Academy Sports + Outdoors

• •Academy Sports + Outdoors started as a tire shop in San Antonio back in 1938. Max Gochman was fixing flats and mounting tires for nearly thirty years before his son Arthur Gochman figured out that Texans wanted more than just rubber -- they wanted gear for hunting, fishing, and shooting.

The pivot happened in the 1970s when Academy added a firearms department. Arthur Gochman understood something that a lot of retailers missed: hunters and shooters don't just buy guns. They need ammo, boots, camo, fishing tackle, and camping gear. Build it big enough with good prices, and they'll drive fifty miles to shop.

Academy rode the wave of Southern hunting culture and gun ownership through the 80s and 90s, expanding aggressively across Texas and into neighboring states. Private equity firm KKR bought them in 2011, standardized operations, and took them public in 2020 with 260+ stores across 16 states.

Their geographic strategy makes sense -- they stick to states where people actually hunt and shoot. You won't find Academy stores in Massachusetts or California. They know their customers.

Walk into any Academy and you'll see why they've survived while other sporting goods chains struggled. The place is massive -- 60,000 to 80,000 square feet of everything from fishing lures to AR-15s. The gun counter is usually in the back, and that's where most firearms folks end up.

• •Typical Academy firearms purchase process

• •Academy's transformation from tire shop to sporting goods giant

Academy runs on volume pricing and full-service destinationping. You're not getting the personal service of a dedicated gun shop, but you're getting prices that smaller retailers can't match -- especially on ammunition.

Staff knowledge varies wildly. Some locations have guys behind the counter who know their stuff. Others have retail employees who can run the background check but can't tell you much about ballistics or performance.

Wait times can be brutal. Plan on 30-45 minutes for a typical transaction. During busy periods -- weekends, holidays, election years -- you might wait over two hours. Bring a book.

Specialty items are hit or miss. Academy focuses on high-volume products. If you need something specific or unusual, call first or plan to shop elsewhere.

The firearms inventory focuses on hunting, personal protection, and basic recreational shooting. Don't expect tactical gear or competition-specific equipment.

Pump shotguns dominate -- Mossberg 500/590 and Remington 870 in 12 and 20 gauge. They stock both hunting and home defense configurations.

Bolt-action rifles cover popular hunting calibers. Expect Savage Axis, Ruger American, and Winchester XPR in .30-06, .308, .270, and .243. These aren't precision rifles, but they'll kill deer.

AR-pattern rifles are usually entry-level -- Smith & Wesson M&P15 and Ruger AR-556. Basic carbines that work.

Academy's ammunition pricing is their real competitive advantage. They buy in massive volume and use popular calibers to drive foot traffic.

Academy's footprint covers 16 states, but it's heavily concentrated in the South and Southwest. Texas has about 60 stores -- Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio, Austin, plus smaller cities. Florida runs about 30 stores from the Panhandle to Miami.

The rest spread across Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and expanding into Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas, and the Carolinas.

Each region stocks gear for local hunting and fishing patterns.

• •Texas stores: Emphasize deer, hogs, waterfowl, and dove hunting
• •Gulf Coast locations: Carry duck hunting-specific gear
• •Florida stores: Balance freshwater and saltwater fishing with hunting inventory

• •What this means for you: Academy understands regional differences better than most national chains. A store in Louisiana will stock different ammunition and gear than one in Tennessee.

Academy follows standard federal NICS procedures, but the experience depends heavily on timing and location. Most transactions complete in 30-45 minutes if the system is running smoothly and the store isn't busy.

Delays happen. Weekend rushes, holiday shopping, and election seasons can push wait times past two hours. The staff can't control NICS processing times, and they can't expedite your transaction.

Military personnel stationed outside their home state should bring extra documentation. Academy staff generally know the requirements, but having orders and multiple forms of ID speeds things up.

Academy fills a specific niche -- high-volume, competitive pricing on mainstream firearms and ammunition. They're not trying to be your local gun shop with personal service and specialized knowledge. They're trying to be Walmart for outdoor sports, and they do it well.

The ammunition deals alone make Academy worth checking regularly. Their weekly ads often feature loss-leader pricing on popular calibers that beats most online retailers after shipping costs.

For firearms purchases, Academy works if you know what you want and don't need much guidance. Their selection covers the basics competently, and their prices stay competitive.

But if you need expert advice, want to handle unusual firearms, or prefer building relationships with knowledgeable staff, stick with dedicated gun shops.

Academy succeeds because they understand their limitations and work within them. They're a big-box retailer that happens to sell firearms, not a gun shop that grew big.

The company's geographic strategy makes sense -- they go where their customers live and understand regional preferences. A Texas Academy stocks for Texas hunters and shooters, not some corporate marketing department's idea of what people should want.

The distinction matters.