Armscor guns for global growth

FAMILY BUSINESS Entrusted to take the Armscor Group to the future are members of the third-generation Tuasons led by CEO Martin Tuason (middle) with help from longtime executive Gina Marie Angangco, AGDI SEVP (second from left). —CONTRIBUTED PHOTOS

LAS VEGAS, Nevada—To say that Martin Tuason loves guns is a woeful understatement.

At just a little over four years old, he fired his first gun—a .22 caliber rifle. A year later, he graduated to a machine gun.

Tuason went on to try even more as he got better at handling firearms.

Indeed, the 48-year-old’s passion for guns has not waned since childhood, but only strengthened, especially now that he is chief executive officer of Armscor Global Defense Inc.

AGDI is the largest privately owned manufacturing company of firearms and ammunition in Southeast Asia and exports to over 60 countries, including the United States and Australia, and those in Europe, South America, and Southeast Asia. Tuason inherited his burning love for guns and the Armscor Group from his father, Demetrio, from whom he took over as CEO in 2012.

“He did his own brainwashing. Probably that was what he was doing, to make sure his son was going into the business and be part of the family legacy,” shares Tuason, who grew up in the sprawling Armscor facility in Marikina.

Tuason developed such a passion for Armscor that his wife would always correct him when he tells friends that he loves his wife, his children and the factory.

His wife says in jest that in reality, he loves his factory, then loves his wife and his children.

WORLD-CLASS FACILITY Martin Tuason is bullish about the growth prospects of the Armscor Group, which is becoming increasingly known for its world-class products.

Third generation

It is a fierce passion that he shares with his sister, Lisa, and cousins Caloy and Cristina who are part of the third generation of Tuasons now running the business and committed to a vision to protect and grow its operations in the region while expanding to become one of the world’s largest players in the firearms and ammunition sector.

Armscor showcased the latest in its arsenal during the recently concluded 45th Shooting Hunting Outdoors Trade Show here, leading with the 5.0, a shooting pistol bearing the Rock Island Armory brand that has been earning good reviews among gun enthusiasts and professional shooters for its design, accuracy and easy handling.

For Tuason, the launch of Armscor’s new products here marks another milestone in the group’s “true transformation” from the small Sportsman’s Headquarters bought by his grandfather, Celso, in 1941 that metamorphosed into a firearms and manufacturing company called Squires Bingham Manufacturing Inc. in 1952 and then into Arms Corporation of the Philippines in 1980 under his father, Demetrio.

Expansion

Under his father’s leadership, Armscor expanded its operations, opening its first office in the United States then purchasing the Rock Island Armory Brand in 1985 followed by the opening of its own shooting range and the opening in 2011 of its new ammunition production facility in Stevensville, Montana.

Armscor was indeed already expanding at a rapid pace during the time of Demetrio, but the pace accelerated as soon as the reins were handed over to Martin in 2012.

One of his mandates is to further professionalize the group and get it ready to go after opportunities that are opening up here and abroad.

A turning point came in 2017 when Armscor was renamed Armscor Global Defense Inc., signaling the group’s intent to aggressively go after contracts on the defense side of the sector, which means also supplying firearms and ammunition to the police and the military across the globe.

“We want to make everything. Everything’s open because we’re a defense company,” says Tuason.

He sees risks ahead along with the opportunities, but the bullish Tuason is unfazed given all the trials that came the group’s way over its eventful years in the industry.

The Armscor group proved to be up to the daunting challenges then, even more so now.