According to Consumer Reports, "As fears of the coronavirus have increased dramatically in recent weeks across the U.S., so have sales of handguns, shotguns, tasers, pellet guns, and pepper spray, many to first-​time buyers of these products, retailers say."

Sean Atkinson, owner of Atkinson Firearms in Greenwood, IN told Consumer Reports, "Sales started picking up in early March, and then went 'through the roof.' I think a lot of that’s just got to do with people panicking. I’d say about 60% of the people who purchased this last week or so were first-​time gun owners.”

But COVID-​19 also means that children are quarantined at home, making the risk of gun-​related accidents escalate. That is why it's crucial for gun owners to also invest in safe ways to store their weapons, especially if they have children. Locked storage areas, such as gun safes and lockboxes, are the most effective way to prevent firearm accidents. The guns should be stored without ammunition loaded in them.

For added safety, gun owners can also purchase items such as trigger locks and cable locks.

Firearms dealers should also promote their storage and safety products during a time when children are stuck at home. Last year, according to AudienceSCAN, 55.7% of Gun/​Firearm Shoppers took action after receiving an email ad.

AudienceSCAN data is available for your applications and dashboards through the SalesFuel API. In addition, AdMall contains industry profiles on gun shops and hunting/​fishing/​wildlife stores, as well as lead lists at the local level. Media companies, sales reps and agencies can access this data with a subscription to AdMall from SalesFuel.