Doing What’s Right - Ammunition Depot resisted pressure to hike prices to sky-high levels. It’s now reaping the rewards of that decision.

Ammunition Depot might be a huge force in the ammo world now, but when the ammunition shortage happened in the U.S. in 2013, Ammunition Depot wasn’t even a retailer.

“It was founded in 2011 as a hedge fund investing in ammunition,” says Dan Wolgin, CEO and owner of Ammunition Depot.

The idea was that ammunition tends to increase its value faster than U.S. inflation.

“So, the founders of the hedge fund bought a bunch of ammo, got it into a warehouse, and waited for something to happen,” Wolgin says.

And then 2013 happened.

“By March of that year we were one of the few places that still had ammo,” Wolgin says. “We kept getting calls from police departments who needed ammunition. Our competitors who still had stock were selling it for huge markups, but we saw this as an opportunity to do what’s right. They needed the ammo we had, so we sold it to them at a fair price.”

Not only did Ammunition Depot begin to sell ammo to law enforcement agencies at prices that weren’t exorbitantly inflated, it also saw the opportunity use the same concept to sell directly to private citizens.

“We believe in the people’s right to protect themselves and their families, and we saw this was a chance to help them do that by selling them the ammunition they needed at reasonable prices,” Wolgin says. 

That decision didn’t go unnoticed by law enforcement departments, or everyday consumers, who understood how honorable and ethical Ammunition Depot was being by not taking advantage of the shortage to try and price-gouge people. Their customer list began to grow exponentially.

“That’s when we realized that there was something there on the retail side, and we really started to lean into that,” Wolgin says. “That allowed us to really focus on the normal ammo buyer who’s looking for a box or two of ammo at a time.”

As the foundation of the business was being built, the core values they treated their customers with became the cornerstone of their business model.

“We care deeply about the customer and the customer experience, and we believe that taking care of your customer is an investment that pays off huge dividends in the long run,” Wolgin says.

As Ammunition Depot continued to take care of its customers, the business grew into one of the largest ammunition outlets in the country, but their core commitment didn’t change.

“We care about our country and we care about our communities,” Wolgin says. “We believe we need to do what’s right to make this country a better place, whether that’s selling ammo at fair prices, or trying to change laws that restrict people’s Second Amendment rights.”

So, in 2019, when the NRA, the California Rifle and Pistol Association (CRPA), and Olympic shooter Kim Rhode asked Ammunition Depot if they wanted to invest in the fight to help overturn the law in California that required background checks for anyone buying ammunition, the company didn’t hesitate.

“It’s not often you’re presented with an opportunity to do some good,” Wolgin says. “There’s always a danger when you get involved with cases like that, but, for us, the public good far outweighed any risk to the business.”

In July 2025, their hard work and significant investment paid off when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled in favor of Ammunition Depot and its co-plaintiffs.

“Every time a judge has an opportunity to rule on this case, they rule in our favor,” Wolgin says. “But we still haven’t been able to overturn the law because of the way the law works.”

It isn’t a battle Ammunition Depot plans on giving up.

“We’re going to take it to the Supreme Court if that’s what it takes,” Wolgin says. “We believe in doing what’s right for our customers and our country, and overturning this law is the right thing to do.”

That commitment to do what’s right isn’t just apparent in Ammunition Depot’s advocacy efforts—it’s in the company’s DNA, even as it expanded its offerings beyond ammunition and into firearms and tactical gear. 

“We set out to bring a high-value product to our customers, and that’s what we continue to endeavor to do,” Wolgin says. “Our goal is to bring value to our customers’ lives.”

And whether it’s being the only online ammunition retailer who accepts returns on ammunition or working with manufacturers to develop innovative new products, Ammunition Depot is continuously focused on that goal.

As technology has changed, so has the ability to achieve that goal.

“We’re really focused on implementing new technology into our business, and one of the biggest ways we’re doing that is through AI,” Wolgin says. “We’ve been working really hard since 2022 to deploy this within the company to help our bottom line. Then we can pass that savings onto the customer.”

Wolgin is so excited about how much AI is doing to help his business that he is trying to get everyone in the industry to implement AI as a way to maximize revenue.

“We’re at the very, very beginning of this. If you’re reading this and think you’re behind the curve, you’re not,” Wolgin says. “If you’re interested and don’t know where to start, reach out to me, and I’ll do anything I can to help you get started.”

Just one more example of doing what’s right.