Despite what the media is suggesting, Remington’s bankruptcy has nothing to do with the “March for Our Lives” rallies. (Photo: CNN)
We’ve known since February that Remington has been seeking financiers to help it enter a controlled bankruptcy, but this week Big Green made it official.
Remington Outdoor and its subsidiaries have submitted a Chapter 11 petition to the federal bankruptcy court in Delaware, according to multiple media outlets. The oldest gun manufacturer in the nation is reportedly $950 million in debt and has struggled to offload products after ramping up production in 2016, according to Remington’s Chief Financial Officer Stephen Jackson.
Jackson told USA Today that expected consumer demand in 2017 “ultimately did not materialize.” Other gun manufacturers found themselves in the same boat, prompting “unusually heavy discounting and promotions to reduce their own excess inventory.”
Remington reshuffled its executive staff in 2017, but they couldn’t match the low prices of their competitors. The company also faced a massive class action lawsuit, less-than-impressive recent offerings in the handgun category, and a recent drop in nationwide firearm sales.
This isn’t the end of Big Green—at least not immediately. The bankruptcy deal will maintain the company’s operations, continue pay and benefits for employees and ultimately turn the operating control of the company to creditors.
Cerberus Capital Management acquired Remington in 2007 for $118 million. They unsuccessfully tried to sell the company earlier this year, but have since agreed to a deal in which the company’s creditors—Franklin Templeton Investments and JPMorgan Asset Management—will exchange debt for equity.
SEE ALSO: Remington 870 DM Magpul & 700 Magpul v. Nevada Coyotes — Full Review
While the federal government (thankfully) doesn’t keep records of gun sales, the number of background checks has declined since Gun Salesman in Chief Barak Obama left office. The number of background checks conducted by the FBI remains much higher than before Obama took office, but there was an 8.3 percent drop in 2017.
(Photo: USA Today)
Mainstream media outlets have dutifully included in their coverage of Remington references to this week’s gun control protests, apparently suggesting that the two are somehow related. But as much as Emma Gonzalez would like to take credit for bankrupting Remington, the company’s troubles began long before high schoolers started dictating national policy.
If she’s not careful, though, she might steal the Gun Salesman in Chief title from our former president. AR-15 lower receivers have been suspiciously difficult to find of late. Primary Arms is out of stock of several of the most popular brands, and Aero Precision’s lower receivers have disappeared as well.
The firearms community hasn’t quite hit Full Freakout Mode circa 2016, but if Gonzalez continues her crusade and the 2018 midterms swing left, Remington sales will be back up in no time.
Remingtons decline started back when purchased by DuPont. It was doomed from then on. My sister and her husband both worked for big green and retired from there shortly after the DuPont takeover.
I am 71 years old and I have owned Remington’s all my years since I was 12 I still have more than I will say and I am sad to here of this happening to such a great company .we are in down turn of new hunters taking our place but with the help of us all and new management maybe this company will turn around and see what we as hunters really want like the old 870 or the 700 made like they use to be not cheep like today
I must have close to a dozen Remingtons from 15-20 years old going back close to 150 years old. I have not bought one in at least fifteen years and as I sadly look over what passes for Remington quality, I am inclined to pass every time I have one waved under my nose. Winchester hit the skids and Colt narrowly avoided going down over that same ‘nobliss obliege’ attitude that Remington seems to be so thoroughly infected with. Hope they pull through, but if they do not, they’ll have no one to blame but their own management.
Remington has self destructed. Their quality has gone down hill, they bought Marlin and destroyed their quality as well. seems like everything that Remington touches goes bad. They are long overdue for better management
Personally I wouldn’t buy anything from Remington, and haven’t since 2016.
Same thing happened with Winchester. Instead of refining and maintaining the quality of select products, they tried to compete broadly and cater to the Walmart crowd. Shooters and hunters will still pay for high-quality firearms. Otherwise, how could Benelli sell $1200 semi-auto shotguns when Remington was dumping cheap 870s and 1100s on K-Mart? Market share is meaningless if it is a dead-end road. Big corporations answer to their shareholders, not their consumers. As such, they push cheapened, unwanted products through the marketplace that ultimately seal their fate. Unless they have an intimate knowledge of firearms and hunting, the corporate suits are too full of themselves and their positions of power to humble themselves before their customers. All they are really concerned about are next quarter’s profits, shareholder dividends and their bonuses. They get too big for their britches and ultimately end up eating humble pie. Compare the quality of a Remington 550-1 with a 597, and it is easy to understand why the company is sucking wind.
Wasn’t it Remington’s parent company that halted sales of AR type rifles and parts after sandy hook, then listed some that were already sold at higher prices? Didn’t they offer limited lifetime warranties late in 2016 only to see the fine print pretty much make it worthless as far as a warranty is concerned? Maybe Remington’s parent company should’ve been worried about the people buying their products and less about filling their pockets! Most big business eventually find that out!
I got an idea – why don’t everyone go out and buy a new Remington gun? We can’t afford to lose Remington – this will be the start of the end!! Remington is a hunting legend!!
I have been hunting for 60 years
and I have always owned a
Remington, such as a model 700
and (in my opinion) the best pump shotgun ever – the 870 wing master!!
Let’s save heritage!!
TO ALL THINGS IS APPOINTED A SEASON. REMINGTONS SEASON HAS COME AND IS ABOUT TO GO FOREVER!
“Thus sayeth the lord?”
Go ye forth and abuse yourself.
And let’s remember that at least Remington stayed in the U.S. and didn’t run off to Japan and Portugal like Browning and Winchester. Hopefully Remington will get its act together and go all in on quality, not quantity. But hell, a cheapo 870 and 700 still shoots pretty damn good…..for the money!
Some years back when Rem was buying up everything I thought it was bad. Now seems it is true, how could any company making ARs for last 8 years be broke? Suits running the company instead of gun people.
Ruger and Mossberg – those two are the keys. If Ruger and Mossberg get bought out, our industry will be lost to a corporate oligarchy. These few large companies buying up most of the brand names is not healthy for the industry and will make the industry susceptible to the whims of a handful of corporate raiders of the same variety that have sunk the Remington ship and all aboard.
Shoddy craftsmanship, premium pricing, inferior material/parts did contribute however.
Don’t forget their inferior designs! Models like the 710, 770, 887, 597 and their lagging pistol division – worst of which the RM380 – had as much to do with these troubles as anything else.
Blue dog, I Disagree.
My wife likes her rm380 better than her 642 smith.
This.So many wrong steps. Just like McDonalds. If they had fixed their fuck up with the 6.8 SPC, the base would have helped tremendously. Instead, I bought SSA ammo Then Nosler bought SSA thinking they could do what Remington did and get away with it. They made their bed and now they are laying in it.