Bass Pro Shops May Buy Out Cabela’s

The Two Outdoor Giants Have Been in Competition for Years. Now, They Make Become One.

Last Tuesday, Bass Pro Shops announced that they would move forward with the bidding to buy out Cabela’s.

Once this was announced, Cabela’s shares went up by over 6%, making the share $52.51. On Wednesday, it went down to $51.60.

In November, the rumor of Bass Pro Shops buying out Cabela’s began to circulate, but now this process is being moved forward. Bass Pro Shop and Cabela’s are major competitors, but obviously Bass Pro Shops does seem to have the upper hand.

Reuters had recently reported that Bass Pro Shops has partnered up with Goldman Sachs’ private equity firm to help provide the financial means to purchase Cabela’s. The bid is undetermined at this point and will not be known for several months. Because Bass Pro Shops runs nearly 100 stores and Cabela’s runs 80 stores, this will be a tough and likely very high bid.

In Fairfield, Ohio (near Cincinnati), there is a Bass Pro Shop in a semi-deserted mall. Due to the poor location of the store, Bass Pro Shop began looking into relocating to West Chester, Ohio off of I-75. Around the same time, however, Cabela’s began constructing a store in Liberty Township, Ohio, less than five miles north of Bass Pro Shop’s desired location. In the fall of 2015, construction of the new Cabela’s was finished, and it is now open to the public. If Bass Pro Shop continues to pursue their new location in West Chester, it will create stiff competition between the two stores. Situations like this may be one of several reasons for Bass Pro Shop’s decision to buy out Cabela’s.

Rumors of the buyout also have the city of Sidney, Nebraska in panic. Sidney is the home of Cabela’s corporate headquarters. If the buyout goes through, 2,000 employees will be laid off — and the city’s population is only 6,800.

What do you think of Bass Pro Shop potentially buying out Cabela’s? Is it a good business decision, or will it just kill competition and quality? Which store do you prefer? Sound off in the comments!

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