I believe there are three major advantages GM has over the LGS.
* *1.). Store hours. When I leave work at 6:00 pm M-F the only store open is a GM. I drive right by two of my LGS on my way to GM. My guess is that the people with the money that can afford making gun purchases work full time. Many of us fit that work M-F schedule and that is when we find many of the LGS open. There is also Saturday for us to shop, but I don't know about you but I have all that work to do around the house before I can play and by then the LGS is closed. GM is opened until 9:00 pm so i can go after supper. Sunday? Forget it, my LGS closed - only GM is open. Advantage GM.
2.). Marketing. it is a known fact that those multipage advertising circulars work to get people into the store. When was the last time you received such a thing from your LGS or even yet, when was the last time you saw a 1/2 page or full page add *in the paper by your LGS? Sales create excitement. How will the GM customer ever know that gun they have their eye on is cheaper at the LGS? They won't because GM is their destination. GM does a much better job marketing than the LGS. As someone already mentioned, the cleanliness. Again, people make big money studying these things and regardless of what the customer thinks, sub consciously customer prefer the cleaner, more organized and newer looking store to shop in. GM has access to all of these studies, and employee people that marketing is their job. The LGS is usually ran by the owner and family, and then some other people that know things a out guns. I suspect that the LGS are not hiring people with marketing degrees. Advantage GM.
3.). Inventory & Selection. When you want to look at the new M&P that just came out, do you want to go to a store that has one that you may hold in your hands and drool on or the store that can order if for you for less money? You might not like the way it feels in your hand. You want to see it now, not order it and be stuck with it. Besides, when we want something we want it now. We do not want to wait a week or two for it to come in, then have to leave work early to get to the store before they close. *GM can afford a good selection of guns, which regardless of price, it is the gun that is in stock that is going to sell. Plus like someone already pointed out, GM domes a fine job of also stocking fishing, camping and clothing. *Advantage GM.
Jay's Sporting Goods in Clare, Michigan started in Jay's garage. *Jay's offers all the advantages of a GM while still being family owned, the best of both worlds. This smart man understood the experience that the customer wanted. Although Jay has passed away, his wife and son continue on. Today Jay's is bigger than the average GM and employees hundreds of people. Jay's is open 7 days a week and does not close down for the rifle deer season like other LGSs do. People don't go to Jay's to get the best price on a gun, they go because they know it will be in stock along with hundreds of other guns. They have a choice of what they will buying, maybe they will buy two guns because they can't narrow it down to just one. Used guns. Jay's used gun selection would put to shame some LGS new gun selections.*
These are my personal opinions derived from having owned/managed my own store for 6 years and now shopping as a customer at both GM and the LGS when possible. GM makes it easier to shop. I realized that I have stated a lot of generalizations about GM and LGS but I believe that is what we are doing in this thread. *There are GM that are not as stated and there are LGS that do a great job, like Jay's.
I think this post pretty much nailed it. With the large amount of capitol GM has, they can hire more people to be able to rotate employees and have longer hours, and spend more in advertising to get their name and product lines out there to "the public".
We've had a really good LGS here for a couple of years, maybe less (Primitive Peddler, now Peddler Firearms, sorry Bandit, can't remember exactly how long) but I still run across people that are "gun people" at work or wherever, but have either never heard of it, or don't know where it is.
Everyone knows what Gander Mountain is. Brand recognition.