The National Association of Sporting Goods Wholesalers (NASGW), the association representing shooting sports wholesalers, manufacturers and trade partners, announced the winners of its annual Appreciation and Caliber Awards during its Appreciation Dinner at the NASGW Expo. , in Kansas City, MO.
“What a fun night in Kansas City at the Annual Appreciation Dinner,” said NASGW President Kenyon Gleason. “We had a few surprises with our award winners and a lot of excitement about the great things happening at NASGW.”
Each year, the NASGW Expo brings together wholesalers and manufacturers within the shooting sports industry to get a first look at new products and plan sales for the coming year. (nasgwexpo.org)
The winners of the NASGW Appreciation Awards are:
Firearms Manufacturer of the Year
Optics Manufacturer of the Year
- holosun technologies
- Leupold & Stevens, Inc.
- SIG SAUER
* 3 way loop
Ammunition Manufacturer of the Year
Accessories Manufacturer of the Year
importer of the year
innovator of the year
In addition to the Annual Appreciation Awards, the National Association of Sporting Goods Wholesalers (NASGW) in association with the Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA), selected the best products in six categories including: Best New Rifle, Best Gun New, Best New Shotgun, Best New Ammo, Best New Optics, and Best New Accessory. An independent panel of 18 industry judges selected the winners in each category, as well as Best New Product Overall. To qualify, manufacturers had to be members in good standing of NASGW, the product had to have been publicly released between the end of last year’s NASGW Expo and the start of this year’s Expo, and product submissions were required through the NASGW Expo. New Product Showcase, found on the NASGW Expo website.
“We had a lot of product shipments this year,” said Kenyon Gleason, president of NASGW. “Congratulations to all of our finalists and winners. It truly is an honor to take home a Caliber award from the NASGW Expo.”
The Caliber Awards offer a unique and unbiased approach to recognizing and honoring innovative new products. The voting panel is made up of the people who buy and sell these products on a daily basis, as well as members of the media who review and report on these products in the field.
“Our voters reviewed many great products in 2022 and our winners were the best of the best,” said POMA CEO Thomas MacAulay. “It’s always fun to see our winners’ excitement when they accept their prizes.”
Being chosen as a finalist is an honor in itself. The panel narrowed down more than 170 submissions to three finalists in each category. Judges were asked to consider uniqueness, market need, product value, ingenuity, and presentation. This year’s Caliber Awards finalists are:
best new accessory
- American Outdoor Brands – Caldwell Claymore Target Launcher
best new optics
- Holosun Technologies – EPS Transport (Enclosed Gun Optical Transport)
best new ammo
- Hornady Manufacturing – Hornady Outfitter® Ammunition
best new pistol
- SIG SAUER – P365-XMACRO
best new rifle
- Christensen Arms–Ridgeline FFT
best new shotgun
- Mossberg – 940 Pro Turkey Optics Ready Autoloading Shotguns
Best New Product Overall
- SIG SAUER – P365-XMACRO
About NASGW
The National Association of Sporting Goods Wholesalers is comprised of domestic and international wholesalers, manufacturers, independent sales representatives, media outlets and service providers, all of whom are primarily focused on shooting sports equipment and accessories. As a trade association representing the business interests of its members, NASGW’s mission is to bring together buyers and sellers of shooting sports. For more information about NASGW, visit the association’s website at www.nasgw.org.
About POMA
POMA continues to uphold its tradition of promoting excellence in communication at all levels. This includes connecting businesses and organizations focused on the outdoors industry with content creators who can help tell their stories and promote their products.