Primos Hunting Calls
Will Primos, the founder of Primos Hunting Calls based out of Flora, Miss., had
a passion for hunting beginning at a young age. He loved to listen to his uncle
call ducks and tried his hand at making his very own duck call at age 11.
Shortly after graduating from college, Primos encountered Eleanor Roessler’s
diaphragm turkey calls. These hand-made turkey calls were made of lead and a
prophylactic membrane and awkwardly fit into the roof of your mouth.
Each call
was custom made, however, and would not fit everyone. Primos took his knowledge
of Roessler’s version and began making his own more malleable turkey calls from
tin beer cans. They were a hit and everyone who saw them wanted one. In 1976,
Will Primos began selling his hand-made turkey calls to a local sporting goods
store where they sold for $20 each; he even received requests from stores in
other states wanting to carry his calls.
Primos did not anticipate the huge
demand that would quickly develop. He made calls in his spare time outside of
his day job, where he ran the catering and banquet division for one of his
family’s Jackson restaurants. By 1979, demand became so great that he hired
workers to help him with production. He also expanded his product line to
include friction calls, additional mouth calls, and box calls; he also produced
several instructional audiotapes and began marketing his products at the
Shooting Hunting Outdoor Trade (SHOT) show to gain more exposure for the Primos
brand name.
By 1985, Primos had brought in his cousin, Jimmy Primos, to manage
the company. Things were looking up and the Primos name was catching on like
wildfire. In 1986, Primos produced his first video called “Spring Turkey Hunting
with Primos”. The success of the video led Primos to the creation of the “TRUTH”
video series, now produced for every category of hunting. Primos’ success with
the videos eventually led to a show for the Tuesday Night Pursuits line-up
called, “Primos TRUTH About Hunting,” airing on the Outdoor Channel.
In 1989,
Will Primos went into the game call business full time, well after his business
had topped over a million dollars in sales. The company began to expand at an
extraordinary rate, but Primos’ commitment to quality has continued to reap its
benefits by making it one of the top selling call brands nationwide. Will Primos
personally inspects a sampling of calls to ensure the Primos quality is upheld.
This commitment to excellence has led to a consistent 25 percent growth in the
company’s annual rate of sales.
In 2002, Primos Hunting Calls moved into its
first formal manufacturing plant in Flora, Miss.; by 2005, the facility almost
doubled to its current size of 100,000 square feet. It now employs 148
Mississippians, and is looking forward to more expansion.
Primos is one of only
a handful of hunting producers who cross over into all categories of hunting
featuring products for deer, duck, turkey, elk, bobcat, hog, coyote, and bear.
Primos Hunting Calls produces approximately 620 different products including
hunting calls, hunting accessories, ground blinds, scent elimination products,
and the TRUTH DVD Series. It holds 30 patents and numerous trademarks.
For more
information about the Primos Hunting Calls brand and products, please visit
www.primos.com