Being a machine gunner while serving in the U.S. Marine Corps, Toledo resident Dan Anderson has been a firearms enthusiast throughout his life, even beyond his time in the service, though he was just an avid collector before.
Now, he’s selling guns and ammunition, along with providing gunsmithing services, all out of his own home in the southern Lewis County community through Jen’s Place Firearms and Gunsmithing.
The Chronicle met with Anderson on Tuesday, Aug. 25, to learn more about how and why he decided to open up the gun shop.
Though the business is run out of his own home, it is sectioned off and secured behind a coded vault door. It all started because he got tired of paying Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Federal Firearms License (FFL) transfer fees when purchasing guns online.
With online gun sales, after payment is finalized, the seller has to send the gun to a current FFL holder, who is responsible for receiving the gun and having the buyer complete the background check.
“I got tired of paying the transfer fees,” Anderson said.
Those fees vary for each license holder, and some charge much higher fees than others.
“This time last year, I bought 13 guns in an auction up in Rochester. Bought them all at once. Pistols, rifles, all that stuff. I wasn’t even thinking of opening a gun shop. I was just like, ‘Hey, this is a good deal. I want one of these. I want one of those,’ and I got a good deal. I always looked at guns as an investment,” Anderson said. “It was $18 to transfer all of them. ‘Oh, cool.’ I go to the next one and I buy six wheel-guns, these revolvers down here, plus I got a personal collection upstairs. And I go to do the transfers, and they’re like, ‘That’s gonna be $300.’ I’m like, ‘What?’ ‘Yeah, $50 per firearm, that’s our policy.’ So I said, ‘Damn, maybe I’ll just go and get my FFL and do it myself.’”
When he first floated the idea of opening up his own gun store inside his Toledo home, many of those he talked to said he wouldn’t be able to do it. While the ATF does grant home-based FFLs, Anderson was told they don’t typically hand them out anymore.
“They laughed at me,” he added.
Having just opened Jen’s Place Frozen Yogurt last year in Toledo, Anderson decided to try applying using his existing business license.
“Here I am, six months later,” Anderson said.
Anderson opened Jen’s Place Frozen Yogurt last year in honor of his late wife, Jennifer Johnston, who wanted to open a frozen yogurt shop in Toledo. She died in 2024 when her motorcycle was struck by a vehicle. He now runs it together with his daughters.
While Anderson handles sales and FFL transfers for the business, he’s not alone in the venture as he has a silent partner who wishes to remain anonymous. The silent partner is a certified gunsmith, though Anderson does do some simpler gunsmithing jobs.
“He does most of the gunsmithing. He’s the one who threads the barrels and does major work,” Anderson said. “... I’ve known him for 40 years. Forty out of 50 ain’t bad.”
While Anderson does have regular business hours where he tries to be in the shop for walk-in customers — 3:30 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday — Jen’s Place Firearms and Gunsmithing is open mostly by appointment, as Anderson occasionally has to go work at the yogurt shop a block away with his daughters.
“Generally by appointment. Most everybody hits me up saying, 'hey, can I swing by,’ or I’ll reach out to say ‘your background check’s done, you can come on in and pick it up,’” Anderson said.
For gun owners looking to buy a suppressor now that the ATF can no longer require National Firearms Act (NFA) registration for suppressor sales, Anderson is planning to add a special kiosk set up inside Jen’s Place Firearms and Gunsmithing.
“I’m getting a silencer kiosk set up in here, so it’s one-stop shopping,” said Anderson.
With fall officially starting next month, Anderson is also offering a hunting season gun tune-up special starting at $150.
“It’s boresighting and cleaning, essentially getting your rifle ready for hunting season. That way you can grab it out of the truck and go,” Anderson said.
Jen’s Place Firearms and Gunsmithing is located at 301 Augustus St. in Toledo. To make an appointment or for more information, call Anderson at 360-219-5496, follow the business on Facebook at https://tinyurl.com/wt5837zw or visit Jen’s Place’s online store at https://tinyurl.com/mpby5huj.
For more information on Jen’s Place Frozen Yogurt, read The Chronicle’s business feature online at https://tinyurl.com/24ruttz8.
