SHOT Show 2025 Preview

More Records Poised To Fall During Industry’s Premier Event
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If SHOT Show could be described using only one image — this one would be difficult to beat. Dealers will have the
opportunity to inspect and handle more than 100,000 products on display in the halls of The Venetian Expo and
Caesars Forum during SHOT Show 2025. (Photo: NSSF)

Just weeks away now, the 2025 SHOT Show is returning to The Venetian Expo and Caesars Forum in Las Vegas Jan. 21–24. Owned and sponsored by NSSF, the 47th SHOT Show will be its biggest one yet. 

If this sounds familiar, it’s because some variant of this phrase has been used in each of Shooting Industry’s SHOT Show previews since the expansion to Caesars Forum in 2022. SHOT Show 2025 will feature more than 2,700 exhibitors, up from 2,500 in 2024.

With more than 816,000 net square feet — equivalent to 18+ acres or enough space to fit 547 F-16 fighter jets — the SHOT Show is the largest event held at The Venetian Expo, third largest trade show in Las Vegas and eighth largest trade show in the U.S. This mega trade show continues to deliver for both buyers and exhibitors alike. 

Coincidentally, Inauguration Day will be held a day prior to the opening of SHOT Show, and it’s likely there will be more than a few celebratory high-fives and fist bumps from those reveling in what a second Trump presidency could do for our industry.

Events Of “SHOT Week”

While SHOT Show’s official dates are Jan. 21–24, 2025, its presence in Las Vegas informally begins Sunday, Jan. 19, with the seventh annual NSSF/HAVA Golf Classic held at Bear’s Best Las Vegas. This charity event raises money for Honored American Veterans Afield (HAVA), an industry-run organization that helps the healing and reintegration of disabled combat veterans back into normal life through participation in hunting and shooting sports.

“This event is one of HAVA’s major fundraising initiatives. It also gives the industry a chance to get together prior to the craziness of SHOT Show and have a wonderful day, while supporting our disabled veterans,” said Tom Taylor, HAVA founder and executive director. “We’re once again sold out and sincerely appreciate the incredible support HAVA gets from the industry.”

Monday, Jan. 20 features the start of two landmark events: Industry Day At The Range (at the Boulder City Rifle & Pistol Club) and the Supplier Showcase (the Venetian Fifth Floor Palazzo Ballroom).

Held 8:30 a.m.–4 p.m., Industry Day At The Range affords buyers and members of the media a chance to see new-for-2025 products from dozens of exhibiting manufacturers. There are shooting lanes for all types of firearms, as well as tents set up for non-firearms exhibitors and other product demonstrations.

First launched in 2017, the Supplier Showcase has proven a very popular addition to SHOT Week — evidenced by its rising footprint. In 2017, more than 260 material suppliers exhibited at the Showcase. There will be more than 500 participating in the two-day event in 2025.

The Supplier Showcase has slightly differing operating hours from The Venetian Expo Levels 1 and 2, running 8:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. on Monday, and 8:30 a.m.–4 p.m. on Tuesday.

Networking Opportunities Abound

In an SI article published last December promoting the 2024 SHOT Show, NSSF Senior VP and Chief Customer Officer Chris Dolnack noted attendees had listed “networking” as one of the most influential aspects of SHOT Show.

“In our post-show research, ‘networking’ has consistently ranked higher and higher. It was in the top five, it’s now in the top three. If this is what the customers want, then we need to deliver it,” Dolnack said at the time.

Three marquee events returning in 2025 are the All Star Jam Concert, Industry Networking Reception and Industry Happy Hour. They all have the same purpose in mind, according to NSSF Managing Director, Exhibitions & Events Melissa Schilling.

“SHOT Show attendees will have three fantastic opportunities to network directly after the closing of the show Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evening,” Schilling said. “Networking experiences, like the All Star Jam Concert and happy hours, are what attendees and exhibitors continue to ask for. We’ve listened, and have made it very convenient for everyone with these venues right after the close of the show.”

Held 5:30 p.m.–8:30 p.m. the opening night of SHOT Show, the All Star Jam Concert represents a significant networking event that’s early enough for attendees to partake in right after the show closes, but not too late for it to be the only networking event of the evening for those desiring to do more. 

The other two networking events, Industry Networking Reception and Industry Happy Hour, will be Wednesday and Thursday, respectively, 5:30 p.m.–6:30 p.m.

SHOT After Dark will once again be an event option, giving nightly opportunities for attendees to mix with colleagues at various venues in Las Vegas later in the evening (separate fees apply). Upgrades, such as open bar packages, are also available.

A new avenue for networking and company team building, Vegas Unlocked, is available through the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority. A “show your badge and save” initiative, Vegas Unlocked will give 2025 SHOT Show badge holders access to discounts on dining, entertainment, attractions, tours and more.

Education Focus

SHOT University returns for a full slate of events Tuesday–Thursday during SHOT Week. For added convenience, each session will be held in the Murano Ballroom, Level 3 of The Venetian Expo.

There are 18 à la carte training course available on a range of topics, including: a guide to maximizing sales with suppressors; the merits of adding a credentialed gunsmith to your business; harnessing AI for retail success; unlocking loyalty through memberships and more. Prices on the courses vary, $40 for NSSF members, $75 for non-members. 

