Click here to download the catalog as a PDF file. To view this site you need Adobe Flash Player and your browser must allow javaScripts. Go here to get the latest Flash Player. Massad Ayoob Stand Apart In City Full Of Gun Shops hen you’re audacious enough to find that Greater Phoenix was replete to open a gun shop in a com- with gun shops. Being interested primarily munity that already has many, in defensive shooting and related sports, you need more than one iron in the fire. they found they had to pick and choose Jimmy Krueger and Kate Alexander met and fell in love in New Hampshire. It’s a “free state” for gun folks, and the happy couple was soon shooting their way through pistol matches. A trip to the Gunsite Training Center in Paulden, Ariz., made them both fall in love with the Grand Canyon State, and in 1996, the couple made the move. Jim Krueger (above) shows a customer a handgun and Kate They were delighted Krueger (right) handles computer sales at Derby Guns. W among large displays of hunting and sporting gear to find the items appealing to their interest. It was then they thought of starting a gun shop geared toward shooters interested in personal protection. Their plans took a decade to develop. The Kruegers opened their shop in January 2006 in Scottsdale. Highlighting Top Defensive Sellers O ne corner of Derby Guns is devoted to sporting arms, many of them profitable trade-ins. However, the majority of the 1,800-square-foot layout is devoted to defensive gear: autoloading rifles, home-defense shotguns and concealed-carry handguns. The long guns are displayed horizontally on the walls behind the showcase, the better to show their relative size and their features. The handguns are in showcases, sitting atop their boxes, allowing the salesperson to reach down right where he or she is standing to show the gun to the customer, refer to the owner’s manual and demonstrate the accessories contained in the box. “Our best-selling handguns are the Glock, the Springfield XD and the Kimber, in that order. Glock is by far number one,” Kate said. “The 9mm and the .40 had been neck and neck in popularity until the recent increase in ammo prices. Since then, we’ve been selling more 9mms.” Some dealers find less-popular calibers, such as .357 SIG and .45 GAP (Glock Auto Pistol), to be slow movers. Derby Guns has found otherwise. “A lot of our customers will buy .40s, and we’ll encourage them to buy .357 SIG barrels as accessories, since they interchange,” Kate said. “The .45 GAP? We love it! I have the subcompact Model 39 and Jim has the intermediate-size Glock 38. We sell the .45 GAPs regularly, and we’ve sold a lot of customers on them because we know how well they shoot.” Many gun retailers don’t realize how much their customers see them as role models and advisors. If you have faith in a product, tell the customer. They will often decide that if it’s good enough JUNE 2009 for you — their resident expert — it’s good enough for them. In long arms, the sales staples at Derby Guns are AR-15 rifles and slide-action shotguns. “The Bushmaster .223s and Remington 870s are our fastestmoving long guns. The Bushmaster Patrolman is our single bestseller in that category,” Kate said. The Kruegers let everyone know they were involved in last year’s presidential campaign. 14 Read SI DIGITAL www.shootingindustry.com