BELLEVUE, Wis (NBC 26) — VILLAGE OF BELLEVUE, Wis (NBC 26) -- Just weeks into the pandemic, back in March of 2020, management at The Family Shooting Academy in the Village of Bellevue started to notice an uptick in business. Back in 2020, the owner Mike Shea, shared what he was beginning to notice in sales.
"Business the last month was pretty steady, until about two weeks ago when all of the Coronavirus stuff started. And then we saw a dramatic spike in in-store sales."
At that point, Shea watched as his display case of handguns sold at a rate he hadn't seen since 2016. In the first several weeks of the pandemic, Shea says sales increased 100 percent.
"Case is about half full right now instead of completely full. We're getting guns in as fast as we can," Shea said in March of 2020.
Fast forward to one year later and the demand has only risen at gun retail shops like Shea's.
"We would normally keep on hand about 100 guns or so to sell, but right now I have about 20",
says Shea one year after he started noticing the trend.
There's not a huge selection at the Family Shooting Academy in March of 2021, despite the latest shipment of guns coming in just days ago. And the ammunition selection, like just about everywhere, is very limited.
"Ammunition has all but disappeared at this point."
Shea says his number one ask at the shop from customers, is if they have ammunition. And for those willing to pay the price for their limited supply, they'll have to pay a premium right now.
"Ammunition that used to be 15 to 20 dollars a box has moved to 35 to 45 dollars a box."
2020 was a record-breaking year in the firearms industry and for many in the business, they noticed a more diverse base of clientele.
"People from all walks of life. It doesn't matter their creed, color, gender, they are all coming in to buy guns for self-defense," adds Shea.
Original Story...
2020 was a record-setting year for gun and ammunition sales.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, gun and ammunition sales have soared across the country. In Wisconsin alone in 2020, the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check Service, utilized for gun sales, was used almost 300,000 more times than in 2019.
Locally, firearm retailers say the rush for handguns, in particular, started just a couple of weeks into the pandemic. Mike Shea, of the Family Shooting Academy in Bellevue, said in March of 2020 that gun sales were up nearly 100 percent:
"Business the last month was pretty steady, until about two weeks ago when all of the Coronavirus stuff started. Then we saw a dramatic spike in in-store sales."
While the FBI's background check service doesn't indicate how many guns were actually sold in Wisconsin in 2020, gun retailers say many rushed to make the purchases because of the potential of gun legislation being brought forward. Many concerns, according to Shea back in March of 2020, also had to do with first-time gun buyers worried about protecting their families during the unknown reality of a pandemic.
"This time around we're seeing a lot of people who never considered owning a gun before. They are looking at it as a safety thing," said Shea in March 2020.
Tonight, on NBC26 at 6pm, we will catch up with Shea to hear about how the past 12-months have gone in the firearms industry.
