A number of Twin Cities area and other Minnesota businesses are
offering discounts to customers with permits to carry a firearm.
The growing list of
businesses is the creation of Twin Cities Gun Owners & Carry Forum. A
spokesperson from the group said that they started the list on their website as a way to create awareness about
lawful carry in Minnesota
as part of their proactive visibility mission.
"We have a lot of negativity and
misinformation about gun owners in the media lately," said Ryan Krieg, a
spokesperson from the group. "We're trying to counter that negativity with
something positive."
The list of businesses offering discounts
covers an interesting mix of products and services including: appliance repair,
a florist, computer products and services, automotive services, hardwood floor
services, construction, real estate and specialty reptiles. Businesses on the
list span across the state from Hastings
to Baxter to Cloquet and cities in between.
Krieg said that
businesses can get their discount listed for free on the group's website.
"We're posting the discounts as a public service for permit holders and
the businesses willing to offer them," Krieg said. Businesses can submit
their offers through a special form available on the
group's website.
The group also has an additional page on
their website listing "2A Friendly" businesses. Krieg stated that the
list was started at the request of group members who wanted to favor businesses
that don't have anti-gun policies or that don't ban guns carried by legal
permit holders. "Gun owners tend to be particular about spending money at
businesses that support their rights, and avoiding businesses that don't,"
Krieg said.
As of April 1, 2013,
Minnesota had
132,552 active permit holders in the state. That number grew by a record amount
of over 7,200 from the previous month. And, according to the Dept. of Public
Safety 2012 Permit to Carry Report,
Minnesota saw
nearly a 50 percent increase in permits to carry issued in 2012 over the number
issued in 2011.
Minnesota law does not
require concealment of firearms carried by those with a valid permit to carry
recognized by the state of Minnesota.
Twin Cities Gun Owners & Carry Forum is a
subsidiary group of Minnesotans for the Right to Keep & Bear Arms. |