The reel thing: Bass Pro Shops angling for big numbers at outdoor superstore

Jennifer Shubinski

Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2004 | 10:52 a.m.

A new Las Vegas retailer is hoping to lure more than just area residents through its doors -- it hopes to hook tourists as they drive in from California.

The West's first Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World opens the evening of Nov. 15. Local conservation groups and celebrities such as angler and TV host Jimmy Houston and NASCAR driver Kerry Earnhardt will be at the preview, from 5:30 to 9 p.m., which is open to the public.

The Bass Pro Shops is part of the Silverton Hotel Casino's $150 million expansion that includes major renovations to both its interior and exterior to become a more upscale, contemporary mountain lodge-theme property.

The Bass Pro Shops is described as a "sportsman's paradise" with 165,000 square feet of fishing, hunting, camping, golf, marine, NASCAR, clothing and other outdoor gear. The store also boasts shooting and archery ranges, a gunsmith and fine-gun room that will have guns priced from $3,000 up to $100,000.

The Las Vegas store will be the company's 25th store nationwide and is expecting big numbers during opening week.

The opening evening celebration is expected to draw 7,000 to 8,000 people, said Beth Raynor, who is in charge of promotions for the store.

And store officials expect to see even more people each day during opening week.

"It's hard to predict those numbers, but our capacity is much larger here," said Ron Rupert, the store's general manager said. "I'd like to see 26,000 to 30,000 a day."

While those numbers may seem far a field, Bass Pro Shops are huge tourist drivers wherever they are built.

Bass Pro Shops uses the attractions within its stores, the Internet, catalogs, a TV show, NASCAR sponsorship and sporting events throughout the year to draw people through its doors.

In fact, the original Bass Pro Shops in Springfield, Mo., is that state's top tourist attraction, even above the St. Louis Arch, according to that state's tourism department.

The Las Vegas Bass Pro Shops is in a unique position to attract scores of people, Bob Winkler, the store's assistant manager said.

First off, the store is in Las Vegas, a huge tourist destination in its own right, he said.

The other is the store, along Interstate 15, is bound to attract visitors from California and other Western states where a large outdoor superstore is lacking, Winkler said.

Johnny Morris, the founder of Bass Pro Shops, said in an interview during the International of Shopping Centers Convention this spring that he also hopes to attract Las Vegas' international visitors and expects to attract buyers from Japan, where fishing is a growing sport.

Because of the variety of markets to tap into, Winkler expects the Las Vegas store to be one of the company's highest grossing locations.

The Las Vegas Bass Pro Shops also is an experiment, of sorts, since most of the company's stores are based in the Midwest, South and East coasts, Rupert said.

"This is a retail laboratory this far west," he said. "We don't want to discount anything, but this we know -- we're going to do well."

The store has been geared to feature more products that are suitable for the West, such as sage brush-patterned camouflage and a large range of golfing equipment, Rupert said.

The store also attracts visitors who just come to look, not so much at the merchandise but at the store itself.

The two-level store has a massive log and rock frame entrance. The mountain lodge-style is used throughout the store.

Trophy animals, donated by customers and museums, are throughout the store and displayed in true-to-nature scenes. A stream will meander through the store and will be populated by brook, brown and rainbow trout -- Nevada's most abundant game fish species.

A 36,000-gallon freshwater aquarium, fed by an in-store canyon waterfall, will feature more than 200 fish native to the area, including wiper, walleye, crappie, striped bass and northern pike.

The store has hired 200 people, mostly full time, and is still looking to hire at least another 125 part-time employees, as well as some additional full-time staff, Rupert said.