Wayne’s Wicked Shoots for Stores

Wayne Woolsey stood on his back deck squeezing a child’s “snot sucker” that he’d filled with phosphorescent chalk. He puffed glowing powder from the rubber bulb, then turned to his son, Page, with a revelation.

“Son,” Woolsey said, “you’re going to make your dad a million dollars.”

That marked the Fayetteville inventor’s second hunting-product epiphany. His Rifle Reel gun-strap was already in preproduction when glowing chalk shavings in the family driveway sparked the idea for Magic Dust – a wind detection, game tracking and night-vision tool.

Now with several trademarked products headed to market, Woolsey’s company, Wayne’s Wicked Enterprises Inc., is poised to make a killing.

Cabela’s Inc. and Bass Pro Shops will introduce Wayne’s Wicked products nationally on Oct. 28. They’ll be available beginning Oct. 3 with free shipping through www.wayneswicked.com.

The Tontitown native’s goal is to sell 50,000 units each of the Rifle Reel and Magic Dust within their first year. That alone would generate retail sales of more than $3.97 million. That doesn’t include potential ancillary sales of larger Magic Dust refill containers, expanded lines or traction from a planned marketing push.

Woolsey and his wife, Blake, serve as the president and secretary of Wayne’s Wicked, respectively. Between personal savings and a secured line of credit from Arvest Bank Group Inc., they will have invested about $235,000 in the venture by this hunting season.

Wayne Woolsey said the three-year development process was at times maddening (see story, p. 20). But the most difficult task might have been keeping his ideas a secret until now.

Outfitting

The Rifle Reel’s allure is two-fold: It’s apparently the first hunting accessory specifically designed to facilitate the safe hoisting and lowering of firearms. Many sources, including the Tree Stand Manufacturers Association, tell hunters to use “a haul line” to lift guns to elevated positions. None of them, however, say how or where to tie onto the gun, leaving open the possibility of a firearm spinning around or getting its barrel clogged in the dirt.

“They don’t want to be liable,” Woolsey said. “… Plus normally, it takes 15 minutes to put a strap on a gun. The Rifle Reel takes 15 seconds, and still uses your Uncle Mike Connectors.”

Uncle Mike is an industry leader in shooting accessories, including holsters, cases and over-the-shoulder rifle swivels and straps.

The Rifle Reel’s retractable strap is also made to prevent snags on brush, which could scare game or cause injury. Its specs are detailed online, but the strap adjusts from 22 to 38 inches. The product has also received high performance ratings from Consumer Testing Labs Inc. in Rogers.

Magic Dust basically puts a new shine on an old product, and in doing so creates several additional uses. Its secret is the Magic Dust Activator’s self-contained ultra-violet LED (light-emitting diode) light, which uses low-emission waves to keep the product indefinitely charged with luminescence.

Applications can include checking normal and thermal winds, marking blood trails, judging shooting distances and even visibility for hunter safety.

Specialty retailing expert Tom Middleton, president of Evergreen Outdoors Inc. of Mountain Home, said Woolsey’s products could potentially “eliminate a hunter’s need to carry a whole backpack into the woods.”

Big Game

Middleton worked as a sporting goods buyer, and later in store operations, from 1967 to 1991 for Wal-Mart Stores Inc. He founded Evergreen in 2000. The retailing, distributing and fulfillment firm now boasts a network of 43 sales reps who call on independent retailers, mass merchants and catalog companies.

Middleton said Woolsey could be one of the breakout exhibitors Feb. 2-5 in Las Vegas. That’s where the hunting products world will converge for its annual SHOT (Shooting Hunting Outdoor Trade) Show at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

“The Rifle Reel in particular could truly be one of the most novel products introduced this year,” Middleton said. “There is nothing that resembles it that’s been on the market before, and with its safety and practical uses, it’s very marketable. It should be a high-demand product.”

Admittedly, Middleton has an interest in the success of Wayne’s Wicked.

Evergreen provides Woolsey with sales support plus fulfillment through its Joplin, Mo., warehouse. But Middleton also adds he would not have taken Wayne’s Wicked on as a client if the brand didn’t have potential.

The National Sporting Goods Association reported that American consumers spent $3.708 billion on “hunting and firearms related equipment” in 2006. The NSGA projects that 2007’s tally will be up 2.4 percent to $3.798 billion.

Arkansas is part of the West South Central region grouped by the U.S. Census Bureau. This region accounted for about $1.9 billion in gun and archery bow sales alone, a figure considered by the NSGA to be a harbinger of a strong hunting equipment market (see chart, left).

A less specific National Shooting Sports Foundation study found that 18.5 million hunters annually contribute more than $30 billion to the U.S. economy and support more than 986,000 jobs. NSSF puts the number of hunting firearms users at 17.97 million nationally.

Eighty percent of those are male, and 53.1 percent are aged 25 to 54.

The Terrain

Woolsey actually has three main trademarked products in the offing.

His luminescent Barrel Bumpers, which serve as protective gun barrel covers and visual safety checks, will be packaged with the Rifle Reel. Together, they’ll retail for $51.95 (see photos, p. 18).

The Magic Dust Activator ($12.99) and a pack of two refills ($14.59) will be sold separately. An 8 oz. Magic Dust refill container will go for $25.99.

Because scent, mainly as carried by wind direction, is such a nemesis for hunters there is already a litany of products that compete as wind-check tools. They range in price from $5 to $12.

There are also a couple high-end flashlight products that, from about $325, will provide some luminescent qualities.

But Middleton said Woolsey’s phosphorescent spin on the genre makes Magic Dust the only product that ties it all together. Woolsey said since most hunters enter or leave the woods during dark or twilight hours, “Magic dust is going to help game tracking, recovery and overall safety.”

Existing competition for the Rifle Reel is basically all gun-strap makers. Traditional versions average from $13 to $130. Woolsey said they offer “creature features” such as cartridge holders, but don’t tackle the issue of dangling straps or gun safety while getting in and out of tree stands.

“They know hunters are hoisting rifles, shotguns and muzzle loaders into elevated stands but have done nothing to make it safer,” Woolsey said.

Safety First

The International Hunter Education Association annually compiles a nationwide list of reported hunting-related accidents. Variables such as legal hunting dates, weather and the number of hunters make year-to-year comparisons tricky, the IHEA said.

But for the three-year period from 2003 to 2005, the IHEA tallied 46 reported hunting accidents in Arkansas including 10 fatalities. Nationally, the total for that period was 1,373 reported injuries.

Even if his products help prevent one accident, Woolsey said, his venture will have been worth the effort. If the factors cited as contributing to those accidents are any indication, Woolsey’s items can’t get to the woods quick enough.

Among the most common causes cited were “failure to identify target,” “careless handling of the firearm,” “not using a haul line,” “falling while climbing into/out of position” and “dropped firearm.”

“The stats also show a pattern of many people being shot accidentally for game,” Woolsey said. “I bet most were during low-light hours. This is prime time for Magic Dust and the Barrel Bumper.”

Woolsey said in the end, it’s all about making hunting activities safer.

“Think of it this way,” Woolsey said. “We put things like rear-view mirrors, seat belts and airbags on cars to make them safer. So if we have safety features that can do the same thing for guns, shouldn’t we also do that?”