Rainier Arms is a popular gun distributorship for high-quality AR-15s. Headquartered in Washington State, the firearms storefront offers high-end AR-15 products direct to consumers. Recently John Hwang, the CEO and Founder of Rainier Arms has been searching for a new warehouse. Just recently he may have gotten more than just a simple warehouse.

Rainier Arms History

Rainier Arms was started by enthusiasts for enthusiasts. They specialize in high-end AR15s/M16s, parts & accessories. “If we won’t use it, we won’t sell it.” Founded in 2005, Rainierarms.com already has more than 2456 unique products and growing. Their technical advisory team consists of enthusiasts, law enforcement and military personnel that continue to make their offerings unique and desirable in the market place.

A New Facility

His search led him all the way out to Wichita, Kansas where the former Thunderbird Firearms Academy became his new gun range and retail shop. “Wichita’s a lot more gun-friendly than my hometown, so there’s a lot of good opportunities in that regard,” he says.

Coincidentally Thunderbird Firearms Academy was closing during John’s search. In a post on Facebook, owners Ryan and Jenny Pennock had to say the following about the closure of Thunderbird Firearms Academy:

We close our doors this evening for the time-being with great sadness but more than anything—gratitude. You see, The Thunderbird will live in each of our hearts as we walk away from a building we will always be a family; we will always hold a part of the Thunderbird and take it with us.

While it’s sad that yet another firearms-related business has had to close their doors, it seems that this time at least the closure will extend the legs of another quality company. John Hwang has purchased the former Thunderbird facility to act as a new storefront and distribution warehouse.

Hwang says he wanted a more centralized distribution point for his operation and he began his search in the Oklahoma City and Kansas City area a couple of years ago. With this new point of distribution, John and the team at Rainier Arms plan to bring better service to their customers across the country. With Kansas being a more gun-friendly state than Washington, I’m sure Rainier’s operation will expand in new ways other than just a simple point of distribution.