Harrisburg Gun Show president talks firearm industry during pandemic

HARRISBURG, PA — Thousands of gun owners gathered in Harrisburg this weekend for a gun show at the Farm Show Complex.

It’s been a record-breaking year for demand, all while parts and ammunition are at short supply.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation released data that shows the total economic impact of the firearm and ammunition industry in the U.S. increased 232% from 2008 to 2020.

“Manufactures got behind over the pandemic due to their facilities being closed and we haven’t caught up yet,” said C&E Gun Show president Steven Elliot.

The first half of 2021 proved to be a record breaking one for background checks. Now, this doesn’t directly correlate to firearm sales, but from January to May of 2021, there have been 8.5 million background checks. The second highest five-month period was from January to May of 2013 when seven million background checks happened.

“The supply chain issues for this industry are no different than they are for any other industry. Everything’s a mess,” Elliot said.

But if there’s one positive for the firearm industry coming out of the pandemic

“They’re not pushing gun control right now,” Elliot said.

He says politicians are focused on other things, but if gun control legislation comes soon

“One thing it will do is create panic. Panic drives sales which raises prices and everything else,” he said.

The industry has already been dealing with increased demand and shortages of parts and ammo.

The C&E Gun Show will be back at the Farm Show Complex December 11 and 12. Click here to learn more.

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