Courtesy, Appalachian News Express
In the wake of a debate over the sale of guns, sparked by a school shooting in Connecticut which left more than two dozen dead, a local store is reporting an increase in firearms sales.
According to Wide Open Outdoors owner Mark Compton, he has seen an increase in gun sales since the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting. He said he hasn’t run the official totals of the increase but he believes the sales have doubled.
Compton said the sales have increased in assault rifle-style weapons, magazines and ammunition. He said the store has sold out of those items.
“(We’ve seen an) increase in volume and not only on guns but on the extended magazine capacity and on ammunition as well,” Compton said. “We’ve actually sold out to the point where we can’t sell any more. We don’t have any AR-based or AK-based assault rifle platform guns in stock — ammunition, we’ve sold out, magazines, we’ve sold out. We’re waiting on allocations to get new stuff back in.”
According to Compton, he experienced an increase in gun sales in presidential elections and in the lead-up to the year 2000, but he said this is the largest spike in gun sales he has experienced.
“We experienced it before on Y2K and on election time because each politician has difference policies on stuff,” Compton said. “If there is a risk of a politician who is anti-gun or anti-high capacity magazine ideas that is when we experience spikes like this but this is by far this is the largest spike I’ve ever seen with all the other ones.”
Compton said the store recently moved locations, which could have contributed in the increase of gun sales. However, he has had discussions with other store owners and distributors who have recognized the same increase in sales.
“I know I have talked to other store owners and other distributors and they have had by far record sales above any other previous spikes we’ve have seen with the Y2K deal and the last two presidential elections did see a serious increase in sales. This one supersedes that much faster,” Compton said.
Compton said he usually sells assault rifles year-round. However, it wasn’t out of season to sell assault rifles during the Christmas season as people usually purchase them as gifts. This Christmas, however, he has noticed a marked spike in the sales.
“Christmas is always our big season, especially, in that style of gun,” Compton said. “I sold over a hundred pieces in just over two days. So that was a definite spike, for sure. Not to say that we couldn’t have sold them out by the end of Christmas anyways.”
According to Compton, he believes customers are purchasing the guns because they are afraid they may not have an opportunity later to purchase them due to the discontinuation of specific style of guns.
“With this style of gun they’re afraid they’re not going to be able to get that particular model or that particular style or this particular style of magazine with a 30-round magazine capacity,” Compton said. “They’re afraid that they’re not going to be able to get them later so they want to go ahead and try to get them now.”
Compton said he didn’t know how long the spike in gun sales could last. He said the sales have stopped due to “the lack of availability of products.” However, manufacturers are increasing production.
He believes the spike in sales could continue for months. He said it could take his store up to a year to reach the amount of product they had in the summer.
“To say that how long it’s going to last is going to be undeterminable,” Compton said. “I guess, until the product is replenished and then that sale slows down, but it will be months. I guess it will be six months before we even get back to normal I would suppose, especially, on the ammunition side.”