The market for silencers has grown significantly. Still, many retailers aren’t well versed in the purchase process.
Silencer Shop CEO Matheney started out with a simple goal — to help his son — and along the way was able to leverage his programming expertise to clarify and simplify the process for retailers. Today, Silencer Shop is the country's largest distributor and processor of suppressors.
Shooting Sports Retailer recently caught up with Matheney, a passionate advocate for Second Amendment rights, to talk about the suppressor market and the misconceptions surrounding NFA purchases.
SSR: What led you to open Silencer Shop?
I first purchased a suppressor for my son, Carter, who was born 100% deaf in his right ear. I love hunting with my kids, but none of us are big fans of conventional ear protection, which makes it difficult to communicate and be aware of your surroundings. Carter would always take them off to make it easier to talk. So I looked into purchasing a silencer to protect the hearing in his good ear. The noise of a single unsuppressed rifle shot can cause permanent hearing damage, and I knew Carter's hearing wouldn't support that.
When I tried to buy that first silencer, the process was about as confusing and frustrating as it could have been. The dealer I was working with went out of business while waiting for the ATF's approval. Luckily, I was able to find the dealer at his storage facility to get the item I'd purchased. When I tried to buy another suppressor from a reputable shop, they stayed in business but wouldn't help me with any of the Form 4 paperwork. Inevitably, I made some mistakes on the paperwork and received an error letter. The dealer wouldn't help me fix those errors — ultimately, I ended up with a different silencer than the one I'd ordered.
So the impetus for starting Silencer Shop was a desire to help people avoid what I went through and have more luck making NFA purchases.
The goal was to help people file paperwork in one central location — not to sell suppressors. But we sold $19,000 in the month, exceeding my wildest expectations. I still hung on to my day job for a couple of years after launch, as we ran the business out of our house.
SSR: Did you have past experience in the firearms industry?
I've been into firearms my whole life, but Silencer Shop was my first experience with the firearms industry. The first firearm I ever owned was a .22 rifle my parents gave me one Christmas, and I've been hunting and shooting on and off ever since then. These days, I find hunting is a great way to have fun and spend time with my kids.
SSR: Tell me a little more about the company and your role/place within the industry?
We are the largest distributor and processor of silencers in the industry because we've simplified the purchase process so effectively for both new and repeat buyers. Sticking to our motto — silencer ownership simplified — is how we've been able to account for more than half of silencer sales in a fast-growing segment of the 2A industry. And I think this market is as large as it is because we've demystified it for so many people.
We are constantly pushing new innovations to ensure the process is as straightforward as possible for both customers and dealers. So whether it's automating paperwork or putting our Silencer Shop kiosks in thousands of dealers across the country to ease the process for submitting fingerprints and demographic information, we're always looking ahead.
SSR: What role does education/outreach play in your business model?
It's huge. Many people obviously don't know that silencers are legal and that you don't need a special secret license to purchase one. We are big supporters of the American Suppressor Association, which does great work to educate legislators and the public about the benefits of silencers as safety devices for hearing and as enjoyable tools for target shooting and hunting.
SSR: In general, what do you think is the biggest misconception about the sale and use of suppressors?
There are three misconceptions about suppressors that we love addressing.
1. That silencers are not legal. Luckily, that misconception is changing, for the benefit of hunters and target shooters!
2. That suppressors literally "silence" the noise of a gunshot, as you might see in a movie. This just doesn't actually happen — the noise of a suppressed shot can still be as loud as a jackhammer on concrete. However, silencers do provide critical decibel reduction to help protect your hearing. They also have other benefits, such as significantly reducing recoil and muzzle flash.
3. That suppressors are difficult to buy and own. Silencers are easy to buy and own.
SSR: What's the biggest challenge for retailers looking to enter this market?
It's very easy to become a silencer retailer when you've already obtained your Federal Firearms License, also known as an FFL. Retailers just need to apply for their Special Occupational Taxpayer or SOT. Based on our growth, I would say the challenge for FFLs is not knowing how easy it can be — they don't need to stock inventory and Silencer Shop can handle the paperwork.
When we follow up with new Powered By dealers, they nearly always say they wish they had started selling NFA items with us earlier. The main reasons are how simple Silencer Shop makes the paperwork process, how much additional money we help them make, and that they don't have to put additional money into stocking inventory because they can sell out of Silencer Shop.
SSR: How do you help drive business for independent retailers?
Silencer Shop drives business for our Powered By dealers by simplifying the ownership process, facilitating lead generation and expanding visibility. As the most trafficked suppressor website in the industry, we send customers directly to our Powered By Silencer Shop Dealers to pick up their NFA items. Using our Silencer Shop Kiosk, which retailers don't have to staff, applications are completed in a fraction of the time it would take when applying manually.
SSR: Tell me about the Powered By Silencer Shop program.
The Powered By Silencer Shop program is a one-stop-shop for selling NFA items simply and quickly. Designed to help save dealers money, our Powered By program allows:
1. Dealers to sell out of our inventory
2. Stock their own inventory at great prices
3. Earn "mailbox money" off sales silencershop.com makes on their behalf
4. Drive store traffic to their location using our dealer locator
SSR: What do the Silencer Shop kiosk and Silencer Shop mobile app provide for retailers?
Simplicity, ease of mind and time savings. Silencer Shop is the easiest way to buy and sell a suppressor, short-barrel shotgun, short-barrel rifle, or any other NFA item. Powered By Silencer Shop retailers get to focus on providing excellent customer service instead of worrying about the complexities of applying for NFA items. Some dealers have playfully told us that the Silencer Shop kiosk is one of their most profitable employees. For background, 88% of customers on silencershop.com select dealers with a kiosk. On average, our dealers increase sales by 53% with a kiosk.
SSR: What does a retailer have to do to begin partnering with Silencer Shop?
Simple! All a retailer has to do is go to our Become a Dealer page or email us at Dealer@silencershop.com to get started. We take in some information, talk about NFA awesomeness, and boom, they're Powered By Silencer Shop.
SSR: What's on the horizon for the company?
Innovation for the betterment of the 2A community is at the core of Silencer Shop. Currently, we are moving into an advanced facility in Texas that will expand our suite of services further. On the horizon, we've got some very exciting projects in the works that will be out in 2022, so stay tuned to our YouTube, follow us on Instagram, or subscribe to our email for exciting updates about Silencer Shop and our awesome partners.
SSR: Anything else you'd like to add?
Silencer Shop makes silencer ownership simplified, and we are the easiest way to buy a suppressor or any other NFA item. What we really want Shooting Sports Retailer readers to know is that we have a great community of dealers and manufacturers. Silencer Shop's success is built on the trust we've earned by providing the Second Amendment community with excellent service, outstanding prices, and the services they need to buy the items they love.
If any of your retailers have questions, even if they aren't Powered By Silencer Shop, we'd love to help them out. Give us a call at 512.931.4556 or email us at support@silencershop.com.
