It’s been a full score of years since Range Right first started up business. Since then they’ve become a well recognised name in the UK firearms trade, enjoying exclusive distribution deals with Sabatti, CRKT and Beartooth. Gun Trade News catches up Gill Peters, the driving force behind the company.
GTN: Range Right has now been trading for 20 years – congratulations on reaching the milestone. Could you give our readers a flavour of how the company started out and how it has changed in that time?
Gill Peters: I used to be the sales manager at Webley and Scott and worked with Keith Taylor who was then an agent for the business. Webley and Scott was looking to relocate to Birmingham, which did not work for myself or Keith. We started decided to start our own wholesale business. Range Right Ltd was born and the first day of trading was on 1 July 1996. I was running the administration for the business from a bedroom. Keith ran the sales and dispatch from his garage. We quickly outgrew the garage warehouse, so we found proper commercial premises in Harrogate.
The business has not really changed in terms of ethos or service. I have always believed that if it isn’t broken, that there is no reason to fix it. We supply excellent service, we have a loyal customer following, and it works well for everyone. We have grown as a business, but our core principles remain the same. It’s only really our product range that has changed, not in its content, but in its size and depth.
GTN: What’s the achievement you are most proud of in the company’s history so far?
GP: That is a difficult question to answer. There have been a lot of successes for the business. The one I am personally most proud of is how we dealt with Keith’s exit in 2008. He decided that it was time to retire and I purchased his shares. It was an uncertain time, but I am proud of how the team stood with me and how we maintained the stability of the business combined with continued growth.
GTN: After 20 years of trading, what is the internal set-up like now at Range Right?
GP: We now employ 13 people within the business, we are all part of the Range Right team. The key departments for us are sales, marketing, operations, warehousing, and customer service. Graham Taylor and Jake Peters drive our sales and are impeccably supported by Rob Saville, who looks after all of our operations and logistics. Ellie Hunter looks after our design and marketing and Dave Robinson is our in-house gunsmith, who provides an exceptionally high level of service and quality control on all of our products.
GTN: You characterise yourselves as a ‘one stop shop’ and have a large number of brands in your portfolio. How do you juggle these and decide which to market more heavily?
GP: A good question – This is dependent on a number of things such as market dynamics, seasonality and what our competition is doing; all play a part in the decision making process. We are fully committed to effectively marketing all of our product offering to the trade and consumers. That said, we do give extra attention to our exclusive brands. Where we have an exclusive in the UK we focus on careful, long-term development of the brand within the market.
GTN: Is there any particular focus for Range Right in the coming 12 months?
GP: We are keen to grow key brands like Crosman, Sabatti, Kral and CRKT. We also have a lot of exciting marketing initiatives that we will be executing over the coming months. We are set to embrace the digital era and are keen to evolve this side of the business as the industry and the marketing mix evolves through different platforms.
GTN: Do you have any plans to add more brands to the line-up? What do you look for in a new addition?
GP: We have a lot of exciting plans for the continued expansion of Range Right. I am keen to develop and expand on what we have already achieved along with maintaining and nurturing our core business. We do have more exciting exclusive UK distribution deals in the pipeline. These are confidential at the moment, and we will let the trade know when they are signed and sealed. When we are looking at new brands we initially look at the quality & brand reputation, innovation is also a consideration. We also assess the possibility of exclusivity, the margin for the retailer and how it will compliment our current product range.
GTN: Why should dealers buy from you?
GP: I believe retail businesses should consider us because we are user friendly, and are not dictatorial. We pride ourselves on being friendly, knowledgeable and professional. We strive to make life as easy as possible for the dealer. We have invested in our after sales service, of which we are immensely proud. Nothing is too much trouble.
Range Right Ltd
01423 881919
sales@range-right.co.uk
You can request the new Range Right catalogue using the contact information above, or download it from their website. Since this interview, Range Right have unveiled a couple of the new products that Gill was talking about. Click the links below for information on their new gun cases and bio-safes.
Bio Safe
Waterproof gun case
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