In recent weeks, news sources began reporting that Gander Mountain, the retailers of guns, hunting, fishing, and camping equipment; had begun bankruptcy proceedings. The news came following an aggressive expansion across the United States, which they say, failed to produce a hopeful return. Gander Mountain released a statement responding to the rumor without confirming or denying the bankruptcy proceedings.
As a privately held company, it is our longstanding policy not to comment on our business affairs. Unfortunately, recent speculative news articles have caused concern among some of our customers, employees, and trade partners, and require us to make a rare exception.
Gander Mountain is the nation’s largest outdoor retail network with 162 specialty stores across 26 states. We are a fully integrated Omni-Channel retailer dedicated to servicing the hunting, camping, fishing, shooting sports, and outdoor products markets. As ‘America’s Firearms Supercenter,’ we are a market leader in the shooting sports category with an extensive offering of firearms, ammunition, and accessories.
Like most retailers, we are subject to normal economic cycles, changes in our industry and shifts in consumer demand that require us to adapt our business accordingly. It’s been that way since 1960, when we started out as a catalog company in small-town Wisconsin, and it remains the case today. It is this constant adaptation and desire to offer our customers the best selection, best value and best service that has been our hallmark for generations.
Gander Mountain and its ownership group have undertaken a best-practices approach to review our strategic options specific to positioning the company for long-term success. When we engage in such a review we often seek information and advice from external advisers to inform our decisions. To assist in this process, we have retained Houlihan Lokey as independent advisers and we are confident that the outcome of the review will identify the right go-forward strategy. In the meantime, our Gander Mountain stores and gandermountain.com remain the place to go for all of our customers’ outdoor adventure needs.
Their main competitors, Bass Pro and Cabela’s, both merged in a $5.5 billion dollar landmark deal made last year and this also comes after a record year of gun purchases across the United States.
Most people in the U.S. can shop for the gun of their choice and have it sent to a local FFL for the NCIS background check and paperwork, making the only single requirement a Federal Firearm License holder. This is making it difficult for the middleman. This opens up a lot of opportunities for “would be” gun owners, allowing them much more selections.
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