Embattled sporting goods retailer Gander Mountain was scooped up by Camping World Holdings last week for quite a bargain, but despite the acquisition, it appears that as many as half of Gander Mountain’s store locations will close down.
Camping World, which specializes in RV sales, purchased the bankrupt chain at an auction for around $38 million. That purchase included all 162 retail locations, its corporate operations, its intellectual property rights, its e-commerce presence and its Overton’s boating subsidiary.
When Gander Mountain first announced that it would be filing for bankruptcy, it said that it would close 32 stores in 11 states and lay off a workforce of 1,280 full-time and part-time employees. But now with Camping World management at the helm, those numbers will grow.
“While we are obligated to assume a minimum of 17 leases, our destination rights will allow us to operate stores and retain employees at a number to maximize profitability,” said Camping World CEO Marcus Lemonis.
Lemonis told the Wall Street Journal that at least half the stores will be shut down. He did not go into detail about which stores would get the ax and which would continue to operate. Though it appears he’s making those announcements randomly on Twitter.
Store staying open alert #Huberheights #winstonsalem #avonIN #augustaGa
— Marcus Lemonis (@marcuslemonis) May 5, 2017
“The liquidation of the existing Gander Mountain inventory will allow us to start with a clean slate of what we consider the appropriate mix and levels of inventory,” Lemonis said in a statement, “including the addition of Camping World and Overton offerings where appropriate.”
The liquidation of Gander Mountain could generate up to $430 million or about 91 percent of what it paid for its current inventory, according to Bloomberg News. Investment firm Gordon Brothers and Hilco Merchant Resources will oversee the liquidation.
A look at the stock price of Camping World for the past month.
In 2016, Camping World generated $203 million in profit against a total of $3.5 billion in sales. The company is traded on the New York Stock Exchange.
UPDATE: 5/8/17
Camping World is throwing a huge liquidation sale. See info below:
All sales final. No refunds, no exchanges or adjustments for prior purchases. We accept cash, Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express Cards. Not all items in all stores. Inventory is limited to stock on hand. These stores are not participating in current circulars.
What’s happening at Gander Mountain?
Gander Mountain is the nation’s largest retail network of outdoor specialty stores for hunting, fishing, camping, marine, apparel, footwear, shooting sports, and outdoor lifestyle. Gander Mountain has spent over 50 years igniting people’s passion for the outdoors. In every natural convention, from twisting trails to surging streams, we’ve challenged ourselves to discover something valuable to pass along to each of our customers. We are committed to staying the go-to place for outdoor enthusiasts who are constantly in search of great, high-quality gear to help them make more great moments in the outdoors.
Better Gear. Better Performance. Better Service. Better Value. All at Gander Mountain.
WE LIVE OUTDOORS.
In March 2017, Gander Mountain filed for voluntary Chapter 11 Bankruptcy and began the work to restructure the company and remain a part of the outdoor community. In May 2017, Gander Mountain and Overton’s were acquired by Camping World Holdings, Inc.
Camping World
Camping World Holdings, Inc. is the only provider of a comprehensive portfolio of services, protection plans, products, and resources for recreational vehicle (“RV”) enthusiasts. Through its two iconic brands, Camping World and Good Sam, the company offers new and used RVs for sale, vehicle service, and maintenance along with more than 10,000 products and services through its retail locations and membership clubs. Good Sam branded offerings provide the industry’s broadest and deepest range of services, protection plans, products, and resources. The Camping World brand operates the largest national network of RV-centric retail locations in the United States through over 125 retail locations in 36 states and an e-commerce platform. With both brands founded in 1966, product and service offerings are based on 50 years of experience and customer feedback from RV enthusiasts.
What does this mean for Gander Mountain?
The announcement of Camping World acquiring the Gander Mountain brand means that we will continue to be a part of the specialty outdoor market. Many of our customers that depend on us for their recreational lifestyle will continue to enjoy the great products and services that have been the company’s hallmark throughout its history. We at Gander Mountain believe that our best days are still ahead of us and we ask that you join us in welcoming and supporting this successful transition. Camping World shares the same passion for the outdoors as Gander Mountain and our customers, making for a great melding of businesses and outdoor communities.
Welcome to the team, Camping World! We are excited for the future and the infinite possibilities ahead of us to serve the outdoor community!
Check back in Fall 2017 for more details!
I’m surprised gander lasted this long with their ridiculous prices. I’ve never found a good deal in this place even during the liquidation of the Middletown, NY store.
