The gun store that relies entirely on firearm sales for its revenue is the gun store that's most vulnerable to market swings. Election cycles, legislation rumors, and supply chain disruptions create demand spikes and valleys that are impossible to predict and difficult to survive if firearms are your only revenue stream.

The most profitable gun stores in the country share a common trait: they've built diversified revenue streams that generate income whether the firearms market is hot or cold. They sell more to each customer who walks through the door, they reach customers who never walk through the door at all, and they build relationships that bring customers back months and years after the initial purchase.

This guide covers the practical strategies that gun store owners are using to grow revenue per customer — without depending on selling more guns.

The Add-On Sales Opportunity

The average gun store transaction represents a fraction of what that customer is willing to spend. A customer who buys a handgun also needs a holster, ammunition, cleaning supplies, eye and ear protection, a range bag, a safe, and eventually training. A customer who buys an AR platform will spend multiples of the rifle's cost on optics, lights, slings, magazines, and upgrades over the following months.

Most gun stores capture only a small portion of this downstream spending because they don't have systems or processes in place to present add-on items at the right moment, they don't follow up after the sale, and the customer ends up buying accessories online or at a competitor.

At the Counter

The simplest add-on sales happen at the point of purchase. When a customer is already buying a firearm, they're in a purchasing mindset — and suggesting relevant accessories isn't pushy. It's helpful.

Train your counter staff to make contextual suggestions based on what the customer is buying. A new handgun buyer should hear about holster options, a cleaning kit, and ammunition. A first-time buyer should hear about a range session or a training class. A suppressor buyer should hear about the host weapon compatibility and any adapters they might need.

The key word is "contextual." Suggesting a $300 optic to someone buying a $200 .22 rifle is tone-deaf. Suggesting a $25 cleaning kit to someone buying their first firearm is a service. Know the difference, and train your staff to read the situation.

A POS system that supports suggestive selling can help here. Some systems display recommended add-on items on screen when a specific product is scanned — prompting the associate without requiring them to memorize every product pairing. This works especially well for newer staff who haven't yet built the product knowledge to make recommendations instinctively.

The Accessories Wall

Your store layout affects your add-on revenue directly. If accessories are buried in the back or disorganized on pegboard, customers browse less and buy less. Position high-margin accessories where customers naturally wait — near the 4473 completion area, along the path to the range entrance, and at the checkout counter.

Impulse items (ear pro, targets, snap caps, cleaning wipes, gun oil) should be at the register. Higher-consideration items (optics, holsters, bags) should be in areas where customers spend time browsing. Make it easy to find, easy to compare, and easy to grab.

Ammunition: Your Recurring Revenue Engine

Ammunition is the closest thing a gun store has to a subscription product. Every customer who buys a firearm needs ammunition — not once, but repeatedly. The gun store that captures even a modest share of a customer's ongoing ammunition purchases builds a recurring revenue stream that smooths out the volatility of firearm sales.

Competitive Pricing Strategy

Customers price-shop ammunition more than almost any other product in your store. They know what a box of 9mm costs at the big-box retailer and online. You don't need to be the cheapest — but you need to be close enough that convenience wins.

Consider a tiered pricing strategy: standard retail pricing for walk-in purchases, member pricing for range or loyalty program members, and case pricing for bulk purchases. The margin per round on a case sale is lower, but the total transaction value is higher and you're locking that customer into purchasing from you rather than ordering online.

Ammo Subscription or Auto-Ship

Some forward-thinking gun stores are testing ammunition subscription models — customers sign up for a monthly allocation of their preferred caliber at a locked-in price, and it's either shipped to them or held for pickup. This is early-stage for most independent retailers, but the concept is sound: predictable revenue, reduced inventory risk, and a reason for the customer to come back every month.

Even without a formal subscription, a simple "text me when you get a shipment of [caliber]" list generates repeat traffic. The customer gets what they want, you move inventory quickly, and the trip to pick up ammo often includes additional purchases.

Services That Generate Revenue and Traffic

The gun store that's just a store is competing purely on product and price. The gun store that's also a service provider has differentiated itself in ways that are much harder for online retailers to replicate.

Training and Classes

Firearms training is high-margin, builds customer loyalty, and introduces new buyers to your store. For gun store owners considering adding a range, see our guide to starting a shooting range business. Concealed carry courses are the most obvious starting point — they have built-in demand driven by state licensing requirements. But the opportunity extends well beyond CCW.

Basic firearms safety for new owners, women-focused introductory courses, defensive pistol, rifle marksmanship, and advanced tactical courses all serve different segments of your customer base. Each class puts a customer in your store for several hours, during which they're likely to purchase ammunition, targets, and other supplies.

If you don't have an on-site range, partner with a local range to offer courses. If you're considering adding a range to your operation, the right range management software makes the operational complexity manageable. If you don't have instructors on staff, partner with certified instructors who can teach under your brand. The classes drive revenue directly through tuition and indirectly through the retail spending they generate.

Gunsmithing and Customization

Gunsmithing services — from simple sight installations and trigger jobs to full custom builds — generate revenue that requires minimal inventory investment. The customer brings the product; you provide the labor.

If you don't have a full-time gunsmith, consider contracting with one on a part-time basis or offering specific services that your staff can perform with appropriate training: sight installation, scope mounting, and basic cleaning and maintenance services. These "quick service" offerings are high-margin, fast-turnaround, and bring customers back to your counter.

