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How to Open an Online Gun Store + 10 Best Gun Website Templates

Irina Stanishevskaya
How to open an online gun store.
  1. Gun store e-commerce website
  2. How to start a gun store
    1. Federal Firearms License
    2. Online gun store operation
    3. Online gun store promotion
    4. Best e-commerce platform for opening a gun store
    5. Firearms website templates
    6. Online gun store template setup
  3. The best online gun store themes for you to be inspired by

The prospects of owning an online gun store are pretty tempting. The firearms market showed rapid growth last year. IBIS World predicts that the Ammunition and Gun Stores industry growth will continue in the coming years.

America is a country founded on guns. It's in our DNA. It's very strange but I feel better having a gun. I really do. I don't feel safe–I don't feel the house is completely safe, if I don't have one hidden somewhere,

said Brad Pitt.

Humans have been using weapons since ancient times. Weaponry constantly improves all the time, and sometimes it becomes a work of art. Initially, people used it for their nourishment and protection. These days there is no need to use weapons in our everyday life, but there are a lot of sporting activities using weapon, driven by instincts that are in our blood.

A lot of people collect weapons. As a rule, collections contain rare items such as pistols, rifles, and sometimes knives which have historical value. Collectors are fond of the history and beauty of these items and have spared no efforts and no money to buy the unique items. In ancient times, guns were hung on the wall as trophies. That was a proof of honor and power of their owner. In the throes of passion for weapons, collectors continue to build their collections over the years. Definitely, that is not the only reason for gun buying.

There are a lot of online gun stores for hunting and sport shooting as there are many sport shooting organizations around the country. There are also people who purchase guns for self defense. They want to feel safe, knowing that they have a gun.

At the same time, federal and local laws and regulations are constantly evolving, because firearms are a serious threat to society. A weapons seller bears a high social responsibility, because the weapon, which has been bought in his store, can be used in a tragedy. Thus, the regulation is the most important issue for anyone who ponders opening a gun store. However, the right to bear arms is guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. Thus, do not worry about the strict legislative regulation of this business. The system of arms sales is carefully designed, especially for e-commerce. A lot of people prefer to buy guns on the internet, as it is convenient and has a lot of advantages. The market analyzer Fortunly predicts that in two decades almost all gun purchases will be made online.

Gun store e-commerce website

The demand for weapons increases on the internet market. Thus, a gun store e-commerce site is one of the most profitable businesses. And so, how much does it cost to open a gun store? Enterpreneur.com claims that the cost will range from $10,000-$50,000, depending on the type of business. An online gun store demands fewer expenses than a real gun shop. However, you also need to spend money on specialized equipment for your online shop. First of all, it’s necessary to have a high quality security system and a gun safe for weapon storage. One should guarantee the safety of weapons and recording of lawful owners of guns. You have to prevent transferring weapons to criminals or terrorists.

How to start a gun store

1. Federal Firearms License

If you are ready to start a gun shop you need to get permission to sell ammunition. Actually, this process is not that complicated. If you are over 21 years old, you have the right to submit an application for a Federal Firearms license. Keep in mind, the terms for FFL differ in each state and depend on the type of the FFL. You can visit the ATF website (the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives) to get the necessary information. The FFL license will cost you from $20 to $200, depending on the exact type of your business. Be warned, opening a gun store is prohibited in areas with high crime rates. Furthermore, all employers of a gun shop need to be checked by authorities to confirm their non-criminal background.

I advise you to call the ATF to learn all the specific details about the gun legislation in your area and the list of documents you need. The ATF will render the information to you for free. The package of documents needed for FFL includes fingerprint card, photo, tax ID number, etc., so you can send it via email. The strictest laws are provided for firearm dealers. If your business is connected with trade in other types of weapons the process of your FFL application will be easier.

2. Online gun store operation

When opening a gun store online, you need to know that this business differs from others. A trader needs to check the gun permit to sell weapons. In an ordinary store a product can be shipped to the customer/s home address. Gun store e-commerce has a more complicated scheme for shipping. First of all, the customer needs to render all necessary information in accordance with the local and federal laws. After placing the order you can’t ship it to the customer’s home address. Your client needs to choose a local FFL dealer where he is going to pick up the gun.