Perfectly pent content material, Really enjoyed looking at.
I must echo most all of the comments here. They had a, “gunsmith” in the local store here that damaged one of my rifles that they were sending back the manufacturer. I went to pick the rifle up and found the bell on the scope had been damaged. someone had tried to straighten the bent are and colored over it with what appeared to be a marking pen. That didn’t fly. They sent it back to the manufacturer and had the manufacturer replace the scope. Did I mention that the, “gunsmith” was a kid fresh out of a, “gunsmith school”, and that this was his first job? Prices way out of line with stores that had far less buying power. I was told that they would, “match” prices that they could confirm.
The claim of liquidation pricing is minimal, at best. I went into the store looking for reloading gear and possibly a new handgun. What reloading gear they did have was marked down a mere 10%. The funny part is that the “MSRP” stickers had prices higher than they were previously. I found a Lee ProPot IV that was priced nearly $20 higher than it had been the previous month. Fortunately, most of the employees realize the game being played by the liquidation company The cashier, when I commented about the markup, fixed it by doing an override to bring the price down to a realistic sale price. At the gun counter, I found Glocks that were marked at $50-$75 over retail, then noted with a whopping 5% savings. No wonder they’re having problems, with companies like this handling their merchandise closeout !!
I went into a local GM a couple days ago and they were having a “liquidation sale.” Yeah, right!
Guns were marked down a whole, wait for it! Now, brace yourselves, a whole, whopping big… drumroll please!… 5%, count ’em FIVE percent! That’s a SALE?!
Many things didn’t appear to be marked down at all. I saw a pellet rifle that was priced $20 higher than the regular price at Wally World. (Say whatever you will about Wally’s but at least they have enough guts to continue sales of guns and ammunition, at least in my ‘neck of the woods.’)
I noticed the article, or maybe another I read, said the new buyers hope to recover about 91% of the product investment- They ain’t going to do that by ‘slashing prices’ so this is nothing to get excited about. Maybe if they had lowered prices before hand, they’d have made more sales and not come to this?
Same thing happen to me on that going out sale. Not a happy person. Not happy with any sale sense resent add they put. Always never had the idem that’s advertising try to get buy something else higher price I no longer shop with them
Whenever I go into CW, I just see too much Commie Red China, crap-quality stuff, which I can get in many other joints. I seldom go there. Just remember: Red China-imprisoned, American Gi’s from WWII, Korea, & Viet-Nam, -never- had a nice day, and too many were NEVER released! (Plus, they’ve gunned-down many of their SE Asian neighbors since then, in their drive to seize the sea lanes). El Paladin
They always were a rip off. IF you were looking for a new gun and checked Gunwatcher Gander was always the highest right along with Cabellas. Good riddance.
When they opened in the St Louis area they were the highest of the big three.
The employees were rude and not very helpful.
When they opened in Ofalon IL it was different than night and day.
The sale prices were good and sometimes great!
The employees were almost all knowgable, helpfully and curtious.
Since I live in Illinois I couldn’t buy handguns in MO.
They were the only big box with guns in the area. They frequently had new products on sale and in stock.
The employees usually knew what they were talking about.
When I went in the store someone always tried to help me.
No I am not an employee, I am a happy customer and hope this store doesn’t close.
John
Management destroyed them. Heres my experience.
My girlfriend used to work at Big5 and Petsmart in Fresno Cali. And she would tell me the insane training they would get to deal with all the scam artists that regularly flowed through the doors. And the scams evolved FASTER than the training.
So fastforward several years, she moved to Indiana, and got a job at Gander Mtn in Avon. She said they were GETTING ROBBED BLIND!! Nearly every single day!
She said she could spot the scammers a mile away (from her past experience) and yet was basically ignored.
No one would listen. She said the people knew EXACTLY where the blind spots were, where the cameras couldnt see. Because the merchandise tags were always piled up in the same areas.
BUT, management wouldnt even look at the Cam footage. It took her 2 weeks of pleading with them to ACTUALLY look at the cameras. And sure enough, you could see the people, but they would disappear in the blind spots.
And no one still did anything. Ohhh, except require the employees to put security tags on EVERYTHING and continually relocate different items. So basically, in response to being robbed, managements answer was to give the employees even more work.
Ganders policy is, ONLY the store manager can do anything about theft. They have to see it, and they are the only ones who can approach the alleged perp. (not even one of the MANY ‘other’ manager types)
So, if the store manager is off that day, she said everyone literally would just stand there helpless.