Cerakote and custom finishing services have become particularly popular. The margins are strong, the demand is consistent, and every finished project becomes a conversation piece that generates word-of-mouth referrals.

Transfers

Inbound FFL transfers — receiving firearms purchased online and facilitating the 4473 and background check — are a steady revenue stream that many gun stores undervalue. Customers who buy firearms online still need a local FFL to complete the transfer, and your transfer fee ($25 to $75 is typical) is essentially pure margin with minimal time investment.

More importantly, every transfer customer is a walk-in who's already buying a firearm. They're exactly the customer you want in your store, and they're there for a transaction that requires face-to-face interaction. Use that interaction to demonstrate your product knowledge, suggest accessories for the firearm they're picking up, and invite them to your range or training classes.

Selling Online: Reaching Customers Beyond Your Four Walls

The gun store that only sells to walk-in customers is leaving the majority of its addressable market untouched. Ecommerce doesn't replace your brick-and-mortar operation — it extends it.

Your Own Webstore

A company-branded webstore lets you sell ammunition, accessories, optics, and non-FFL items (holsters, bags, cleaning supplies, apparel) to customers who may never visit your physical location. For firearms, customers can purchase online and complete the transfer at your store — combining ecommerce convenience with the in-store interaction that drives add-on sales.

The key is integration. Your online store should pull from the same inventory as your physical store, so you're never selling something online that's already been sold off the shelf. Your POS system should manage both channels from a single inventory database, and orders should flow into the same fulfillment workflow regardless of where they originate.

Marketplace Presence

Beyond your own website, listing inventory on firearms-specific marketplaces expands your reach to customers actively searching for specific products. Platforms like GunBroker, Guns.com, and industry-specific marketplaces connect you with buyers nationwide.

The operational challenge is managing listings across multiple platforms without overselling or duplicating effort. This is where your POS system's integration capabilities matter — platforms that sync inventory across your webstore, marketplace listings, and in-store POS automatically prevent the headaches that come from manual multi-channel management.

Used Firearms and Consignment

Used firearms represent a particularly strong ecommerce opportunity. Margins on used guns are typically higher than new, every piece is unique (which drives urgency), and the inventory cost is lower if you're taking trade-ins or consignment pieces.

Listing your used inventory online — with good photos and accurate descriptions — reaches buyers who are searching for specific models and are willing to pay full market value for a firearm in the condition they want.

Customer Retention: The Revenue Multiplier

Acquiring a new customer costs five to ten times more than retaining an existing one. Every strategy in this guide works better when it's applied to customers who already know your store, trust your staff, and have had a positive experience.

Loyalty Programs

A simple loyalty program — points per dollar spent, redeemable for discounts on future purchases — gives customers a reason to consolidate their spending with you instead of spreading it across competitors and online retailers. The program doesn't need to be complex. Earn one point per dollar, redeem 100 points for $5 off. The math barely matters; the psychology of "I have points there" drives repeat visits.

Post-Sale Communication

The customer relationship doesn't end when they walk out the door. Automated follow-up communication — a thank-you message after a purchase, a reminder that their firearm is due for cleaning at 500 rounds, a notification when the ammunition they buy is back in stock — keeps your store in their mind and gives them reasons to return.

SMS works better than email for most gun store customers. Open rates are dramatically higher, and the communication feels more personal. A text that says "Hey — just got a shipment of Federal 9mm, 50-round boxes at $12.99. Want us to hold a case for you?" drives immediate action in a way that a marketing email never will.

Reviews and Referrals

Your most powerful marketing channel is your existing customers telling their friends. Actively encourage reviews — on Google, on your Facebook page, on firearms forums — and make it easy. A simple text after a positive interaction ("If you had a good experience today, a Google review means the world to us — here's the link") generates the kind of social proof that no amount of advertising can buy.

Measuring What Matters

Revenue growth from add-on sales and diversified income streams is only meaningful if you can measure it. Your POS system should give you visibility into average transaction value (is it going up?), revenue by category (what's growing, what's stagnant?), customer return rate (are people coming back?), attachment rate (how often does a firearm sale include accessories?), and online versus in-store revenue split.

Track these metrics monthly. Set targets. Share them with your staff — when your team knows that the goal is a $45 average transaction value and they're currently at $38, they have a concrete number to work toward.

The Compound Effect

None of these strategies works in isolation. The gun store that trains its staff on add-on selling, stocks a smart accessories wall, offers training classes, runs an ecommerce channel, and follows up with customers after every purchase isn't just doing five separate things — it's creating a flywheel where each element reinforces the others.

The training class drives traffic. The traffic drives retail sales. The retail sales generate loyalty points. The loyalty program drives return visits. The return visits generate reviews. The reviews attract new customers. And the cycle repeats.

The gun stores that are growing in 2026 aren't necessarily selling more guns. They're selling more to every customer, reaching more customers through more channels, and building relationships that last beyond a single transaction. That's how you build a business that thrives regardless of what the market does next.

Your POS should drive revenue, not just process it. Bravo's platform includes suggestive selling prompts, integrated ecommerce, SMS marketing, and customer loyalty tools — all connected to the same inventory and customer database. Request a demo to see how it works for gun stores.

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