E-Commerce An Essential
Retail Tool For Today’s
FFL Dealers

Of the various retail tools available to shooting sports retailers today, e-commerce has proven to be one of the most powerful. Having an online store enables dealers to stay connected with their customers and continue selling 24 hours a day.

The past few months have provided clear, sometimes painful, lessons on the importance of e-commerce. After local and state governments closed retail stores in the spring of 2020 to slow the spread of COVID-19, many gun shops with an e-commerce presence were able to continue doing business — and what a year it was for online sales.

E-commerce sales in the U.S. grew more than 31% between Q1 2020 and Q2 2020, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Commerce. Q3 2020 online sales increased 36.7% over the corresponding quarter in 2019. Published findings from Adobe and IBM indicate the coronavirus pandemic accelerated e-commerce growth by at least five years. The growth of e-commerce is expected to continue in 2021 and beyond.

However, uncertainty remains about the future of online sales for the shooting sports industry. According to JoeBiden.com/gunsafety, President Biden intends to “end the online sale of firearms and [ammunition]. Biden will enact legislation to prohibit all online sales of firearms, ammunition, kits and gun parts.” If the Biden administration succeeds, a ban on online sales would deal a tremendous blow to many FFL dealers across the country.

To gain a better understanding of just how important e-commerce has become to firearm dealers, I spoke with Noemi and Lance Skok, co-owners of Gun Shack in Helotes, Texas; Kevin McCunn, co-owner of McCunn Specialty Firearms in Massena, Iowa; and Miles Hall, senior advisor at the business consulting group Hall-N-Hall in Edmond, Okla. In addition, we discussed the importance of having a modern point-of-sale system. Here are some of the insights and advice they shared.

How important is it for dealers to have an e-commerce presence today?

McCunn: It is absolutely essential in today’s market. Twenty-six percent of our 2020 sales were online — nearly all through GunBroker. A very small percentage of firearms is actually ordered through our website.

Hall: The guest base for shooting sports uses the internet for almost everything now. If not buying outright, they use it to investigate products before walking into the store. The better the presentation and ease of using it, the better the success rate in sales.

Noemi Skok: We feel it’s critical! As a traditional mom-and-pop shop, we’re competing against big-box stores with millions of dollars in advertising budgets. Anything we can do to catch and keep a customer’s attention builds loyalty and helps spread word of mouth.

Lance Skok: Over the last year, due to COVID-19, e-commerce has become even more important. We’ve seen a huge increase in our local customers choosing to purchase firearms on our website and then come in to complete the paperwork and pick up their order.

What challenges have you encountered with e-commerce?

Lance Skok: My biggest challenge is keeping our website inventory in sync with our retail inventory. We do not drop ship, so everything ordered on our website needs to be in our physical inventory. Early on, this sync was done manually when time permitted. As online and in-store sales increased, it became clear it was not scalable. Now, at the end of the day, our POS pushes all of the sales data into QuickBooks, and then the website inventory syncs with QuickBooks. One day, I hope to have all of this data synchronized in real-time.

“Real-time inventory is a must. No one wants to purchase a firearm that’s not in stock!”

Kevin McCunn, Co-Owner McCunn Specialty Firearms Massena, Iowa

Noemi Skok: We still have to do a lot of manual processing for the website sales. Although the inventory updates nightly on the website, I still have to manually create a sales receipt in QuickBooks for the orders.

McCunn: Our biggest challenge is keeping available inventory up to date, especially the used firearms. Not all of our distributors are linked to our website. This problem will need to be remedied in 2021.

Hall: Accuracy is number one, ease of use is number two. Getting team members up to speed on the site is next. If you successfully handle those areas, guests will spend their money with you.

How did you choose an e-commerce provider?

McCunn: GunBroker was a no brainer — it’s the largest gun, ammo and accessory auction site in the world. Most buyers are familiar with it and the ease of purchasing through it. Gearfire came recommended by another dealer we work with. It’s easy to navigate.

Lance Skok: I have over 30 years of experience in information technology, however none of it was specifically in e-commerce. So much of my choice was just through researching what was available, what the costs were and how it would fit our needs. Honestly though, since we started in e-commerce at the same time we started in retail, cost played a large factor. If I had known then what I know now, I might have made some different choices. It would be nice to have all our data easily integrated.

