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1600 exhibitors in 630,000 square feet of exhibition space with an expected 65,000 industry professionals visiting during the 4 days of the show. SHOT claims to be the world's largest gun show, but I wonder what IWA in Germany thinks of that.
I never quite know why I actually attend the show, it is pretty irrelevant to everything we do in our manufacturing and retail side at Westley Richards. I guess I am in Las Vegas always for the Antique Arms show later in the week so it seems sensible to arrive a little earlier and see what is new in the industry and gain a feel of how buoyant our trade is. Additionally, I always think I will discover something very novel, but that find seems to have eluded me for years.
The show at the Sands Expo is not open to the public, with the organisers paying strict attention to your credentials before you are allowed in. So if you do ever want to attend, make sure you register online first and get passed off before travelling, you will need to demonstrate you are in some way associated to the business. Once in, you will see everything 'new' that the international manufacturers have to offer for the coming year, guns, optics, clothing, knives and everything else associated with our sport.
Certainly the show seemed very alive, people were upbeat and I believe the Obama factor has put gun and ammunition sales up into a place 'never seen before in the industry'. People here just can't seem to get enough of either.
So tomorrow I will continue the walk and see if I can find the elusive 'must have' accessory and then on to the Antique Arms show and a world I am more familiar with.
Larry on January 20, 2016 at 2:06 pm
Please post some photos of the novel and clever items you find!!!
Neill Clark on January 21, 2016 at 8:01 pm
The US seems to be a conundrum to me. I like to think that the WR US clientele are pure fans of the best quality sporting firearms, and I'm sure they are. But I don't really understand why private folk need assault rifles and the like. Of course, it's not confined to the US, here there seems to be an attraction to almost military style sniping rifles for deer stalking. That's not for me, I'm too traditional.
Hope you get some sales at the Antique Arms show, and presumably SCI.
Nigel Barker on January 22, 2016 at 9:14 pm
Assault rifles, aka modern sporting arms, aka scary black rifles are like Harley Davidson motorcycles, or Barbie dolls. You can swap out stuff and bolt on a whole array of aftermarket goodies. Also, they have a lot of buttons and levers. Plus, ammo is cheap and they are pretty easy on the shoulder.
Dave B. Harris on January 24, 2016 at 5:25 am
Simon,
Great write up! I also attended both the Shot Show & Antique Arms Show. The Shot Show to me is a testosterone driven circus... There certainly is a lot of energy and buzz there, which is enticing and exciting at first, but wears off and leaves you flat. The Atique Arms show is full of Art, passion, dedication, and Money, money, money. Unfortunately I see an older generation and their fine arms dwindling and dying by the wayside and a younger unappreciative generation filling the gun world with cheep high capacity multifunction crap! Where will all the fine antique firearms be in 20 years when 80% of the their owners are dead and gone? It's amazing to me how many young Americans are ignorant to the finer guns in life. Maybe many of them will be introduced when they inherit fine arms the know nothing about. It's a tale of two cities....
Stephen Paraski on February 26, 2016 at 11:24 pm
I understand what you are saying about US and the culture. Most Americans would not know what a "Bespoke" Rifle is. I think your product's are a wonderful work of art, a treasure to hold and pass down to a son. Sadly "Hunting" here is not same in Europe or Africa. I hope one day to be fortunate enough to acquire one of your "Bespoke" Treasure's for my own son. "Black" rifles are a dime a dozen, but a different purpose than your Beauties.