Outlaw X: The Origin Story
How we started an online retail business — and 14 years later, where we landed.
Every business has a beginning, though we of course hope for no end. Given the type of products we sell like Tannerite® and Outlaw X Exploding Targets, our longevity is certainly at the mercy of the ever changing laws. This is of course why we sell so much more, but that’s not what this post is about. It’s about how we started an online retail business.
On October 17th 2013, I walked away from a factory job I had worked for the previous 17 years to the day, most of which was nights. Roughly a year earlier I had begun laying groundwork for this move. At the time we were operating under the name (Everything SKS LLC) — even now, when I answer the phone, I typically say ESKS, simply because it is the parent company and long time habit. Prior to my factory job exit, I sold a lot of gun parts almost exclusively from the SKS rifle. Hence the name Everything SKS.
From 2012 to 2013, we moved a lot of these parts, enough I figured I could at least match my factory job income. At the age of 39, I walked out and was off to build a new business. Of course as time progressed, the SKS parts market began to dry up. Although millions of these rifles were made, they are no longer made and pretty limited. Other factors came into play as well, but that’s another story.
Seeing this coming, we began a foray into other items. We have sold everything from Coleman lantern mantles, scotch tape holder blades, seeds, moonshine kits, worms, fertilizers — anything we could ship and still make a small profit.
Now I’ve always had a curious mind. Mostly everything we have ever sold has been something I’ve wanted or needed to secure for myself personally. (Tannerite® was no exception.) Now by this time, I have a fairly decent supply chain in place, a small gun store and a couple other projects going. And I wanted to know how to make my own. Having a small amount of chemistry experience, I played around a little bit (not recommended unless you know how to do it safely) and ultimately came up with our own recipe for the Outlaw X Exploding Targets.
So at this point we have a supply, a product and shipping system in place. The rest is history.
Fast forward a few years later, we no longer sell guns or have a retail storefront. We do everything online and have a small warehouse where we package all of the products you see here and ship them from our small operation. We own the building, buy in bulk and have a small team that takes care of the orders including myself. This lets us be competitive, efficient and offer a one on one type service no matter where you are in the lower 48.
I won’t guarantee I’ll answer on the first ring — with so many spam calls, it’s just not possible. But if you text or leave a message, I’ll guarantee a timely response.
Thanks to everyone for a fantastic 14 years!