[HTML1]
thefirearmblog,com wonders about The Future of Bushmaster/Remington ACR. Bottom line: “If the ACR wins [the Army’s rifle contract competition] and becomes the next Army carbine the company will have a guaranteed revenue stream for the next 20 years. Consumers, LEO enforcement and foreign-militaries would all want to own the same gun used by the troops. I suspect the Freedom Group would then resume efforts to go public.” And if they don’t . . .
The Freedom Group includes Remington, Bushmaster Firearms, DPMS/Panther Arms, Marlin, H&R, The Parker Gun, EOTAC, Mountain Khakis, Advanced Armament Corp., Dakota Arms and Barnes Bullets. It’s the brainchild of Cerberus Capital Management, strip-and-flip specialists who know a thing or two about cutting the fat out of production-heavy industries.
To that end, Cerberus worships the gods of Six Sigma, a system designed to improve quality while driving down costs. Yes, well, the Freedom Group’s firearms-related companies are suffering from product overlap, worrying quality control problems and most concerning of all, a tendency to commit cultural genocide on its acquisitions (R.I.P. Marlin).
The man who drove Home Depot into the dirt and guided Chrysler and its captive lender into multiple billions in taxpayer bailouts now helms the Freedom Group. Former GE suit Bob Nardelli may not be the first name on the short list to run a gunglomerate, but he’s no fool. He’ll get paid millions no matter what. Again. Still.
Meanwhile, expect Cerberus to use all its powerful Washington connections to secure the Army’s nod for the ACR. If they don’t, it’s only a matter of time before the whole thing falls apart. Expect the Freedom Group to get sold off, piece by piece. ‘Cause no one in their right mind would try to find “synergy” by agglomerating such a disparate and discreet farrago of firearms brands.
I reckon the only reason The Freedom Group still exists is that most of the brands sheltering under the Cerberus corporate umbrella are worth less than they were before they were put under central management—despite the relatively healthy market for guns and gun gear. Bargain-minded corporate rescuers stand by.
It sickens the soul to know that storied American companies are being incorporated into mega-companies only to be synergized into non-existence. Great job a-holes!
washington connections seem to be cerberus’s only real asset. they sure aren’t good at anything else. what a shame those fine companies could be wrecked by that bunch . And nardelli, the living personification of the agee effect.
Nardelli was hated at GE, Home Depot (they paid him to go away) and he was especially inept at Chrysler. It pains me to see him involved with these companies, I just wonder which ones will survive.
I would be wary of buying anything from the Freedom Group. I used to really root for Remington; no more. As far as traditional mass produced long guns made in the USA, it looks like Ruger, Savage, and Ithaca. Browning is a decent company, just a lot of the guns are not made here. I can see Benelli gaining market share, even though they are Italian.
Browning, Winchester and FN are owned by the Herstal Group.
Bargain-minded corporate rescuers stand by.
Abso-freakin-lutely!
Operating independently without Cerberus, there’s no reason why most of these storied brands cannot turn a profit.
Exactly. That’s the problem with capitalism: there aren’t enough capitalists!
AR-15 anyone?
Don’t buy the gun, buy the gun company. Yeah, that’ll work.
The evil douchebag George Soros and his millions of dollars are behind these acquisitions . Civillans can’t buy guns if the the companies only sell to military and police. Follow the money…..
George Soros has nothing to do with Cerberus Capital. As far as I know.
Somebody told me he was and I believed it because it makes perfect sense. Soros is the grand pubba of everything anti-gun and what better strategy than finance a parasitic corporate entity like Cerberus to take over gun manufacturing companies like Marlin let quality control freefall and thus decimate consumer confidence in American made firearms. Cerberus has done more damge to the American gun manufacturing industry than Sarah Brady, Bill Clinton and Obama combined.
It’s a brilliant anti-gun strategy even if it happened by accident.
Lol
When these fools go broke, the other gun makers will be more than happy to take on the new customers.
Fortunately many of the guns are based on platforms supported by other manufacturers. The guns themselves last for decades with proper care. New companies can spring from the ashes of old, some of these companies are not that old themselves.
Not trying to be that dude, but the title has “The” twice
Dude, not even that dude was trying to be “that dude”, but now he’s the “that dude” gold standard. Intent counts for little.
There’s a NY Times article on this group online. I have a Remington I bought in 2001 pre-FG and it was the last, new gun I bought. My question is: who buys new guns anymore? Except for ammo, I buy used at locally owned gun shops or shows. I usually get extras (clips, case, etc) and a big discount for a gun the previous owner never used. Not sure the cerebral geniuses at Cerebrus accounted for that. The Times article doesn’t mention that aspect of the market at all.
Comments are closed.