It appears as though the wild speculation over the future of Remington Outdoor Company and several venerable Remington brands will finally conclude. Multiple reports detail seven groups that made bids to acquire pieces of what once was the Cerberus-held giant conglomerate.
Remington Brands Split Among 7 Companies
Remington, of course, floundered recently, first declaring for bankruptcy in 2018. The company emerged quickly, yet filed again this year in July. The company accrued nearly $1 billion in debt over the years, reported Bloomberg. Remington reached $437.5 million in sales last year, down half compared to 2016, reported Bloomberg. And litigation from the families of the Sandy Hook tragedy threatened even further.
This time around, it couldn’t stave off the breakup that’s about to shake up the entire firearms industry. Now seven individual bidders will now purchase of portion of the company.
Remington Brands Bidders
- Vista Outdoor Inc. acquires Lonoke ammunitions business and certain IP assets; SIG Sauer is currently a backup bid
- Roundhill Group LLC acquires non-Marlin firearms business
- Sierra Bullets LLC acquires Barnes Ammunition
- Sturm, Ruger, & Co. acquires Marlin
- JJE Capital Holdings LLC acquires DPMS, H&R, Stormlake, AAC and Parker brands
- Franklin Armory Holdings Inc. acquires Bushmaster brand and some related assets
- Sportsman’s Warehouse Inc. acquires Tapco brands
Now any gun fan will surely see some amazing possibilities in these new acquisitions. A Ruger-led Marlin jumps to the front of the list. Ruger’s prowess in hitting a very certain demographic, from classic wheel guns to carbines, suggests a serious Marlin resurgence imminent.
Vista, and its Federal experience, also bodes well for the Lonoke facility, a stalwart of Remington Ammunition. Interesting to not that SIG Sauer is a backup bid for Remington Ammo. Same goes for Sierra Bullets, a prominent figure in both long-range and hunting. It will be fascinating to see how that company works with new assets at Barnes.
Finally, JJE Capital, owner of Palmetto State Armory, gets DPMS and AAC, among others. Meanwhile, Franklin Armory brings in Bushmaster. Both groups own tremendous experience in the black gun space. Can the acquisitions bring DPMS and Bushmaster back to the top of the MSR segment?
Questions Remain
Interestingly, in the initial reports, the fate of Remington itself, the most iconic brand of the group, remains unclear. Ruger reportedly went after the entire business. Then Roundhill Group, a property investment firm, reportedly bid for the shotgun line alone. That leaves a lot of questions about who gets what in terms of Remington’s vast line of firearms. The news reportedly also made workers in Ilion, N.Y., the site of Remington’s original factory, very worried.
“I would have loved to have Ruger buy the whole thing, but, if that doesn’t happen I hope the new owner keeps manufacturing in Ilion where it all started and that they keep employment high here,” Ilion Deputy Mayor Chuck Lester told wibx950.com. “We have an amazing work force here and we support them one hundred percent. We saved Remington a ton of money with cheap electric in the past which helped them then and we’re willing to work with whoever takes over the company now. Let’s just keep our workers employed.”
To all these questions and suggestions, only time will tell. A hearing on Tuesday will formalize the acquisitions. We’ll update the story as new information becomes available.