(One of the planned sessions at SHOT University explores the value of Performance Groups. Doug VanderWoude’s feature earlier in this issue [“Iron Sharpens Iron,” pp. 42–44] serves as a preview of how these groups refine even the most successful businesses in our industry.)

The law enforcement community — which continues to be one of the fastest-growing segments of the SHOT Show — has educational resources of its own during SHOT Week. 

Shooting Industry’s sister publication American COP has partnered with NSSF for the second year in a row to sponsor the Law Enforcement Education Program (LEEP). 

This year’s LEEP lineup has 14 classes for law enforcement professionals to attend. Each session provides insights for real world, on-scene applications of various technology and training methods. A one-time fee of $45 provides access to all 2025 LEEP courses for those who qualify.

American COP Editor Erick Gelhaus is hosting a session titled “Trends In Law Enforcement Training,” which will be held Wednesday, Jan. 22 from 1:30–3 p.m. in the Lido Ballroom 3004-3006.

Schilling shared NSSF partnered with MILO for a special LEEP session taking place Thursday, Jan. 23 from 8 a.m.–9:30 a.m. Officers will be able to experience live-fire training using a MILO Laser Simulator.

“LEEP participants will be able to take what they’ve learned from classroom sessions and use them in a scenario-based training in the MILO Laser Simulator,” she said.

To elevate international business, SHOT Show is presenting four export training sessions (also available à la carte) Tuesday, Jan. 21 and Wednesday, Jan. 22. These 90-minute sessions will help current and prospective exporters stay compliant and competitive in the international market.

SHOT Show eXtra Returns

After a hiatus, SHOT Show eXtra is returning in 2025. It will be held in a two-day format, Wednesday, Jan. 22 and Thursday, Jan. 23, in the Palazzo Ballroom on the fifth floor of the Venetian Expo — the same venue used for the Supplier Showcase.

“SHOT Show eXtra will follow a similar formula as the Supplier Showcase,” Schilling said. “Once the Supplier Showcase concludes Tuesday afternoon, eXtra exhibitors will have a turnkey booth ready to go Wednesday morning to connect with prospective buyers.”

According to Schilling, the return of SHOT Show eXtra helps even more companies get off the waiting list. (Prior to the expansion of SHOT Show to the Caesars Forum, the waiting list consisted of literally hundreds of companies.)

The reintegration of SHOT Show eXtra to the 2025 SHOT Show will help buyers discover the next generation of shooting, hunting and outdoor industry companies in one, easy-to-browse floor plan.

“With all these new exhibitors, it’s an opportunity at the beginning of the year for buyers to make fresh connections and kick-start 2025 orders,” Schilling added.

Caesars Forum’s Impact

As mentioned earlier, the 2022 addition of the Caesars Forum has magnified the scope of companies and products on display at SHOT Show. 

In 2024, the Caesars Forum Academy Ballroom housed the Archery Business Pavilion. It’s returning again in 2025 and will feature onsite archery shooting lanes in the ballroom, enabling buyers to examine archery and bowhunting products firsthand.

Outside Caesars Forum, the Great Outdoors Plaza has provided a fresh element to the show. This year, there will be more mobile ranges for buyers to experience live-fire shooting.

“Six mobile ranges will be in the Great Outdoors Plaza in 2025, an increase over 2024,” Shilling noted.

The Great Outdoors Plaza will serve as the staging area for each of the networking events Wednesday and Thursday evening directly after the close of the show.

Celebration Of Freedom Auction

Just announced, NSSF’s Celebration of Freedom Auction features more than 30 bucket-list items consisting of everything from one-of-a-kind firearms to exclusive hunting and shooting experiences.

Among the items up for bid include collectible rifles, once-in-a-lifetime North American and African hunts, the opportunity to build a Savage Arms rifle at Savage’s manufacturing facility in Westfield, Mass., a “Richard Childress Experience” that includes a private tour of the NASCAR Hall of Famer’s race shop and a shooting lesson and lunch with four-time Olympic Skeet Gold Medalist Vincent Hancock and more.

“This is up there with the greatest auctions I’ve ever seen,” said Dolnack. “The entire industry rallied together to bring this auction to life to support all that NSSF is doing to ensure a bright future for America’s gun owners and the industry that makes exercising our Second Amendment rights possible.”

All funds generated from the auction will support NSSF’s #GUNVOTE voter registration, education and get-out-the-vote campaign.

The auction is open now through the conclusion of SHOT Show, Jan. 24, 2025.

For more info: visit visit nssf.org/auction.

Save The Date(s)

The 2025 SHOT Show will be the 26th SHOT Show held in Las Vegas — more than any other city. Las Vegas has been the continuous home of the SHOT Show since 2010. The 2026 and 2027 dates have already been revealed: the 48th mega trade event will be held Jan. 20–23, 2026, while the 49th will take place Jan. 19–22, 2027, both in Las Vegas.

Less than 50 days remain until the opening of SHOT Show 2025. For those dealers attending, there will literally be thousands of opportunities available. Schilling cautioned against waiting until the last minute to finalize your team’s strategy.

“Come up with a game plan of what you want to get out of the show and schedule meetings ahead of time. There are so many tools available a lot of attendees — and even exhibitors — don’t take advantage of. So, plan. And plan in advance what you want your SHOT Show experience to look like,” she concluded.

For more info: shotshow.org.

Read More of Shooting Industry’s December 2024 Issue Now