Outdoor Life Highlights Hunting and Fishing Gear Made in America
OutdoorHub 04.26.13
From rods and reels to guns and camo, U.S. sportsmen are not afraid to spend money on the gear it takes to participate in the sports they love. According to the most recent statistics from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, outdoorsmen dropped a whopping $43.2 billion on equipment in 2011 alone. But how much of that gear is sporting a “Made in the USA” tag, and how much of that money is going to support American jobs? Outdoor Life goes in depth on the topic, reviewing what it takes to make outdoor gear in America today, in its May issue, on newsstands and available at www.outdoorlife.com/USAmade now.
“Nearly everything we buy today is made overseas, including a lot of our sporting goods,” says John Taranto, Senior Editor of Outdoor Life. “A number of hunting and fishing equipment manufacturers are bucking that trend, though, and we wanted to take a look not only at why they’ve kept production in U.S., but also some the benefits of doing so and the challenges they’re up against.”
Outdoor Life’s coverage also includes a road trip through the Northeast, which, despite its prohibitive gun regulations, is still the epicenter of firearms manufacturing in the U.S. According to the magazine’s statistics, the region is home to no fewer than 22 firearms manufacturers, including four of the five most prolific gunmakers in the country. In fact, according to ATF figures, firearms manufacturing remains a predominantly “American-Made” business, with 5.5 million of the 8.4 million firearms available for sale in the U.S. in 2011 having been produced here. Perhaps the most surprising inclusion in Outdoor Life’s roundup of companies making firearms in the U.S. is Italian-owned Beretta, which produces shotguns in a Maryland factory. With gun sales and profits up, firearms manufacturers concede that the only unknown element in maintaining their U.S. production and U.S.-based jobs is political turmoil.
The article also includes six short case studies on companies that provide outdoorsmen with American-made sporting equipment. The reasons to stay in the U.S. vary from company to company, but many cite better quality and innovation and a desire to stay true to their roots. Top quality often comes at top prices, though, which has occasionally created hurdles. In the case of California-based Crooked Horn Outfitters, the company found it was unable to maintain domestic production and provide big-box retailers with the profit margins they require. Unwilling to shift production overseas, Crooked Horn Outfitters watched as the retailers sold low-end, foreign-produced knockoffs of their hunting packs and binocular straps.
According to recent surveys cited by Outdoor Life, American sportsmen are willing to pay more for American-made items, but just how much more remains an issue. When faced with a 20 to 30 percent difference in price, roughly a third of hunters and anglers would go for the domestically made item, even while noting the better quality of American-made goods.
“We are seeing some sporting-goods companies shifting production back to the U.S.,” says Taranto. “Thanks in part to rising costs in overseas production, perhaps in the coming years it will be easier to fish an American stream with entirely American-made equipment.”
To read Outdoor Life’s complete coverage, visit www.outdoorlife.com/USAmade.