Hall: References and reviews will tell you most of what you need to make a decision. Be very aware of the back-end cost, if any, associated with the program. It can come back and bite you big time.

What are some must-have e-commerce features for dealers?

Hall: Integrated inventory, auto notification for reordering, ability for “will call” or shipping.

McCunn: Real-time inventory is a must. No one wants to purchase a firearm that’s not in stock! We have the challenge of customers calling to order a firearm they found on our website, but it’s not in stock.

Lance Skok: I think every FFL needs to think about what their end goal is with e-commerce and how many resources they will have to support e-commerce. One thing I feel is the biggest must-have is integrated inventory. You can’t sell something online if it shows “out of stock,” and you will quickly lose your reputation if you sell things showing “in stock,” but then can’t deliver. Whether you integrate with your retail inventory, distributor’s inventory or both, it’s a very important part of e-commerce.

Have you sought e-commerce advice or insights from your distributors or from other dealers?

McCunn: We bounce ideas off another dealer, but distributors aren’t very helpful.

“Accuracy is number one, ease of use is number two. Getting team members up to speed on the site is next. If you successfully handle those areas, guests will spend their money with you.”

Miles Hall, Senior Advisor Hall-N-Hall Edmond, Okla.

Lance Skok: I have in the past, but I think 2021 is a good time to revisit this. Other dealers are the best place to learn about some of the challenges and successes in using a particular e-commerce solution.

Hall: Yes. Take the time to investigate all sources. It’s how you will find the best plan for you and the store.

What’s your outlook for 2021? Do you think the e-commerce segment of the business will expand, contract or stay the same?

Noemi Skok: Given the current state of the industry, we definitely feel it will expand. As more and more individuals become interested in firearms, whether for defense or sport, it is only natural the first step is to go online and do some research, which will hopefully lead them to our website.

Hall: Expand; and dealers must be in that area to grow their own operations.

McCunn: We are very optimistic for 2021 as we’re seeing continued demand for firearms, safes and training. We think this segment will grow slightly as people find buying from home is very easy with the current COVID restrictions in place.

How would a ban of online firearm and ammunition sales affect dealers? What would it do to your store?

McCunn: That type of law would be devastating to the firearms industry as online sales are the only option for many buyers. Many sellers operate as online-only, so it would effectively put them out of business. Our store would certainly take a large hit as our online sales continue to grow every year. I’m not surprised to hear of such a proposed law, but it would only hinder the legal buyer.

Lance Skok: I think out of all of the gun legislation changes Biden is proposing, this is the one that will have the most impact on gun retailers. I think it will have a drastically negative impact on those large dealers who sell most of their firearms online. On the other hand, the brick-and-mortar stores will see an increase in firearm sales as well as a possible increase in profit margins. For us, I think it really depends on how restrictive the laws are around their definition of gun parts. We sell quite a bit of Savage parts and barrels, so I would really hate to lose the ability to sell them online.

Hall: The impact of this would be a real challenge for all in the industry. The frontline dealers would have to readjust to be sure. One thing about our industry is it can rise to any matter and find a better way. I would hope and pray the legal challenges would eventually put this to rest.

Point-Of-Sale System Advice And Insights

How important is having a POS system to your e-commerce efforts and to your day-to-day operations?

Lance Skok: For us, our POS is only indirectly tied into our e-commerce efforts, but I see a huge value in having a POS system directly tied to an e-commerce site. This makes live updates to inventory possible.

Hall: Critical, as it’s up-to-the-second data. The data tells you where the guests’ needs are currently.

McCunn: An easy-to-use POS system is a must in today’s business world. We went three years before purchasing the AXIS system and have been very pleased with the ease of updating bound books with each transaction. Being able to see real-time inventory and daily sales reports is key as well.

How does a POS system help you make inventory decisions?

Lance Skok: We rely on our accounting software to make inventory decisions. However, if I were to evaluate a new POS system, I would consider inventory management an important feature.

McCunn: AXIS allows us to generate daily and monthly reports as well as see monthly and yearly trends.

Hall: Data, and that flow of information, is the difference in serving well or just surviving.

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