And if you knew of this policy, you could just ask to ‘see the store manager’. And well, if he/she wasnt there that day, let the theft games begin.
I actually considered printing up business cards and going in there as a ‘retail security consultant’. It would have been easy.
Thats just the tip of the iceberg. There was so much dumb shit. I only shopped there with the employee discount.
Management killed Gander.
This is my second comment. I noticed one person who also commented hinted maybe all stores would close or at least close under the Gander Mountain name. I am also thinking that as well. I just got a notice today about my Gander Mountain Master card (which I never activated). The notice apologized saying that the card can no longer be accepted at Gander Mountain but would be accepted stores where Mastercard is accepted. Interesting.
At their prices, 50% off any firearm, is still too high!
The Waukesha, WI Gander Mountain store has always been my last resort go to if I really needed something in a pinch. Often though they didn’t have what I wanted on hand. “We can order it for you” was a line I’ve heard more than once. Hell, if I wasn’t in a hurry, I would have ordered it online from some other retailer for less. I was in the store yesterday, May 11,2017, to see for myself if the everything must go was hype or not. The store’s merchandise looked as though it had been picked over. Sure there were racks of out of season clothing listed at 15%-30%off but that was 15% -30% off of their already inflated prices. Same stuff much cheaper elsewhere. I overheard another customer asking an employee who had been stocking ammunition where was the markdown on ammunition. The employee told him there wasn’t one. In fact, I noticed prices of ammunition higher than normal. I saw certain ammunition that I normally buy priced three times higher than is readily available at Wal Mart a few miles away, same exact product. I left the store empty handed and disappointed for the last time. Good bye and good riddens. It’ll take a miracle to get me back into that store even under new ownership!!!!!!!!!!! I don’t even feel sorry for the employees, they were never customer service oriented anyway. Good luck at your new place of employment.
I used to work at our local gander mountain for 4 1/2 years. I started out in firearm as the gunsmith, at one time it was a good company to work for, however in the 4 1/2 years I seen them SHIT on so many loyal employees and think nothing of it…… I truly feel this could not have happened to a better company than gander. When I first heard the news I felt sad for all the innocent employees who will be loosing their jobs. But now when I ride by the store I just laugh my ass off thinking about all the stupid SOB’s in upper management that won’t be screwing over anymore hard working associates. To them I saw “you reap what you sow”.
My last visit to the store was very disappointing . I found that merchandise that was advertised was a limited item and had sold out in the first hour that the store was open. No rain check No apology No substitution. I drove 26 miles to purchase items that was advertised. I did get rude treatment when I questioned the sales people about the items advertised. It may have changed ownership. Even at that I still will not shop there. Many others supply the same merchandise and respect those who provide bread for their table. It was just a matter of time. This did not happen in only one store as I did give them the benefit of doubt before my last visit,It did not change between stores.
If GM sold those new BigBaller $495 shoes, they would probably charge $795.
Rude employees, Extremely high prices on just about everything, Sending out sales flyers and driving 40 miles (ONE WAY) to purchase something on sale on the first day and being the first customer and finding just about everything in the flyer was not there is just plain stupid on their part to hope you will buy something else.
Just stupid bad management at the Store in Lake Mary Florida.
ILLEGAL unless they say limited quantities. RAINCHECK otherwise. NEVER been to GM. CABELAS IS BAD ENUF..
I made a great purchase by timing it just right between buy-out and liquidation announcements. The store personnel were giving me contradictory information compared to the news and the Gander website, I got what I wanted at the price I wanted to pay.
Now, that doesn’t mean I am a loyal customer. Quite the contrary actually. Poor customer service, higher than everyone else’s prices, and never having in stock the advertised items.
Oh well, not going to miss them.
I wish I could think of something positive to add.
05/12/2017 12:04pm received new email stating 30% off all firearms
correction 30% off, new and used firearms ALSO REDUCED, but not by 30% LoL
I went in a local GM two days ago and the mark down on ALL guns was 5% Lol
The Woodbury MN location had only ONE thing going for it. Fred Ardoff, the gunsmith, the best in the biz. Other than that, it was a total waste of space.
