Smith & Wesson's $160 million purchase of Savage Arms puts two major long-gun lines under one roof. A practical growth playbook for independent FFL dealers: audit your supplier concentration, lock terms while two reps still compete, and make sure local buyers can actually find you.
Q3 2026 retail data shows firearm units down 7.8% while revenue held nearly flat - a mix shift toward lever-actions, premium handguns and suppressors that changes what dealers should stock and how customers find them.
A Florida prosecutor says unregistered SBRs and suppressors are not automatically contraband, ATF imposters are calling gun owners, and an Indiana gun counter cracked a five-year forged-expungement scheme. What each one means at your transfer counter.
Bank access and the licensing threshold are the two Q4 costs a dealer cannot control, and the two that decide which shops are still standing to take the transfer.
Every transfer, sale and shipment between licensees rests on one question: is that FFL real and current? Here is how the ATF lookup actually works, what it returns, what it cannot tell you, and how customers use it to judge your shop.
A new Illinois ordinance lets up to five home-based, appointment-only gunsmithing and transfer operations open their doors. For FFLs with no storefront, the entire business is being findable — here is the growth playbook.
September's NFA numbers show the category is concentrated in a handful of states, and ATF's own FAQ caps your sellable market at your state line. Here is where dealers should spend their attention this quarter.
ATF's October 9 guidance ended federal NFA approval and registration nationwide, but it left state law in charge. What FFL dealers must verify before a transfer, where Georgia, Washington, Ohio and Wisconsin still bite, and how customers find a dealer who knows the answer.
Low-cost, high-ROI growth tactics for FFL dealers: capture transfer customers, sell accessories, add NFA services, and fix your local SEO.
Local search is where FFL dealers win or lose customers. A practical 7-step guide to keyword strategy, Google Business Profile optimization, technical SEO, and content that captures regulatory-driven search demand.