President's Message: Old Friends & New Faces

As I’m writing this, I’ve just returned from the first ever Shooting Sports Showcase held in Talladega, Alabama on March 8. The event was sponsored by the Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA), the Southeastern Outdoor Press Association (SEOPA) and the NASGW. We began talking about this venture before Christmas. All of us were weary and concerned about the impacts COVID was having on the industry because of our inability to get together, network and review products.

We began the conversations about the Showcase with a bit of trepidation, and a good bit of uncertainty on whether we’d even be able to put an event together in the midst of everything happening right now. With many companies still enforcing travel restrictions, it certainly had an impact on the size of the crowd, but there were enough exhibitors, distributors, retailers and media members anxious to spend time together. So we forged ahead.

FEATURED ARTICLES

NASGW is excited to announce the launch of the new SCOPE suite of data tools. Distributors can join us for a webinar on April 13th at 2pm CST and Manufacturers can join us for a webinar on April 15th at 2pm CST to see the new and improved SCOPE DLX, SCOPE CLX, and brand new SCOPE PLX. Checkout the latest updates and see the brand new tools that are now available to NASGW members. 

Distributor Webinar

April 13th @ 2pm CST

Manufacturer Webinar

April 15th @ 2pm CST

Exhibitors: Second Booth Payment Due

Exhibitors' second booth payment was due on March 1st. Per the 2021 Exhibitor Rules and Regulations, a 20% deposit was due at the time booths were secured, and at this time 50% of the current balance is due, for a total deposit of 70%. A 10% late fee has already been applied to all booths that failed to pay by the end of the day on March 1st. To avoid any further late fees, please pay all required balances as soon as possible.

In order to make your payment online, please visit the NASGW Exhibitor Portal and log in with your supplied username and password. If you do not have that information, feel free to contact Kelly Kipping for assistance or to make a payment. 

March SCOPE DLX Update

After unprecedented winter storms that disrupted shipments and deliveries, things seem to be back to a frantic pace. Closing in on the 1-year mark since everything shutdown due to COVID, there doesn't seem to be any indications of a slow down. If and when things do begin to slow, users of SCOPE may be the first to identify those indicators due to the timely reporting available within both SCOPE DLX and CLX. Check out our latest SCOPE blog to understand how some users are leveraging SCOPE to remain nimble in the marketplace. 

Firearms Shipments

Ammunition Shipments

Optics Shipments

Winter Storm Delays Firearm Shipments, According to SCOPE Data

In the shooting sports industry, the year 2021 started the same way 2020 ended – at maximum sales and production. All of our members at NASGW have been producing, shipping, and selling as much as possible to meet the unprecedented demand. But toward the end of February, something was off. Judging by the NASGW SCOPE DLX (Distributor Link Exchange) report, firearm shipments had dropped off, down to the numbers we were seeing at this time last year.

“We normally receive firearms every day in some sort of capacity, but last week we went four days without seeing a single firearm,” said Jeff McGowan, president of Gunarama Wholesale, Inc. and NASGW member. 

ARTICLES OF INTEREST

• House Passes Two Gun Control Bills
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• Enabling Sales Reps Through Technology
• Using Artificial Intelligence to Handle Backorders
• States Preparing to Protect Rights
• Sales Management is All About Relationship-Building

UPCOMING EVENTS

September 3-5, 2021

NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits

Houston, TX

October 27-29, 2021

NASGW Expo

Columbus, OH