Many, maybe most, of the "big names" in the firearms industry are relatively small shops, entrepreneurial businesses. This is an entrepreneurial business field, you start your business and make a name for yourself. Very few get really big, some are 3 or 4 employees churning out their particular brand of firearms.
With the internet, a person can search, locate a manufacturer, order a firearm, and pay while sitting in their Lazy Boy with fuzzy slippers on. Why would you need travelling salesmen for that? What would you bring to the party? About all your contacts would be purchasing clerks for major sporting goods distributors and large-ish firearm retailers, and even then there is little you could contribute since ordering is done according to past sales and re-supplying pre-determined inventory levels. And often the order is set up and sent by a computer after a clerk checks it while drinking their morning coffee.
Corporate product reps are small teams that travel around to regional sales leaders for product intros and promotional events. Typically, they are advanced users who are extremely knowledgeable of the supply chain and development schedule, and if they feel there is enough demand they can influence development of a new product. If you want to "break into" the firearms industry, go solo, find a product, build your customer base, market yourself.
With the internet, a person can search, locate a manufacturer, order a firearm, and pay while sitting in their Lazy Boy with fuzzy slippers on. Why would you need travelling salesmen for that? What would you bring to the party? About all your contacts would be purchasing clerks for major sporting goods distributors and large-ish firearm retailers, and even then there is little you could contribute since ordering is done according to past sales and re-supplying pre-determined inventory levels. And often the order is set up and sent by a computer after a clerk checks it while drinking their morning coffee.
Corporate product reps are small teams that travel around to regional sales leaders for product intros and promotional events. Typically, they are advanced users who are extremely knowledgeable of the supply chain and development schedule, and if they feel there is enough demand they can influence development of a new product. If you want to "break into" the firearms industry, go solo, find a product, build your customer base, market yourself.