Thus, an online gun store ships its products to the FFL dealer, who will verify the customer’s documents at the time of pickup. By the way, buyers need to pay a fee to FFL dealers for this, but it is not very high. Basically, this system runs smooth and is well-organized, so the online gun business becomes more popular every year. Keep in mind that only firearm trading has such strict regulations. Edged weapons and most accessories such as clips, scopes, and holsters can be shipped to the home address of a customer.

3. Online gun store promotion

An increasing demand for ammunition causes the growth of competition in this field. You need to keep in mind that there are a lot of people who sell the same products. Competition is especially high in large cities and when starting a gun shop beginners need to focus all their efforts to get customers. However, opening a gun store online you have many more chances to enter the big market, as you can ship weapons to other cities and states. Anyway, you need to promote your business.

There is an opinion that a businessman has to invest in advertisement. In starting a gun business you have a lot of costs. Thus, it would be reasonable to invest in the quality content of your website, as it is the basis of your success. It's gonna be worth it.

The thing is, millions of people search for some information online every day. They seek not only products, but also some details concerning these items or they can just look at gun images. And they see only the websites that come up on the first pages of Google search results. If you want to get higher up in Google search you need quality content on your website.

A high quality website is your long run investment

You shouldn’t miss the potential buyer who has arrived on your website. Take into account the psychology of your audience. Having tons of advantages, having an online business has one major flaw. When a buyer comes to a real shop, he can fall in love with an item. Holding a gun in his hands, he might buy it, acting on impulses. In a virtual shop a buyer can only see images.

Furthermore, he has to wait for shipment of the product. Thus, you need to create the necessary atmosphere and show your goods in the best way. The entire process for your customer, from choosing the product in the catalogue to the payment, has to be smooth and in one breath. Nothing can distract from the desire to buy the product. A good UX design will help you to retain customers. Therefore, a quality website is a must for a successful online gun store.

4. Best e-commerce platform for opening a gun store

Starting a firearms business, you need to decide which e-commerce platform will be the best for you. The choice depends on the multiple factors you need to take into account. The two most popular CMS for e-commerce are WooCommerce and Shopify.

The recent hype around Shopify has led to a lot of misinformation on the internet. But the truth is that you can actually use this e-commerce platform for your online gun store. You just need to choose the payment method that is allowed for a gun store on the Shopify platform. Actually there is a wide choice of payment methods that can be used. Be sure that your assortment excludes the specific items that are included on the restricted list.

5. Firearms website templates

Having chosen the platform, you need to choose a gun website template and install it. In fact, website templates are a major part of web development. Just keep in mind, you have to choose high quality templates only, because they have been carefully created, taking into account recent trends of web design.

That means there are a lot of things you do not need to worry about. All themes are fully responsive and multifunctional, with fast loading and efficient UX design. The most important thing is that quality templates can be customized easily and you can create your unique website design to impress your customers. Web developers have thought of everything, so you will fall in love with your website and abandon it under the gun only.

6. Online gun store template setup

After installation you need to adjust all settings for your online gun store and load all your content. If you have never done that before, do not worry. Basically, it’s not that difficult and I’m sure you will even like doing this. If you buy a website template on the ТemplateMonster marketplace you will receive professional customer service for free. That means you will not have to deal with your problems alone.

You need to keep in mind the most important rule: there are no unimportant details when you launch your firearms e-commerce site. Literally everything matters. You need to consider a lot of settings on which your future business success will depend. You can dismiss them, having the lack of experience.

But you might finally understand what happened, having lost time and potential clients at the start. On the other hand, you might ignore some valuable functions of the template that are advantages for promotion of your business. Yes, you need to inquire into this matter, because any business demands a thorough approach.

There are only 24 hours in a day. Maybe, you don’t have time right now or you are worried about doing something wrong. Are you unsure that you will be able to make the most of your website? Basically, that’s ok, because it all comes from experience. If you want to focus on your business objectives and lose no time, you can ask for professional help.

