LUCKBOX LEANS IN WITH
Ame ric a n Ou tdo o r Bra nd s P r e s ide n t and CEO BRIAN MURPHY AOB became an independent public company in August 2020, building 21 authentic lifestyle brands for outdoor adventures during the pandemic | By Elizabeth Owens-Schiele Brian Murphy
Q&A
WHAT ARE THE TRENDS IN HUNTING, FISHING, CAMPING AND OUTDOOR SPORTS? We believe the macro trends are very favorable. The markets we serve— fishing, camping, hunting, shooting sports and the rugged outdoor lifestyle—have all benefited from a new, higher level of participation that began in our last fiscal year with the emergence of COVID-19. Some people turned to these activities for the very
first time, and others for the first time in a long time. ARE THESE MARKETS GROWING? We believe the past two years have ushered in an exciting new era for the entire outdoor industry, resulting in a new, higher foundational level of consumer participation. Each one of the markets in which our brands play has delivered meaningful growth and, importantly, each has welcomed many new participants who, we believe, will continue to explore the outdoors in the future. For instance, calendar 2020 gave us nearly 8 million new campers, 8 million new firearm owners, over 3 million new fishing license holders and over 1 million new entrants to the hunting category. In March, we acquired Grilla Grills, a direct-to-consumer provider of high-quality grills, smokers and accessories, providing us access to the $7 billion U.S. barbecue grill market. With an estimated 9 million grills sold in the U.S. each year, the grill market has benefited from recent trends toward outdoor cooking and provides plenty of runway for future growth. Founded in 2015, Grilla has generated net sales growth of over 161% in the past two years, with a CAGR [compound annual growth rate] of about 50% over the past five years, and 2021 net sales of over $15 million. Along the way, Grilla has developed an impressive strong brand authenticity among a loyal consumer base.
THE MARKETS WE SERVE—FISHING, CAMPING, HUNTING, SHOOTING SPORTS AND THE RUGGED OUTDOOR LIFESTYLE—HAVE ALL BENEFITED FROM A NEW, HIGHER LEVEL OF PARTICIPATION THAT BEGAN ... WITH THE EMERGENCE OF COVID-19. 26
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