NEWSMAKERS: July 2020 Issue

Written By Shooting Staff

2020

NASGW Adds Board Members

NASGW recently welcomed three new board members with many collective years of industry experience: Chris Means, Jeff Pugh and Larry Massimo.

C. Means

J. Pugh

L. Massimo

Means, of Tactical Gear Distributors, has spent his entire 32-year career in shooting sports distribution. As such, he has a keen understanding of the fluctuations that affect the industry. He also spent nine years in outdoor retail, fostering an appreciation for and understanding of the needs brick-and-mortar retailers face every day.

Currently VP of Sales for Bangers USA, Pugh is committed to growing sales and improving efficiencies using his 20-plus years’ experience at United Sporting Companies (USC).

Massimo, a previous member of the NASGW board, is currently the senior executive advisor at Davidson’s. During his 25-year career, he held positions of insides sales, sales manager, buyer, VP of sales and merchandising and senior VP of sales and merchandising.

B. Cox

SIG SAUER Expands VP Role

SIG SAUER has expanded Bobby Cox’s role as the VP of government affairs to include government strategies. In this new role, Cox will continue to lead the company’s strategic relationship and business development opportunities focusing on Congressional, Pentagon, White House and industry engagements.

Before joining SIG SAUER, he served for over 10 years as an Army Ranger with multiple combat deployments. His last assignment in the Army was as a Congressional Fellow in the U.S. Senate and as a legislative liaison at the Pentagon, overseeing the Army’s small arms portfolio.

Cox serves in the Army Reserve and is a distinguished military graduate from The Citadel. Cox earned an MBA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Kenan-Flagler Business School with a distinction in leadership.

S. Rissi

RubLine Marketing Welcomes Strategist

RubLine Marketing selected Sara Rissi as digital marketing strategist for the company’s portfolio of brands. She will manage campaign strategy and execution for clients with digital branding and sales initiatives.

“Sara’s background made for a perfect addition to our team,” stated President Chase Rohlfsen. “She is extremely well educated on the latest tools available, and her ability to design digital strategies, execute and communicate the results are exactly what we have been looking for.”

Rissi joins RubLine with 10 years’ traditional and digital marketing experience in both the manufacturing and consumer packaged goods industries.

T. Yates

Easton Technical Products Names Archery Sales Dir.

Tyson Yates has been promoted to director of archery sales for Easton Technical Products. He will oversee all Easton Technical Products’ archery inside sales staff, field reps and the customer service team.

Easton President Aaron Lucky stated, “It is my pleasure to announce the new structure for the archery sales team. Tyson is very focused on providing excellent customer service and has a great track record in his tenure here at Easton.”

Yates joined Easton in 2017 as national accounts manager with a degree in accounting and MBA from Utah State University.

S. Priyadarshi

Vista Outdoor Inc. Appoints CFO

Vista Outdoor announced the appointment of Sudhanshu Priyadarshi as SVP and CFO. Priyadarshi succeeds Mick Lopez, who will be leaving the company.

“We believe Sudhanshu’s demonstrated track record of success in e-commerce, deep strategic and financial expertise, and extensive experience in consumer products and retail, will be a tremendous asset as we move to the next phase of our transformation and sharpen our focus on e-commerce and organic growth,” stated CEO Chris Metz.

Priyadarshi has more than 20 years of retail finance experience. Most recently, he served as the CFO of Flexport.

5.11 Tactical Hires VP

Matt Page has joined 5.11 Tactical as the company’s new VP of global product. His expertise lies in transforming clothing creation through technology, modernizing the creation of technical apparel and driving the design and development of equipment and accessories.

He earned his B.S. in business administration from the University of Colorado Boulder.

Creedmoor Sports Names Managing Director

Creedmoor Sports expanded its team with Bill Gravatt’s appointment as managing director. Gravatt will direct all operational and marketing activities for the company.

He has more than 27 years in the shooting industry, and previously worked for Creedmoor Sports as a consultant before leaving to serve as president of Capstone Precision Group (Berger Bullets). He is the former president/co-owner of Sinclair International, a company specializing in precision reloading and shooting products.

Rio Ammunition Expands Pro Staff Team

A select group of dedicated hunters have been invited to join Rio Ammunition’s exclusive Team Rio. The new Pro Staff additions are Jacob Biggers, Taylor Garcia, Brooklee Grant, Austin Ingram, Teel Atkinson and Big Sky Fowlers — a family group of waterfowl hunters. They join Rio’s long-standing competitive shooters Tim and Tina Jewell, Gino Bortone, Joe Charnigo, Catherine Rios and Keith Garcia.

Can-Am Sales Group Taps Sr. Acct. Manager

Can-Am Sales Group selected Rob Weletz as its new senior account manager.

Weletz’s previous roles include sales manager at Compass 360 Outdoor Apparel, national account manager at Maurice Sporting Goods and an outdoor buyer for Dick’s Sporting Goods for more than 13 years.

RSR Group Inc. Founder/Chairman Retires

RSR Group Inc.’s Founder and Chairman Robert Steger recently retired after 42 years with the company. Steger is one of the original founders of the company started in 1977 from a two-car garage in Rochester, NY. He served as president and CEO of RSR Group from 1983 to 2008.

Steger’s contributions to the success of RSR Group developed a legacy of growth sustained through integrity, exceptional service and financial stability. His inspiration and direction also led to the firearm industry’s first virtual trade show, the RSR Group EShow.

JoAnn Weisenford, RSR Group’s president and CEO commented, “Bob has impacted so many lives in a positive way, providing the entire RSR family with the opportunity to have such wonderful and rewarding careers. On behalf of all RSR’s employees, we thank Bob for creating such an incredible company!”

Outtech Inc. Promotes Managers

Outtech announced the promotion of four regional managers to the newly created positions of regional sales director (RSD) for the independent channel. In these roles, the RSD leaders will be taking an enhanced approach to planning and overseeing Outtech’s regional territory sales managers in both the Hunting and Outdoor Divisions. The RSD’s will report to Nick French, Outtech’s national director of sales for the independent channel, with a focus on the generation and execution of targeted sales strategies for manufacturing partners at the independent dealer, buy group and distributor levels.

The regional sales director team consists of Clint Nicholson (West), Jeff Friedmann (South Central), Nick Goretcki (North Central) and Henry Moncrief (East Coast).

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