One retailer’s dilemma

I receive a call earlier this week from an old client. He’s an outdoors sporting goods retailer who sells guns. The call was essentially to discuss some new technology he’s considering for next year but it morphed into the tragedy in NewtownConnecticut. Monday morning when he opened the store there was a steady stream of traffic buying guns and mostly assault rifles. The store located about 100 miles from Newtown but like all of us he was deeply affected by this event. About two hours after the store opened he called his sales staff together and pulled the entire gun inventory from the sales floor. He knew this surge in sales was fueled by people fearing these guns would be banned soon and he felt that he was directly profiting from the tragedy. At this point his moratorium on gun sales is temporary until the feels the buying frenzy is over. He’s gun guy and strong advocate of the second amendment but had to hit the pause button until the assault rifle issue gets sorted out. I asked him if he felt his position would have a long term effect on his business and his response was “I hope not but in my mind I had no other choice”.  Businesses do have to have a social conscious.