Photo: courtesy NSSF
“To SHOT or not to SHOT, that is the question.”
No, it’s not. Not even close.
Of course you should be attending SHOT. It is the single largest gathering of the firearms, ammunition, optics, gear, and accessories industry on the planet. Those attending don’t count how many SHOT Shows they’ve attended. They count how many they’ve missed.
For many of them, that number is zero.
For many newer to the industry, 2026 will be their first SHOT Show. For some, it may be only their second—or perhaps third.
For those new to the industry’s biggest gathering, SHOT Show is incredibly valuable on a professional level—and here’s why.
Near the close of the 2025 SHOT Show, I spoke to Bill Brassard of NSSF in the press room about why SHOT is important to attend. He pointed out something so obvious, I was shocked I hadn’t thought of it myself.
SHOT is important for younger people in the industry because, unlike almost any other major trade show, it gives even entry-level employees the opportunity to meet and network with upper-tier leadership.
Top industry leadership will be on the show floor—in booths, roaming the aisles, and fully accessible when SHOT opens on January 20 in Las Vegas.
Make no mistake, they are busy people, so catching them in their booth when they aren’t surrounded by buyers from key accounts or executives from other partner companies might be a bit tricky. But you will see them at other times during the show, when you’ll have a chance to approach and introduce yourself.
That’s not going to be the case at shows like CES or the Detroit Auto Show.
During CES you’re not going to run into Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, at the Venetian’s Bellini Bar, often referred to as the ‘Circle Bar,’ or find Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, in Yardbird.
And you’re not going to cross paths with either Ford’s CEO Jim Farley, or Tetsuo Ogawa, President and CEO of Toyota Motor North America, on the floor of Huntington Place where the North American International Auto Show (aka Detroit Auto Show) takes place.
But at SHOT Show, you have the opportunity to make connections you could never make in other industries. This is why longtime attendees are often described as “knowing everybody.”
Nobody knows everybody, but for those that have been attending SHOT for a decade or two know a significant number of industry leaders. And if they don’t know someone personally, chances are they know someone in their network who does.
Joe Bartozzi, NSSF President and CEO, opens the Governors Forum which NSSF hosts during SHOT Show. Below, the SHOT Show Attorneys General Forum addresses key legal battles happening around the country. Photos: P. Erhardt
Attendee registration for SHOT Show will be opening very shortly. If you are lucky enough to be on your company’s show team attending SHOT—and you’re definitely lucky if you are—then you are set. Find the time to get out of your booth, roam the floor, and make connections.
If you are not attending with your company, but you can get the time off to go, I highly recommend you consider doing just that.
Sure, it costs money, but everything does, so get over it. The costs associated with attending SHOT pale in comparison to the networking value of attending the show.
One aspect of SHOT Show that’s rarely discussed is that it doubles as a low-key job fair. Many companies have open positions, and those with strong networks use their time in Vegas to connect with potential employers.
Photo: P. Erhardt
You may have a network on LinkedIn, but nothing beats the face-to-face networking that takes place at SHOT. LinkedIn gives you contacts; SHOT Show gives you friendships. Attending the show is how you build and expand your network of business contacts—and friends.
SHOT Show is often likened to a family reunion, and nothing could be truer. There are people I only see during SHOT Show, and it’s always a genuinely warm reunion when we meet up. The most common phrase you will hear at SHOT is, “It’s great to see you again.” The second most common phrase is, “Let me know if there is anything I can do for you.”
You can sit in your cubicle back at the office this coming January 20 through 23. But if your plan is to remain in this industry, and rise up through the leadership ranks, then do yourself a favor, invest in your future, and attend the 2026 SHOT Show.
You can thank me later.
— Paul Erhardt, Managing Editor of the Outdoor Wire Digital Network