For us sportsman the closing of any sporting goods store is a loss. Their everyday gun prices were not a good deal for sure but some of the occasional sale prices were OK. The thing is, they did provide some competition to the other big name stores and without that other stores have no reason to lower their prices. Over all, the more stores the more competition and access to sporting goods the better it is for us consumers. The less competition the less reason for other sporting goods stores to lower their prices. Recently a Field and Stream store closed in the Raleigh/Durham area here in NC. I liked that store as they seemed willing to deal a little bit unlike Gander Mountain and they had occasional exceptional deals on some guns. They had folks in the store always trying to help the customer too. Now I have to drive to Greensboro to shop at one of their stores. However I was starting to wonder how even a big city like the Raleigh area could sustain all the big name stores. There was 2 Gander Mountain stores, Bass pro, several Dicks Stores, Cabelas and Field and Stream not to mention numerous local stores, pawn shops and internet sellers like gunbroker etc. I figured something had to give and unfortunately something did give.
Drove over to Albany, Ga. to shop the “big sale” going on at GM. That is FAKE advertising! I wander why they went out of business? A very nice saies lady said their prices were set by the ligidaters, and she says the prices will be lowered to 20-30% off next week. At 30% off, there is nothing on sale because the same products are cheaper almost any where you look. She says their store will stay open. Thanks for the warning!!!!! Example: Lodge cast iron 12 inch frying pan-made in USA, on sale for $29.00 at GM. The same exact frying pan at a high end store-$21.00 regular price!!!! Don’t waste your time and money!
NOT HONORING THEIR CREDIT CARD REWARD CERTIFICATES.
I went to spend my remaining $80 reward certificate last Sunday and there were several of us holding useless
reward certificates. They said “call the credit card company”. Other posters are right, the Sale is another consumer fraud.
Almost nothing marked down. Over the last few years I did get a muzzleloader and a crossbow with reward certificates but now it’s back to my Sportsmans Guide credit card. I have had good experiences with them for nearly 50 years.
CAVEAT FRICKIN’ EMPTOR.
I stopped shopping at the local GM years ago. Their ammo prices were extremely high. The only time I’ve purchased anything there in the last 7 or 8 years is when I received a Pheasants Forever $10 gift card. Dick’s Sporting Goods is lousy but it’s a step up from Gander.
Prices were much higher than any other Sporting Goods store in my area. I stopped in at the nearby closing store a few weeks ago. I was offered 20% discount on a cal.22 bolt action rifle that must have been in stocks for a long time from the condition. Took the offer. Stopping in at another large Southern chain Sporting Goods Store I found I paid $7 more than their normal price.
They never asked for, nor ever received any tax exemptions for locating a store in a community. Seems that they were good neighbors to those neighborhoods in which they located. If they had asked for and received millions in tax exemptions like a couple of other mass outdoor retailers, they could have likely passed the savings on to the consumer. Guess we have to ask ourselves, would we pay a bit more for a good neighbor, or do we desire to pay less out of our pockets for a neighbor who is taking the local tax authority to the cleaners?
that’s a sharp observation. a lot of companies are taking advantage of tax incentives to relocate and giving little back in the form of decent jobs. some of that is the fault of politicians who don’t write laws and contracts very well and don’t demand ironclad guarantees. in washington state, boeing got a huge tax break, blew off its jobs promise and got away with it because the deal was written so poorly. way to screw the taxpayers.
G M gun trade in ripoff they make up a value of your gun them take 35% off that price and that is what they will give you this is at the TAMPA store on Hillsboro Ave store
Gander Mountain was really good back when they were a catalog only operation. Got lots of neat stuff then at reasonable prices. Ever since they started opening stores, they have gone downhill. I won’t miss them since every store I went to was always disorganized and never had what I was looking for.
When I was a kid you could get some great deals ordering from catalogs, now GM or other sporting goods stores never has sales.
Went out there on the first day in The Tampa Fl. store. The whole thing is a scam put on by the liquidation company. Don’t even waste your time. Discounts are no better that most any other days. Misleading ad leads you to believe “everything” is on sale. Guns, ammo etc. are in fact not discounted at all.
My email says ALL 126 STGRES are closing. And like the ad pictured in the article above, it says it includes firearms and ammunition. They just built a brand new store near me within the last year.
Rude employees, high prices, poorly managed stores are just a few of the reasons this retailer failed. Gander simply did not compete with Cabelas or Bass Pro not to mention small specialty retailers that understand customer service. The failure of this retailer should come as no surprise. The real surprise is how long they were able to exist given their reputation among hunters and fishermen.
