Chairman's Message: Leadership by Example

Simply stated, Leadership means to lead. Yet how many of us take time to examine how we lead? Is our mindset, “do as I say, not as I do?” Or do we “lead by example?”

Building or maintaining a company culture of excellence requires an understanding of the importance of following SOP’s, or communicating through the proper channels. To achieve excellence within the organization requires an implicit understanding among all team members of the corporate expectations that are built on creating a legacy of trust, timeliness, credibility, and more.

I have experienced examples of poor leadership style throughout my career. I was in a company some years back whose president would routinely roll in after lunch.

FEATURED ARTICLES

Mourning the Loss of Donna Donovan

It is with great sadness that we inform our NASGW community of the loss of our team member, Donna Donovan. An employee of our association management company, Amplify and the Iowa Soybean Association, Donna fulfilled the role of the association's Financial Manager and lead our Credex program for the last six years. She has made great contributions to our team as well as NASGW, and we are heartbroken to hear of her sudden passing. She will be greatly missed by many at NASGW and beyond. We ask that you keep Donna and her family in your thoughts and prayers.

Second Expo Booth Payment is Due March 1st

Exhibitors, as a reminder, your second installment payment was due on March 1st. 50% of the remaining booth balance is due at this time. In accordance with the Expo Rules and Regulations, any exhibitor whose second payment is not received by March 1st will be subject to a late fee of 10% of your total booth cost and may risk having their booth space being released. As a courtesy, we will extend payments until Monday, March 6th end of business, after that time, the late fee will be added to your account.

Universal Dashboard Makes SCOPE More Accessible in 2023

New to 2023 is the Universal Dashboard in SCOPE, which allows users to access SCOPE and utilize aggregated data from across the industry, at a lower price point. Data analytics are the future of the shooting sports industry, with many companies already embracing how data can help them make decisions for product development, production, marketing, sales, and more. For others, it's been a challenge investing in data or knowing how to use the data to benefit their business. That is where the Universal Dashboard and NASGW can help. Learn how you can begin your journey into data analytics with the help of regular meetings with the SCOPE team and the Universal Dashboard. Together you can maximize your value and insight to make smarter decisions for your business. 

‘NOT SO FAST’ ON CREDIT CARD GUN STORE TRACKING CODE

Amalgamated Bank CEO Priscilla Sims Brown isn’t shy about catering to Democratic politics and progressive causes. The New York Post even described her as “the Left’s private banker.”

Sims Brown is especially proud of herself after she lobbied the main international credit card standards organization to create a special tracking code for gun store purchases. She wants to know who’s buying what and why. It’s a ruse under the guise of stopping criminals from misusing firearms.

Fortunately for law-abiding Americans who support the Second Amendment, lawmakers at the state and federal level are saying “Not so fast,” and proposing legislation to block the tracking of such lawful purchases.

Failing to plan is essentially planning to fail. Every industry has shifts in supply and demand around particular seasons, but it hits the outdoor industry especially hard. If you don’t order and stock guns, ammunition, and other items far enough ahead of when consumers need them, you can’t sell them. Bring in too much too late and you’re losing money on inventory. Nobody needs a turkey shotgun mid-summer. You no longer have to just guess. SCOPE provides data that drives fact-based planning.

Hunting seasons are seasonal by nature, determined by state wildlife organizations based on game breeding and migration cycles. In example, 2019 waterfowl shotshell shipments saw the greatest numbers August through October with a peak in September. This coincides with the September to January waterfowl seasons. All this inventory is front-loaded, ready at the beginning of the season. Shipments dip from January to February as the season ends, but don’t fall to their lowest until May. This suggests hunters may be replenishing their supplies for the next season.

Data Becoming More Crucial to Businesses

It's clear that data is here to stay in the Shooting Sports Industry. More businesses are turning to Data and SCOPE for answers and InSight, especially in a year that offers so much uncertainty. The more conversations our SCOPE team has with users, the more we hear how businesses have incorporated SCOPE into their daily operations. When NASGW set out to create a data platform, this is exactly what was envisioned, a resource that our members could leverage to make better decisions. If you have yet to explore the potential SCOPE could deliver to you business, we encourage you to set up a demo. 

Firearms Shipments

Ammunition Shipments

Optics Shipments

ARTICLES OF INTEREST

• Major Poll Shows Increasing Popularity of MSRs
• The Changing Face of Lawful Gun Owners
• eCommerce Must Cater to Millennials and Gen Z
• NSSF & Grand View Outdoors Partner to Create New Archery Area at SHOT
• 2nd Amendment Steps in After Cops Step Back in Chicago
• Discover Seeks to Report Your Gun-Related Purchases
• Pro-Discrimination Gun Control Introduced in California

UPCOMING EVENTS

April 14-16, 2023

NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits

Indianapolis, IN

June 12-15, 2023

POMA Business Conference

Broken Arrow, OK

October 24-27, 2023

NASGW Expo

Columbus, OH

January 23-26, 2024

SHOT Show

Las Vegas, NV