American Outdoor Brands, a provider of products for shooting, hunting and outdoor enthusiasts, unveiled plans to potentially establish a national distribution center in the Columbia area of Boone County, MO.

Under the plans, the company would break ground on the new 500,000-square-foot facility in the next several months. The company’s plans to establish the new facility in Boone County are contingent upon the approval of incentives, completion of due diligence and the finalization of agreements related to other terms and conditions.

If all contingency requirements are met, construction for the new site is expected to begin this spring and would take approximately 18 months to complete. When complete, it is expected that the center would serve as the central distribution facility for most of American Outdoor Brands’ products, allowing the company to harvest synergies from its acquisitions and more efficiently serve its customers.

The company is working closely with Missouri Department of Economic Development, Regional Economic Development Inc. and Boone County on the development of the project.

James Debney, president and CEO of American Outdoor Brands, said, “We continue to focus on our vision of being a leading provider of high quality products for the shooting, hunting, and rugged outdoor enthusiast. By executing our strategy and delivering growth organically and through targeted acquisitions, we have successfully grown to multiple operating divisions that serve a large addressable market and represent more than 18 respected consumer brands. Establishing a national distribution center will allow us, over time, to harvest synergies across our business. Our meetings with representatives of Missouri and Governor Greitens demonstrated that they are business-friendly and understand what we need as a company to be successful.”

American Outdoor Brands Corp. reports two segments: Firearms and Outdoor Products & Accessories. Firearms manufactures handgun and long gun products sold under the Smith & Wesson, M&P and Thompson/Center Arms brands as well as provides forging, machining, and precision plastic injection molding services.

Brands in Outdoor Products & Accessories include Smith & Wesson, M&P, Thompson/Center Arms, Crimson Trace, Caldwell Shooting Supplies, Wheeler Engineering, Tipton Gun Cleaning Supplies, Frankford Arsenal Reloading Tools, Lockdown Vault Accessories, Hooyman Premium Tree Saws, Bog Pod, Golden Rod Moisture Control, Schrade, Old Timer, Uncle Henry, UST and Imperial.

Photo courtesy Smith & Wesson