Rangemaster Memphis is closing

[robbiev]

Passing on info. I did not already see this posted anywhere.

 

Rangemaster in Memphis is closing.  This Sunday is the last day.  Came from an email from Tom Givens. He will be on the road full time now.

[Lowpower]

Truck Driver?

[RobertNashville]

Rangemaster is a great place to train and Tom is a great instructor.  As to the story, I think someone is pulling your leg (or at least I hope so).

 

Tom and Lynn already travel extensively to do training all over the country; they couldn't be gone much more than they already are so this story doesn't make a lot of sense. Also, neither their website nor their Facebook page says anything about them closing.

 

All that to say...I'm finding this story doubtful and I hope it turns out to be false. 

 

[Garufa]

OP is in Memphis.  Maybe he can call them up with an old-timey telephone and ask.

[robbiev]

Sorry, my OP was too short and not info filled enough. I was at work this morning and had to cut it short because customers came in.

 

I have, in fact, already verified it. I know Tom personally, and the email I got was from him, however, just to be sure it wasn't fake, I called the range and talked to a friend who works there and verified that it is true. Tomorrow is the last day they will be open. 

 

A few weeks ago, they advertised a sale. "Absolutely everything in the shop half price..." I figured that's what was about to happen.

 

 

ETA: here is the email (or at least most of it)

 

A Partial Farewell…

Rangemaster was founded in September 1996 and has operated continuously at our current address since then. Starting in the year 2000, our cash register is actually a PC and it assigns a unique number to each new customer. As that customer returns for future visits his transactions are recorded under his unique number. We just entered customer number 79,441 so that is how many separate individuals have been in here to do business with us just since the year 2000. Almost 45,000 of those customers have taken at least the handgun carry permit course here and about 40% of those have gone on to take additional training. To all of you who have been here over the years we sincerely thank you.

 

All good things must come to an end. We will be closing the Memphis location on August 4, 2014. After that date all of our training will be conducted off-site at various ranges around the country. This only affects the Memphis indoor range location. We will still be quite active on the training circuit, doing more writing, and continuing to serve as an expert witness in court cases.

 

The building itself is now over 50 years old and is costing too much to keep in operation. Over the past couple of years roofing, plumbing, electrical issues, and heating/air conditioning issues have cost us a fortune and that will only get worse as time goes on. Also, our business is based almost entirely on training, particularly handgun carry permit training, and the local market has reached a saturation level at this point. Nationwide between about 2.5%  to 3% of the population has a handgun carry permit. Here in Shelby County about 7% of the population has a carry permit, and we trained the majority of them. In Collierville 10% of the population has a carry permit.

 

Internet retail sales are also killing off small businesses all over the US, and that has hurt us as well. Today, customers tend to buy their ammunition, holsters, and even targets online, which has killed our retail business.  I really can't complain about that as I almost never buy anything in a store. I buy online and have UPS bring it to my door. Unfortunately our customer base does the same thing.  Finally, the neighborhood has declined drastically over the past 18 years. When we built this facility this was a thriving commercial area with new car lots, restaurants, and other businesses. Now, most of those businesses  have moved further east and we are one of the few establishments left open in a several block radius.

 

We will continue to update our website, put out our newsletters, and post information on Facebook. As I said, Lynn and I will be traveling all over the US conducting courses and we will conduct a few each year here locally on other people's ranges.

 

To those of you who have supported us over the years I want to thank you sincerely and wish you all the best in the future.

 

We will teach the remaining July classes and then the August 1-3 Instructor Development Course will be the last class taught at this facility.

Words do not adequately convey the gratitude, respect and friendship Lynn and I hold for each of you. You are truly our family. We will try to arrange training and/or social events for you as time goes on. Please stay in touch.

Sincerely,

 

Tom
 

Edited August 3, 2014 by robbiev

[cjohnson44546]

Sad to hear... I haven't actually ever gone there... I always go to Range USA.

[Chucktshoes]

Though I have always been a customer of RangeUSA, I know the local market will be much poorer without them.

[MphsTiger1981]

Sorry to see them go. The neighborhood has been on a steady decline for years, just as Tom notes in his message posted above.

Best wishes to Tom and Lynn in their future business ventures.

[RobertNashville]

Sorry, my OP was too short and not info filled enough. I was at work this morning and had to cut it short because customers came in.

 

I have, in fact, already verified it. I know Tom personally, and the email I got was from him, however, just to be sure it wasn't fake, I called the range and talked to a friend who works there and verified that it is true. Tomorrow is the last day they will be open. 

 

A few weeks ago, they advertised a sale. "Absolutely everything in the shop half price..." I figured that's what was about to happen.

 

 

ETA: here is the email (or at least most of it)...

 

Thanks for taking the time to respond in more detail (even though I hate the news).  After reading his email I can understand the business reasons for closing including the shift in how  most of us buy our stuff, the neighborhood the facility is in and I've wondered for some time if they would move and build a new, state-of-the art training facility as their current building is very much showing its age but I never thought they would close down.

 

There are many places to train but few trainers of the qualifications of Tom Givens or most of his trainers for that matter.  I've shifted my training $$$ between Tactical Response and Rangemaster (and they seem to have a symbiotic relationship anyway) so I've managed to take several classes at RM including Massad Ayoob's MAG20 course. Even thought I don't get there often I feel like I'm losing an old friend (which seems to be a reoccurring theme as I get older).  :sadwave: