Anoka, MN — The Gun Rush of 2020 isn’t news to gun owners. There isn’t a gun store or ammo supplier in the country who hasn’t experienced shortages and imposed limits during this crazy year.
But shooting sports company Vista Outdoor Inc., an ammo manufacturer headquartered in Anoka, MN is reporting that their current back orders are at a staggering record high.
According to CEO Chris Metz, the company is facing “over a year’s worth” of backlogged ammunition orders. Metz reported that the value of those orders totals more than $1 billion.
On November 5th, Metz shared on a phone call with Fox News that this was “unprecedented” for them.
“We currently have over a year’s worth of orders for ammunition in excess of $1 billion. With demand far outstripping supply and inventory levels in the channel at all-time lows, we see strong demand continuing, and this metric informs our viewpoint of what a recovery or normalization could look like.”
He added that he was providing the additional context “to convey an underlying strength and strong foundational element to our business.”
Vista’s sales were up by 29% year-over-year at $575 million, while gross profit had surged 78% to $162 million.
We reported that October saw a record number of NICS checks run through the FBI’s database. October was the tenth month in a row that gun sales had broken previous records.
Estimates place the number of guns sold so far in 2020 at a staggering 17 to 18.6 million.
We All Know Why…
Vista Outdoors CEO Metz said that some of the increase in demand is coming from a surge in interest in hunting. With most normal activities cancelled, more people are turning to outdoor sports.
But we all know what’s really driven this new surge in gun purchases — including 7 million first time gun owners.
National unrest that hasn’t abated since March. From the Corona Scare to the riots in America’s cities to a hotly contested election, it’s been a roller coaster.
“We’ve thrived as we watched the economy go up and down,” Metz said. “Politics permeate even further into everyday life.”
That’s not going to change any time soon.