ANCHOR: Gun sales are booming across the country including right here in the Ark-La-Tex.
ANCHOR: Gun shop owners say they have the upcoming presidential election to thank for the sales increase. KTBS3’s Carolyn Cerda has the story, new at six.
CAROLYN CERDA: It’s a familiar sound here at the Gun Doctor in Longview, Texas. Cash registers are ringing at the gun shops across the nation, as more people are loading up on the weapons.
BOB GODELL: Our shelves are bearer now than they’ve ever been. It’s a double-edge sword. Yes, it’s positive that people are calling and looking for guns, but looking doesn’t pay the bills. We have to have the guns themselves in order to sell them.
CERDA: Owner Bob Godell says gun shops are struggling to keep up with the demand. He says many of his customers are motivated by the upcoming election in fear of their gun in fear of their gun rights. In fact, the $4 billion firearms business has shot up since 2008, the year President Obama was elected.
GODELL: There’s a general fear among gun owners that the current administration is very anti-firearms and people are buying gungs as they can, strictly because the don’t know what’s coming around the corner.
JERRY ROGERS: Yeah, I’m concerned. I don’t know what the future holds, so as of now, I take advantage that legally we can buy weapons.
CERDA: According to the National Shooting Sports Foundation, this year’s uptick comes on top of a record 2011, when nearly 11 million firearms were sold in the U.S.
ROGERS: Being a father, I have guns not just for shooting but for protecting my family.
CERDA: Many people stocking up and "clinging to their guns." Carolyn Cerda, KTBS3 News.
ANCHOR: Godell says there are other reasons for the sales hike, such as an improving economy. He says now more people have disposable income and are willing to spend it on a new gun. The demand for firearms is so high, manufacturers are having trouble producing the products. Sturm, Ruger & Co. has had to suspend new orders after taking orders for more than one million guns in the first three months of the year. The signs of the increase can also be found on Wall Street. Smith & Wesson shares are up a whopping 125 percent over the past year, while Sturm Ruger’s are up about 112 percent.