“I only needed four…”
That’s how Marty Daniels got started. He needed 4 copies of a gun part and he couldn’t find that part offered for sale anywhere. So, he had someone make them for him. However, the machinist did them on a lot purchase basis and the minimum amount he could get was 100 pieces. To get rid of the other 96 pieces, he set up a website and Daniel Defense was born. Now Daniel Defense has been named Manufacturer of the Year for 2013 by BusinessInSavannah.com.
Starting in 2001 with 2 employees (Marty and his wife), Daniel Defense now employs over 250. And 50 of those were new hires in this past year. Daniel Defense started making complete rifles only about 5 years ago. In that time, they’ve gone from producing 3,000 rifles per year to 50,000. And despite some sizable government contracts, 90% of their gun sales are to individuals.
Those of us in the shooting community have know about Daniel Defense for years, but the company came to the Nation’s attention earlier this year when the NFL decided that a Super Bowl ad from a gun company that didn’t show any guns was too icky for their delicate constitutions. Daniel Defense even offered to remove the rifle silhouette from their logo, but the NFL still had a case of the vapors and refused to accept the ad…
Maybe it was the smiling baby that frightened them so. But I digress…
Congratulations to Daniel Defense! It’s good to see a company rewarded for their innovation and for their support of our liberties.
And a hearty thank you to the anti-gun whack jobs in DC and elsewhere. Without you the recent boom in AR-15 sales may never have happened.
(H/T: Breitbart)
