Evan Cardenas

Riverside Archery

Riverside, California (store photos above)

We sell many more bag targets than other styles. Morrell targets are the most popular for the value. The Morrell Yellow Jacket and Super Duper bag targets sell really well, and we also do well with the Morrell Outdoor Range bag target. Rinehart’s Badger Bag is also a nice affordable target that’s easy to sell, especially when a customer is buying a new bow. The price and convenience of the entry-level bag targets makes them no-brainers.

For customers looking to save money, Delta McKenzie 3-D targets do well for us. If a customer wants a high-quality target and doesn’t mind the extra expense, we suggest Rinehart.

We’re pretty close to a large box store, and we know that many folks buy targets over there. We can’t do much about it. It’s kind of a case-by-case basis. Some people buy from us because they’re shopping in our store anyway. Or, someone might walk into our store and see that we have a certain 3-D target and then buy it on the spot. One thing for certain is the affordable bag targets make great add-on sales whenever customers are buying new bows.

We have a rather large layout of targets in our store. We put them along display cases and along the perimeters of our floor against the walls. With that presence, our targets are visible from just about anywhere, which helps with sales.

 

Nicole Tindale

Flaming Arrow Archery

Kalispell, Montana

We typically sell a good mix of all target styles, though bag targets are just so much more affordable and are easiest to sell. Before suggesting a target to a customer, we ask them some questions. We want to know if they’re just starting out and shooting only field points, or if they’re shooting broadheads and field points. That helps us suggest a target style that meets their needs. Plus, bags are the most affordable target style, and we don’t want our customers spending more money than they have to if they’re shooting only field points.

2021 was a great year for target sales and sales in general. We sold more than 200 bows in just a two-week stretch in March, for example. We’ve had a lot of people move into the valley. I was told by the sheriff that our population has doubled in the last 18 months. And people are taking up archery and bowhunting constantly.

Lots of customers this year were entry-level folks, and they’re great candidates for the smaller $35-$40 Morrell bag targets. Morrell also has the Keep Hammering Outdoor Range bag target, and we have a lot of Cameron Hanes followers in our area, so it has been a hot seller. The large size of the target is great for people who shoot at long distances. I can’t say enough about Morrell; the company keeps us supplied so that we can meet the demand.

For 3-D targets, we offer both Rinehart and Delta McKenzie. In 2021, we sold a lot more Delta McKenzie. We blew through way more targets than we traditionally do because it’s been so busy this past year. And we’re not just selling 3-D deer targets. Rinehart’s 1/3 Scale Series is very popular, and we sold some of the Rinehart full-size elk, too. From Delta McKenzie, we sold everything from foxes and raccoons to elk and antelope. We sold a conglomerate of 3-D targets. A few customers even bought targets to set up their own backyard 3-D courses.

We have a few different competitors here locally. Most of the targets they offer are inexpensive, cheap-quality targets. They’re not offering the high-end ones like we do. So really, it’s the mix of different targets we offer, and we’re able to special order that gives us a competitive edge in the target space.

One other thing is our customers look to us as the experts. We personally shoot 3-D targets rather than foam blocks, and we shoot our field points and broadheads at them. We do it because it’s more realistic for bowhunting practice, and that is how we suggest and sell a lot of 3-D targets to our customers.

  

Isaiah Garcia

Archery Headquarters

Chandler, Arizona

Bag and broadhead targets far outsell 3-D targets in our store. In fact, we sell only a couple 3-D targets annually. Most customers don’t want to spend the extra money on 3-D targets. Plus, we just can’t get 3-D targets in right now, and because we have a 3-D range at our location that costs only $7 to shoot, customers would rather shoot here at a variety of targets than buy one 3-D target for their backyard.

As far as brands, the last two years we’ve sold whatever bag and broadhead targets we can get in the store. We’ve moved a lot of Morrell targets; the Super Duper (bag target) and the Yellow Jacket YJ-350 (foam target) are the hot sellers.

We don’t do anything special to maintain a competitive advantage other than we keep a lot of bag and broadhead targets in stock. For merchandising, we don’t have any specific way of displaying targets. We put them wherever we can.