The City of Houston will lose one of its few remaining manufacturing plants by the end of this year.
The Gamo Outdoor USA distribution warehouse will close its doors after close to 14 years in Houston. Gamo is the parent company of Daisy Outdoor Products, and will move its Houston operation to Rogers, Ark., where Daisy is based.
The announcement was made Jan. 18 at the Shooting Hunting Outdoor Trade Show in Las Vegas by Daisy/Gamo president Keith Higginbotham and Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson.
Gamo manager John Stenger said he had been given a target date of Dec. 31.
“We’ve been told we’re going to be here through the end of the year,” Stenger said. “That could change – we could be here longer than that or not as long as that. It’s contingent on a few things.”
Daisy is well-known for making BB guns, air rifles and other outdoor products, and was purchased by Gamo last summer. Gamo produces high-end adult air guns and accessories.
Stenger said Gamo has 24 employees in Houston. Several members of management could relocate to Rogers and continue with the Gamo operation.
“They’ve been approached,” Stenger said. “There are some people who are giving that some thought, but to my knowledge, no one has made a commitment.”
Gamo Outdoor began producing air guns in Spain in 1961. In 1995, the firm began operation in the U.S. in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., before locating to a building in Houston in March 2003. Stenger has headed up the operation since it came to Houston.
“My objective right now is to get done here what needs to be done,” he said, “and I’ll go from there.”
The 66,000 square foot building — located at South Industrial Drive and South Sam Houston Blvd. — was originally constructed for a shoe manufacturer, Brown Shoe Co. The Houston Industrial Authority acquired the building and later sold it to an affiliate of Gamo.
ARCHIVE: Gamo moves to Houston