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An American brand that can track its legacy way back to 1894, for 2011 Brunton has begun “saddling back up” and re-establishing itself as a leader in premium hunting gear. With a major commitment to specialty retailers, this Wyoming-based company—which is once again being led by CEO John Smithbaker—is demonstrating its dedication by offering innovative, premium products such as standout optics, GPS, and portable power systems, all backed by serious sales incentives aimed at unequaled profitability.

“2010 was kind of a scramble, sort of a ‘fix and repair’ year, where we began repositioning the brand in the way we’d like,” said Smithbaker, who once again took the reins of the company in January of 2010. “And so for 2011, we’re very excited, and even though the economy has been slower, we’ve been growing. I think people are really pulling for us—especially, once they hear our story, and hear how we’re getting back to our hunting roots. They’re fired up and so are we.”

So what is the Brunton story for 2011? Pro shop retailers will like what they hear.

“Offering partners and consumers the best products available, anywhere in the world, from a company that is dedicated to our partner’s success will enable us to make this journey together possible—that is our mission,” Smithbaker said. “Brunton Hunting does exactly that with our ‘Full Line Partner Program.’ This is not a volume-driven program to appease the mass discounters—it’s designed with our specialty partners’ best interests in mind.”

Brunton’s Full Line retail partners have an opportunity to order Exclusive Products that are unavailable through any other sales programs. These products include the new Icon Series Binoculars, Spotting Scopes, Riflescopes, and the Epoch Series Binoculars. Brunton Hunting guarantees superior profit margins, which in many cases are unmatched among competitive brands. Full Line Partners automatically qualify for a 5-percent incentive, which equates to an unprecedented 45-point margin toward the published MSRP for all categories. Net 60-day payment terms is the standard for this program and presents an exceptional one-time optics and optics accessory load order opportunity—extending dating out 180 days for Fall optics orders placed by 5/1/2011.

Smithbaker reiterated how important it is for specialty retailers to have access to exclusive products that cannot be found elsewhere. “Pro shops provide such a valuable service—and much of it at no charge. For manufacturers to reward them and their service to the industry as a whole, is how you form good partnerships,” he said. “[Pro shop retailers do] so much more than sell your product, they’re preparing the next generation to enjoy the outdoors, training people properly. That doesn’t necessarily happen when you sell just one product. In this industry, financially, and especially growth-wise, the best situation is when you have [manufacturer] ownership, employees, and the partners on the same page; then everybody wins.”

For its Full Line Partners, Brunton’s Excellence in Customer Service means a dedicated phone number to the Customer Service department, a dedicated Partner Network Sales Manager, and numerous other privileges designed to ensure retail success. Aside from priority allocation of new items or backordered inventory, Brunton also will exchange items performing under par with stronger-selling products within that category, and will assist in identifying best sellers in specific markets. Full Line Partners also will benefit from exclusive access to premium product sale opportunities, and be presented with the first-run of any advertised closeouts and excess inventory specials. Full Line Partners will be guaranteed an assortment of over $3,000 worth of promotional merchandising items, free of charge, to foster brand awareness.

Grassroots initiatives will be established through point-of-sale incentives as part of Brunton Hunting’s Employee Award Program. Key sales staff will be offered a selection of Brunton Hunting apparel, product credits, and logoed items to reinforce branding promotion. The partner’s sales staff can also be rewarded with their own pair of Brunton Hunting Optics, with a one-time purchase of any Icon or Epoch series optic at 75-percent off retail with the Employee Loyalty Program. Brunton’s Local Pro-Staff Program provides the partner with two pairs of Icon binoculars FREE of charge to support local prostaffers.

Brunton Hunting Full Line Partners also enjoy dedicated priority access to knowledgeable service technicians to assist at any point in the sales process. They also receive on-site training to ensure the sales staff is up-to-date with the latest trends, product features, and benefits. In-Store Clinics are available to staff and customers.

To further drives sales, the Full Line Partner’s exclusive “Red, White & Blue Trade-Up” Program provides a consumer credit towards a new pair of Brunton Hunting Optics. If customers bring in any working set of Swarovski, Leica, or Zeiss binoculars or spotting scopes, they will receive a $1,500 credit toward a new set of Brunton Hunting Icon Series Optics. Brunton also offers their Full Line Partners local advertising co-op support; partners will receive a $400 credit toward advertising campaigns through radio, newspaper, billboard, Internet, and other local media outlets.

Additionally, Brunton Hunting provides an online Full Line Partner locator, which is an exclusive resource on the new www.bruntonhunting.com. Customers visiting the site will have the ability to find a Full Line Partner nearest their location.

For more info on how to become a Full Line Partner, contact Shawn Buckley, National Sales Manager for Brunton Hunting at (307) 857-4777.