Fear & Loading: Ruger Staff Adjustment and More

Ruger announced the layoff of 50 employees last Friday. Ruger Vice President and General Counsel Kevin Reid Sr. cautioned the Valley News not to read too much into the move. “At Ruger, we routinely adjust our workforce,” he explained. The company currently employs between 1,800 and 1,900 people at three facilities across the nation. The reduction amounts to a roughly 2.7 percent adjustment and the location of affected staff was not available.

Impacted positions are mainly sales, engineering, marketing and other non-manufacturing jobs. “It was for the needs of the business and tied to performance,” Reid told the newspaper.

With the company’s introduction of the PC Carbine and Security-9 Pistol—and subsequent glowing reviews—the modest move may be short-lived. Sales of new firearms are big for the famed manufacturer, and on the heels of a year with the second-highest volume of NICS checks on record the potential is there for Ruger to have yet another enviable sales year.

On the Retail Side
The locations of 69 former Gander Mountain stores being re-opened as Gander Outdoors in 2018 have been officially announced by new owner Camping World. Gander Mountain shuttered the doors on all of its 162 outlets nationwide last year and was subsequently purchased during bankruptcy proceedings. The Lakeville, Minn., facility opened last month—the first to do so in the company’s nationwide chain.  

The 131 Walmarts in California that sell ammunition were forced to temporarily halt its sale earlier this month after the Department of Justice failed to issue the ammunition vendor license required under a new law that took effect Jan. 1 in the state. The problem didn’t affect retailers who already have the proper permits for transferring firearms, though, according to the Sacramento Bee.

“Due to ongoing softness in the suppressor market, Huntertown Arms is ceasing operations,” the company website states. Any work being done by the firm will be completed and the equipment returned fully repaired, however.