by Joseph P. Tartaro | Executive Editor
For the last few years, change has been the order of the day in general retailing and the outdoor field, and in the magazine and newspaper publishing industry that has been transformed by the Internet.
Previously, TGM had reported on reorganization and downsizing by such national chains as Sports Authority. And you’ve probably also read about downsizing and reorganization by such giants of the retailing field as Macy’s and Sears. Now comes news that Sport Chalet and some Eastern Mountain Sports stores are closing as both firms and their controlling company, Vestis Retail Group, have all filed separately for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
Vestis Retail Group also operates Bob’s Stores.
Vestris said the move is necessary to remove the burden of its failing Sport Chalet brand and better focus on its two other more promising chains.
As a result of the bankruptcy, Vestis has begun winding down all of its Sport Chalet stores, and plans to close eight Eastern Mountain stores and one Bob’s location.
But retailers are not the only businesses dealing with the new economy.
On April 28, Folio, a publishing industry trade publication, announced that “in one fell swoop, magazine media’s ongoing digital disruption claims another victim.”
“New York-based enthusiast publisher Harris Publications notified employees today that the company is shutting down, effective immediately, after nearly four decades.
To people in the gun and outdoor business, Harris, founded in 1971, has been known as the publisher of a long list of outdoor titles, including Combat Handguns, Guns & Weapons for Law Enforcement, Personal Defense World, Survivor’s Edge, American Frontiersman and many more. Folio took note of Harris’ special interest magazines such as newsstand mainstays SLAM, Guitar World, XXL, King, Revolver, and Woman.
Harris Publishing’s announcement read:
“It is with great sadness that we are announcing the closing of Harris Publications. For nearly 40 years, Harris Publications has been a mainstay in enthusiast publishing.
“We are extremely grateful for the tremendous contributions of our employees, past and present. The hard work and dedication of our creative, sales, circulation and operations teams and the talents of our freelance editors, writers, photographers and designers are what allowed us to continue delivering thoughtful and beautiful magazines to our readers.
“The magazine publishing industry has been through turmoil in the face of the rapid ascendance of digital media, changing consumer content preferences, magazine wholesaler struggles and consolidation in the supply chain. We have tried mightily to persevere against these forces, but have been unable to overcome these challenges.”
TGM sources indicate that the Harris will likely be sold to another firm, or to investors who might continue many of the titles. As we go to press, the future of the Harris staff, veteran outdoor writers and photographers remains in doubt.
But there is also good news in the gun and outdoor industry.
Cabela’s Incorporated, the “World’s Foremost Outfitter®” of hunting, fishing and outdoor gear, was announced as one of The Harris Poll’s 2016 Brands of the Year. The awards were just released in its 28th annual EquiTrend study.
More than 3,800 brands were reportedly evaluated by more than 97,000 US consumers, and Cabela’s was the only sporting-goods retailer named as a “Brand of the Year” recipient. This marks the third time in the last four years that Cabela’s has received this ranking from consumers.
“Consumers form impressions of brands long before they ever use them, based on their perceptions and what they may know from trusted sources,” said Joan Sinopoli, vice president of brand solutions at Nielsen, which owns The Harris Poll. “This high level equity is the gateway to eventual purchase; it also helps to protect brands from the consequences of an occasional misstep. The strength of a company’s brand equity can have direct business and financial outcomes.”
The Harris Poll EquiTrend study utilizes an equity index and methodology that has been academically assessed and validated to prove that strong brand equity is associated with strong financial performance.
Founded in 1961 as a private mail order business, Cabela’s Incorporated, headquartered in Sidney, NE, is now a publicly owned corporation with stock traded on the New York Stock Exchange. It is a leading specialty omni-channel retailer of hunting, fishing, camping, shooting sports and related outdoor merchandise. Cabela’s offers a wide and distinctive selection of high-quality outdoor products online, in a mail order catalog, and in a series of large stand-alone retail stores spread across the county.
The year 2016 is still on pace to set a record for background checks for gun purchases, according to new data from the FBI, reported by CNN Money on May 4.
The FBI reported that there were 2,145,865 background checks in April. Although that’s the slowest month so far this year, it’s a 25% increase over April 2015.
Background checks in every month this year have made double digit gains over 2015, which had a record number of requests for background checks, CNN said.
There’s a strong indication that the April slow-down is a cyclical phenomenon, rather than a sign that the gun-buying peak is over. In every full year since the FBI started conducting background checks in 1998, April has been slower than March. The slow-downs tend to continue through the summer, and then background checks pick up again in the fall.
Background checks are not the same thing as gun sales, but they serve as a proxy, CNN Money noted. But one thing is clear. The FBI background check data does show that gun sales are on the rise.
This trend began in December 2012 when 26 children and educators were massacred in the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut. That wasn’t the only time that a mass shooting drove gun sales. The record month for background checks was December 2015, when 14 people were murdered in a mass shooting in San Bernardino, California.
CNN Money said that gun sales, and therefore background checks, are driven by these events partly because Americans want to protect themselves. Gun purchasers are also afraid that mass shootings will prompt more gun control laws that will make it harder for them to get guns.
As additional evidence of the strength of the current firearms industry, CNN Money noted that Sturm Ruger and Smith & Wesson, two of the biggest publicly traded gun companies in the US, have reported double-digit gains in sales this year.
And gun-related businesses are moving forward.
At the end of March and beginning of April, the 77-year-old, family-owned Brownells held a soft open followed by grand opening that included Iowa Gov. Terry Brandstad (R) for its new 7,000-square-foot retail store in Grinnell, IA.
The dark wood paneling and trophy taxidermy hanging inside Brownells Inc.’s echoes the aesthetics of a such other outdoor outlets as Cabela’s, Bass Pro Shops or other sporting goods stores, but Brownells is all about guns—including accessories, parts and tools.
Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad (R) held a ceremony inside Brownells newly opened retail store March 31 to sign a bill legalizing gun suppressors.
The big Brownells showroom off Interstate 80 is stocked with rows of pistols, rifles and thousands of gun tools, parts and accessories by the company that bills itself as “the world’s leading source” for gun parts, accessories and ammunition.
It was a busy time for a company known to probably every gunowner in America. The Iowa company recently has even played host to three presidential candidates, even as the debate over gun control continues to play a key role in the 2016 campaign.
One-time Republican presidential candidates Jeb Bush, Ted Cruz and Rick Santorum made appearances at Brownells’ mammoth complex in the lead-up to the Feb. 1 Iowa caucuses.
The opening of Brownells’ brick-and-mortar store is another milestone for a company that started as a bedridden hobby of its founder in the 1930s, survived a transition from paper catalogs to largely e-commerce, and grew into an international giant in the world of firearms, that has been operated by three generations of the Brownells family.
The company opened its showroom somewhat quietly, holding off on promotional plans for a couple of weeks. Even so, a line of people waited for the doors to open before the soft opening March 30.
“I couldn’t wait. It’s been a long time coming,” said Curtis Cecak, a hunter and hobby shooter from nearby Le Grand, IA, who stopped by.
