by Joseph P. Tartaro | Executive Editor
Magpul Industries, making good on promises made last spring, will relocate its extensive manufacturing facilities to Texas and Wyoming, keeping only a token presence in Colorado, in response to the Centennial State legislature’s enactment of sweeping gun control legislation early in 2013, the company announced on Jan. 2.
At the same time, the company plans to maintain a toehold in Colorado to continue to fight the gun control bills passed by the Democrat-dominated General Assembly and signed in March by Gov. John Hickenlooper (D), Newsmax.com reported.
“Moving operations to states that support our culture of individual liberties and personal responsibility is important,” said Magpul CEO Richard Fitzpatrick, who started the privately held company in 1999 from the basement of his home in Longmont, CO. “This relocation will also improve business operations and logistics as we utilize the strengths of Texas and Wyoming in our expansion.”
The cost to Colorado’s economy, according to the company will be $85 million in local economic activity and up to 400 supply-chain jobs.
Magpul officials plan to split the company’s corporate and manufacturing arms, which are now in Erie, CO.
The corporate headquarters will relocate to Texas, and a site-selection committee has narrowed the destination to three places in the state’s north-central region.
Meanwhile, Magpul’s manufacturing and distribution facility will move about 80 miles north to Cheyenne, WY.
Company officials said they plan to lease a 58,000-square-foot building for two to three years while they construct a 100,000-square-foot custom facility as part of the Cheyenne Business Parkway.
In addition, Magpul, which is a plaintiff in the lawsuit filed by 55 Colorado sheriffs and individual plaintiffs against the state law limiting ammunition magazines to 15 rounds, plans to retain “limited operations” in Colorado. About 92% of its workforce will relocate outside Colorado within 12 to 16 months, according to a company release.
“We made a commitment publicly that we would not abandon the law-abiding gun owners in our own state, and we want to honor that,” said Duane Liptak, Magpul director of product management and marketing.
It’s not every day that legislators run a successful business out of the state, which is what makes Magpul’s story so compelling. But after the gun incidents in 2012, Colorado, New York and Connecticut rushed to pass new gun laws that have also affected the gun industry in those states and caused move-outs.
New Ruger President Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. has announced the promotion of Christopher J. Killoy to be its president, effective January 1, 2014. In this capacity, Killoy will be the Chief Operating Officer (COO) and will be responsible for sales, marketing, manufacturing, product management and new product development.
Killoy has served as vice president of Sales and Marketing since November 2006. During this time, he has been instrumental in executing the successful launch of many new products and in managing the company’s strong sales growth.
“Chris is one of the industry’s most experienced and respected executives and we are fortunate to have him,” commented CEO Mike Fifer. “In his expanded role, I expect Chris to enhance Ruger’s standing as the industry leader in product innovation and superior financial performance.”
Prior to joining Ruger, Killoy, a 1961 West Point graduate, was vice president of Sales and Marketing for Smith & Wesson. Additionally, he served as vice president and general manager of Savage Range Systems.
Steyr Arms moves HQ Steyr Arms announced in late December that it would be fully operational in its newly acquired 33,000 sq./ft. headquarters complex in Bessemer, Ala., after the holiday break.
A wholly owned subsidiary of Steyr Mannlicher and the sole importer of Steyr, Merkel and Anschutz sporting firearms, Steyr Arms purchased its new US home, and was set to be fully functional in its new location on Jan. 2.
The new facility boasts 25,000 sq./ft of warehouse and manufacturing space, 5,000 sq./ft. of office space, a state-of-the-art firearms testing range and a spectacular 3,000 sq./ft. firearms showroom. This showroom will be the largest and most encompassing display of Steyr, Merkel and Anschutz firearms anywhere in the world.
The Glock Saga
The Guardian.com in the United Kingdom reported in early December that the marital duel over the Glock handgun fortune was gripping Austria.
The newspaper and its website reported that Gaston Glock had won a court fight with ex-wife Helga over the £1.8bn company after the 84-year-old inventor married a 33-year-old nurse and fired his former wife and three children from the trust.
Glock made his fortune by creating the pistol that bears his name. Helga is his former wife of 49 years, who divorced him when he took up with a 30-something nurse who cared for him after he had suffered a stroke. The case has riveted Austria for weeks.
But now, The Guardian reported, Helga Glock’s attempt to reclaim a multimillion-pound stake in her husband’s company has been thrown out by an Austrian court, in the latest round in a bitter dispute between the two over ownership of the Glock brand.
The now legendary pistol was the inventor’s first attempt at producing a weapon and it is still used by more than half of all American police departments.
It is also the latest weapon of choice for the British Army, which has ordered 25,000 as part of a £9m contract to equip troops in Afghanistan.
In happier days, Helga Glock, 71, agreed to pass her 15% share of the firm to a trust for the family, including their three children.
But in 2011, just a few months after his divorce from Helga, Gaston married Kathrin Tschikof, the nurse who cared for him while he was sick.
He also fired Helga and their three children from their jobs and cancelled their stake in the company that was held in trust.
Earlier this year, Helga had more success in the courts after a ruling in Vienna said she may receive an allowance based on her husband’s income, despite her former husband’s lawyers arguing that her existing income was enough to cover her living costs.
