Andy Fleming, the owner of East County Guns, peeks from within a doorway in his shop Tuesday, August 1, 2017, in downtown Centralia.
John Stines, a worker at East County Guns, speaks to another worker in their gun shop in this 2017 Chronicle file photo taken in Centralia.
Andy Fleming, the owner of East County Guns, points toward the back of his shop at a wall of guns Tuesday, August 1, 2017.
A flag that reads "open" waves in front of the East County Guns storefront in downtown Centralia Tuesday, August 1, 2017.
Impressed by how the local community has grown in the past 30 years, an Elma resident decided to expand his business to include a storefront location in Centralia.
Andy Fleming, co-owner of East County Guns, said he hadn’t visited Centralia since the late 1980s, but after he was detoured through the downtown area, he decided the Hub City would be the perfect location for his new gun store.
“By the time we reached Tower (Avenue) here, we started to make some phone calls and inquires on local gun shops, what was available and what was going on,” Fleming said. “There’s an astronomical amount of opportunity and people here in the community, and nobody is servicing it to the depth that we feel it needs.”
The storefront opened on May 18, 2017, as the company’s second retail location. The first one, located in Elma, opened in March 2003. Prior to that, Fleming had been selling guns out of his garage since October 2001, but decided he needed to expand because it became too much of a demand for that location.
The Elma location has a large following, and Fleming said he hopes for the same at his Centralia storefront. He kept the same name for the business because of the name recognition it has with his customers.
His No. 1 goal focuses on providing the best customer service possible, something that originally got him into the business. Fleming said he was taken advantage of back in 2000, in part due to poor customer service. That’s when his wife and co-owner of the business, Karla, encouraged him to start a business of his own.
A gun enthusiast since high school, Fleming decided it was a good step for him after a career at Les Schwab.
The Centralia storefront has a large variety of items for sale, from handguns to AR15s. Fleming estimated the store carries about 250 guns. A benefit of the business is that it offers parts and support for the AR15 platform, Fleming said, so people can build their own, something that has been gaining popularity for the last several years.
“No one does the AR15 market justice,” he said, adding his shop strives to do just that by offering the various parts and support.
The store also features a large selection of quality knives. The selection does not include low end imported knives from overseas, only higher-quality American products like Benchmade, Kershaw and Spyderco, Fleming said.
“You can buy a cheap gas station knife anywhere, but not here,” he said.
There’s also a selection of about 25 silencers. An in-store kiosk speeds up the process of ownership, adding another unique offering at the storefront. There’s also a small selection of cigars available for purchase, something Fleming hopes to expand upon.
So far, business has been going well, and Fleming expects it to pick up even more once people learn of the store’s existence. In the future, he hopes to hold fundraising events for the Green Beret Foundation, a popular event at his Elma location.
More Information
East County Guns is located at 108 S. Tower Ave., Centralia.
Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to about 4 p.m. on Saturday. The store is closed on Sunday.
The phone number is 360-736-1018.
The store has two full-time and one part-time employees, along with co-owner Andy Fleming.
The Elma store is located at 309 W. Main St., in Elma.
For more information, go online to discountfirearms.com, or check out the store’s Facebook and Instagram pages.
