nearly as big. Now people can't take off [from work].

Independent Long Island firearms dealers try to survive in battle

Long Island Business News, Oct 29, 2004 by Ken Schachter

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