LEHI, Utah -- It's the beginning of hunting season, and retailers said this year they're changing their marketing strategies to aim toward women.
Scott Johns is the general manager of the Lehi Cabela’s, and he said there are increasingly more options for women.
“The manufacturers are really gearing toward women as well because they are seeing more of them go to the field,” he said. “The women in the past had to shop the kid section and find boys camo to wear out in the field.”
Five million women across the country are taking part in shooting sports, and that’s a 46 percent increase in 10 years.
Gun retailers said for women, the passion often starts with conceal and carry classes.
“We get a lot more women in here now than when I first started working here five years ago,” Cabela’s Employee Christie Leigh said. “A ton of women now are really getting into the sport.”
Experts in the industry said there are a few reasons women are getting more involved in outdoor sports: They see it more on TV, their husbands are taking them along, and the equipment now fits them better.
Outdoor enthusiast Christina Allen offered her own explanation.
“I think women in general are becoming more in tune with what they want to do and their hobbies, and make time for themselves,” she said.
Outdoors women said there's still room for the sport to grow, and it will be a while before they break down some of the misperceptions.
