Today we’d like to introduce you to Michael Barnes.
Michael, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I started my entrepreneurship journey when I was 19 by joining a health and wellness company. I didn’t really know anything about business but I was intrigued by the idea of being my own boss, setting my own schedule, and making a lot of money. I didn’t make any money, to be honest, but I always knew that someday I would have my own company. I have always been interested in security, personal protection, and firearms so it’s no surprise that I am in this industry now. My mentor, Jacob, introduced me to the handling of firearms for recreation and self-defense and I still call on his expertise now in my business; he taught me most of what I know. I continued to practice shooting as time passed and after purchasing several firearms for my own collection, I decided that I wanted to open my own gun business. I didn’t really know what that process looked like so I began doing research and finally decided to pull the trigger on getting licensed and here we are today.
Has it been a smooth road?
I wouldn’t say that it’s been smooth but it hasn’t been a horrible experience either. It’s been a great learning experience and most of the lessons I learned came from trial and error because I never had anyone teach me the ins and outs of owning a business. It’s really a full-time job and takes dedication and hard work to simply keep compliant with licensing requirements, tax obligations, and finding a customer is a challenging task within itself. All of our business is done online through our website so sometimes we have to make sure that pricing and inventory are up to date in order to make sure that product is available. Our biggest challenge right now is waiting for products to arrive because of COVID-19, which has caused universal shipping delays, but we are doing our best to make sure customers get their purchases as soon as possible.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
MB Guns and Ammo is a federally licensed firearms company. We provide many different kinds of firearms from different manufacturers, along with other products like ammunition, holsters, magazines, knives, and flashlights. We also offer other self-defense items like stun guns, pepper sprays, batons and more for our customers that want to protect themselves but are not interested in guns. I believe that a personal touch is important in this industry; so my goal is to make everyone comfortable when they decide to inquire about a product. When someone tells me that they want a gun my first question is, for what?!. LOL. It sounds rude, but I need to know are you looking to just pick up a hobby, defend your home, or protect yourself when you are out and about. I would say that the personal touch kind of sets us apart. I make this an integral part of my business because I have had experiences where someone is trying to sell me something I didn’t ask for or something that’s not ideal for my situation. I didn’t like it when this happened to me so I keep that at the forefront of my mind when I deal with my customers and that’s why we try to offer products for individuals from all walks of life.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
I believe that Houston is a great city for this type of business and really any business for the most part because of the size and diversity of the population. I think the problem comes in to play when people think that because we have so many people in the city they will automatically do well just because they opened. This is a big mistake as you still have to network and market your business. I think the marketing aspect has been the toughest since opening because it takes focus and consistency.
Pricing:
- $15.00 Firearm Transfers
Contact Info:
- Address: Our office is located at 2656 S Loop West 322 Houston, TX 77054
- Website: www.MBGunsAndAmmo.com
- Phone: 346-831-3647
- Email: MBGunsAmmo@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/mbgunsandammo
- Facebook: facebook.com/mbgunsandammo
- Twitter: twitter.com/mbgunsandammo
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