James Mullins of Fairborn was among those who waited in line.
“We like to support local businesses, and all the businesses in the area,” Mullins said.
The facility includes 20 indoor shooting lanes able to accommodate up to 40 shooters at a time. The center also carries approximately $1 million in retail, including pistols, rifles, shotguns, ammunition, cleaning kits and knives.
“We do side by side selling. It’s meant to be laid out more like an Apple store than a traditional firearms retail store,” said co-owner and CEO David Sabo.
The Beavercreek store is the company’s fifth location and first of a four-store expansion in Ohio and Indiana this year. The Lima, Ohio-based company has locations in Fort Wayne, Toledo and Pittsburgh and is rolling out three more locations in Cincinnati, Indianapolis, and Twinsburg, near Cleveland, this year.
“Several of my friends have been the one in Lima, so we’re really excited about something that can hold a bunch of shooters,” Mullins said.
Midwest Shooting Center Beavercreek opened with 1,300 members and 175 people signed up for training, Sabo said.
“We always use our pre-drive as a barometer for how well received we are in the local community, not just volume but the ease by which we achieve that number,” Sabo said on Saturday. “But from day one, when we opened up pre-sale, we were signing significant (numbers of) people up.”
“I think it just speaks to the level of need for our concept in the area,” Sabo said.
Customers are able to rent firearms or participate in a range of training classes, including beginners training and CCW courses.
Midwest Shooting Center has roughly 2,000 students across the four current locations.
“A firearm is a very purposeful, purpose-driven tool, and we believe that if somebody owns a firearm, they should get instruction,” Sabo said. “People are coming in working with their trainer every single week, oftentimes for over a year.”
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