Online store setup service is a great solution in this case. This service is just like that memo about Chuck Norris. How many push-ups can Chuck Norris do? What do you think? The right answer is: All of them. Online store setup is the ultimate service to get your web store online hassle-free in one shot. Depending on the package it includes:

Take a look at Online store setup service and think about whether you need it. It operates as follows:

  1. You choose one of four packages.
  2. Your personal manager connects to you in the near future and you provide him with all the necessary details for what you want to do on your website (about 15 min on average).
  3. Over 1-2 business days (depending on the amount of work) the web-developers team is working on your website.
  4. You get a fully functional online shop.
  5. Your personal manager contacts you to discuss the results.
  6. You launch your own online gun store.

If you want your online gun store really picked up, you need to make your best at the start. Behind every success there are tons of efforts, but there is something even more important. That is passion for what you do. Make your dreams come true. No one can do it for you!

The best online gun store themes for you to be inspired by

BigHunt - Hunting Gear Store Template Magento Theme

The dropdown mega menu with a very convenient layout will increase the UX of your site. Contact page has Google maps integration and the contact form. Starting a gun shop, you need to promote your business on the internet. Thus, SEO-optimization that is integrated into the theme is a must. Newsletter popup function is included. Use the advantages of Ajax to reduce load on your server and make higher performance of your website.

Weapon Shop Shopify Theme

In the convenient dashboard of this firearms business theme you can easily adjust all the necessary settings of your gun store including security, excellent usability, SEO-optimization, payment methods, analytics, and more. The trendy design and user friendly interface is all you need to launch an online gun store.

Hunting Responsive Shopify Theme

Opening a gun store online you need to provide the best UX on your website. This firearms e-commerce theme has many functions for that purpose. Sorting options will help your clients save time during their product search. Several layouts of the catalogue, the product carousel, slideshow function, mega menu, and much more will impress your clients and increase your sales. 

Soldierr - Military Multipage Clean Shopify Theme

Soldierr is one of the best solutions among firearms website templates. Stylish design is not overloaded with extra details. Absolutely clean code and smooth loading of website pages. Using the banner section, you can add banners with your promotion. By the way, there is a tab section so that you can display not only the collection banner, but the main products from it. Moreover, you can set a countdown for your promotion if you want to use psychological triggers.

Knives store - Weapons Store Clean Shopify Theme

The impressive design of this firearms business theme creates the atmosphere of a classic brandy shop. Using the Ajax cart function you can increase the UX of your online gun store. Parallax effect, product slider, and mega menu function will help you create your unique design.

Holsters Shopify Theme

This gun website template has multiple layouts for your content. You can choose one for your catalogue and blog. Multilingual settings are included. Google map is also integrated in this theme. Holster is the perfect solution for those who want to start a gun shop. This gun website is very flexible and can be easily customized.

AIM - Weapon Store Modern Shopify Theme

Оpening a gun store requires a stylish and trendy website. The AIM template will be a perfect solution for ammunition business promotion. This clean design has a balanced construction so that your clients will enjoy using your website. The theme provides a fancy parallax effect, so you can impress your visitors. Actually, this template is very flexible so that you can completely change it to make something out of the box. There are several ready-made page layouts, a product carousel, and a slideshow function.

Huge Hunting - Hunting Store Shopify Theme

When starting a gun shop, a businessman wants to pay off all he has invested in his business. This gun store e-commerce template will help bring to life the most ambitious plans. Use a full screen slider with images or video to catch the attention of your users. Various ready-made catalogue layouts will help you organize your products in the best way.

Militarista - Weapons Store PrestaShop Theme

The stylish design of this gun website template will create the necessary atmosphere for your clients, so that they can be focused on the purchase. Militarista is fully responsive and you can be sure that any section or element of your website won’t be altered on a mobile or tablet screen. Use multi currency, multilingual, and even RTL function to get more clients.

Hunting Gear and Supplies MotoCMS Ecommerce Template

Download this firearms website template and get a free trial for 14 days. Customize the theme using sliders, carousels, grid layouts for your catalogue, a media library, and unlimited options for each product. Create personal profiles of your buyers so that they can have access to their personal data, history, and status of the orders. Opening a gun store, you need to use all possible channels to attract new clients. All social media has already been integrated in this gun store e-commerce website theme.

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