I quit going to Gander a couple of years ago even though one of their stores was a short ten minute drive from my house. Gander management was so inept that they didn’t have a clue as to why customers quit coming to their stores.
Good riddance to a very mediocre retailer. If their new owners do not recognize the need to be competitive in pricing and customer service, they too will be liquidating and filing bankruptcy.
Perfect analogy of the store and always amazed me how out of touch they were. My store in spring tx since day one has always been disorganized in finding displayed pricing on anything I went there to see, it was cheaper to buy and ship from the U.K. Or Europe when you found the price. and though they were everywhere on the personnel scale, the stores out of touch policies probably ruined many that could have been good.
Camping World prices are always 20-30% higher than anywhere else. I never buy there. Customer service is terrible. Camping World’s purchase of Gander is a perfect fit. RIP Gander.
Woodbury, MN store also has no firearns or ammo discounted. As far as the rest of their merchandise goes, their prices were too high so even with 10% off it was no deal. About 10 years ago they used to have sales and had some good deals. Then they got greedy. Oh well!
This is not the first time Gander Mountain has gone belly up. Late eighties or early nineties same thing. I know because I have a friend that owned a small manufacturing business that got soaked for 25 grand in the bankruptcy. This happens when upper management crooks steal the company into bankruptcy.
MC sporting did the same thing. Jacked the prices way up and then started advertising 20-30 percent off.
My wife found a pair of shoes and asked how much they said $140.99 I looked it up on the Internet and they are selling for $79.00 , we left and didn’t go back and I’m not even going to bother with Gander mountain.
I drove through all kinds of traffic about 2 hours up to Tampa only to find there was NO big liquidation sale. WARNING. They had markdowns to 10% average but their prices are already too high. Guns were NOT marked down. I even called the store ahead of time. Something is not right here.
Gander Mnt. was a ripoff when it came to guns and ammo. their pricing was at MSRP. Academy is my favorite place to purchase hunting and fishing gear. i buy all my ammo from Academy on line and receive free shipping on orders over $25. i had my hopes up when Gander opened a store in Tulsa Hills but soon learned they didn’t need my business as their pricing was much higher than Academy or Bass Pro.
Why pay those higher prices for ammo and guns? when you can get them cheaper from other venders.
Gander Mtn. was never competitive with other retailers. Never really looked for product in their Mesquite store. Knew it was just a matter of time before they closed or sold out. Hate to see anyone go under, but this is best for all gun enthusiasts.
Academy Sports a block away always has better prices, just not the selection. Better people too. Never bought a gun at GM, too pricey.
At the Roanoke store: crowded parking lot, constant stream of people into the store, many going straight to the firearms area, most see the “no discounts on guns or ammo” signs, constant stream of empty-handed people back out of the store.
I was in my local Gander Mountain in Monroe North Carolina and it says “Going out of business” in the building and on the door when you walk in it says “Now Hiring” I don’t get what they are doing.
I have interest in a 22 Golden Spike Pistol. Please adve.
I advise you to do an internet search for it, rather than posting in a completely unrelated article. Try Bing.com or Google.com
I have a golden spike Colt revolver 3030 Winchester, never fired.
The prices were high. Gander had lots of what you wanted but not exactly. No bows prior to bow season. No #9 shot for shooting skeet. Fishing vests that have netting so that hooks could get caught in them. They would NEVER come up to you and ask the simple question, could I help you today. The guns and ammo has still not been discounted.
Bought very little their prices to high your guns were so over priced and ammo every one that shoots or hunts seen it coming good ridden what happens to all my points.
Went to the Cicero NY store to look at the gun sales. Sign up in the department saying no guns or ammunition is part of the liquidation sale. Pretty sketchy way to get people into your stores, advertise all inventory and then get there to find out guns and ammo are not part of it.
Thanks for the heads up. I guess I won’t bother setting foot in that place. It’s a shame that a business that started out here in Wisconsin was so poorly run, usually folks here have more sense than that.
“Better Gear. Better Performance. Better Service. Better Value. All at Gander Mountain.”
Hummmm strange!, I never received any of the above when I visited Gander Mountain!
Which might explain why they went under!
Their prices were literally double or more of what other retailers sold items…bye bye you greedy, rip-off bums!!!!!
I was in the store last week and was looking at the merchandise wow it was priced very high, I said they must be getting ready for a fake mark down
Too bad
Gander Mountain’s website says ALL 126 stores to close…. not half, ALL.
Gander mountain website say ALL 126 locations to close.