Bass Pro Shops
 |
|
| Private | |
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 1971 |
| Founder | John Morris |
| Headquarters | Springfield, Missouri |
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Number of locations
|
95 |
|
Key people
|
John Morris Founder and majority owner James (Jim) Hagale President & CEO |
| Products | Hunting, fishing, and outdoor merchandise |
| Revenue | 4.45 billion (2015) |
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Number of employees
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22,000(2015) |
| Website | www.basspro.com |
Bass Pro Shops (Outdoor World) is a privately held retailer of hunting, fishing, camping and related outdoor recreation merchandise, known for stocking a wide selection of gear. Bass Pro Shops supports and sells merchandise for the National Audubon Society.
The majority owner, John Morris, began his career in sporting goods with a fishing section in the back of a Brown Derby liquor store owned by his father, located in Springfield MO on the road to Table Rock Lake and Branson, Missouri. That small fishing department sold homemade bait and worms, proving popular enough that Bass Pro Shops was incorporated in 1971. These homemade baits were so popular that many people wanted the opportunity to buy these when they had returned home. Thus began the Bass Pro Shops catalog, first mailed in 1974. Soon, it became the world's largest mail order sporting goods store.
In 1975, to meet the burgeoning demand for Bass Pro Shops exclusive products, American Rod and Gun was established. Acting as a separate wholesaling entity ARG serves more than 7,000 independently owned retail stores worldwide. In 1977, Bass Pro Shops introduced the first fish-ready complete boat motor and trailer package with the Bass Tracker. In 1984, construction began on the Outdoor World Catalog Showroom in Springfield, Missouri. Big Cedar Lodge opened in 1988 on Table Rock Lake.
In 1995, Bass Pro Shops Sportsman's Warehouse opened in Atlanta, Georgia, its first store outside the state of Missouri. In November 2001, taking advantage of Outdoor World's popularity as a tourist destination, the Wonders of Wildlife museum was opened next door to the store in Springfield. The Wonders of Wildlife Museum & Aquarium closed for renovation in 2007. As of October 2016 it is still closed with an expected reopening by the end of the year.
In 2015, Bass Pro Shops opened a store inside the Memphis Pyramid, a former sports arena and concert venue in Memphis, Tennessee. In addition to the retail store itself, the building houses two restaurants, a bowling alley, a 100-room hotel, an observation deck, and the tallest free-standing elevator in America. At 535,000 sq ft, The Pyramid is Bass Pro's largest store.
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Wikipedia