Pellpax is, primarily, an online retailer. Customer service is something we take very seriously, and this is reflected in numerous positive reviews and a lot of repeat custom. Face-to-face contact with customers, therefore, is a rare treat, and this weekend, at the Northern Shooting Show in Harrogate, it’s like all our birthdays have come at once!
Keith
Keith is a middle-aged man from Middleton, in Yorkshire, looking to buy a summer deerstalking jacket.
Not so long ago, Keith suffered a heart attack. In the interests of his health, Keith knows that he has to slow down a little, and so he’s decided to take up an enjoyable, stress-free pastime. He’s chosen deerstalking.
With an Environmental Health Food Hygiene certificate, Keith is permitted to butcher deer carcasses and to distribute the meat. I say ‘distribute’ rather than ‘sell’, because Keith makes no attempt to make money from deerstalking.
“I give venison to the old people in the village,” Keith tells me. “I’m actually one of the youngest people in Middleton.”
A particularly charming feature of Middleton is the Annual Village Feast.
“I’m a keen fisherman,” says Keith. “For years, I’ve provided salmon and trout for the Feast. Now I provide venison, too.”
Colin and Marie
A tall, bearded young man approaches the stall. He’s wearing torn jeans and an orange hoodie; his arms and neck are heavily tattooed; his ears and nose are adorned with metal studs. The young man’s heavy brows are drawn together in a frown as he peers into a glass cabinet at the Umarex pistols.
When he speaks, his voice is gentle, and his face melts into a smile. “I’m looking for a birthday present,” he says. “For my nan.”
A petite lady of advanced years (yes, I mean old) grins up at her grandson. “I’m taking up target shooting,” she says. “Colin’s teaching me.”
Colin’s grandmother, Marie, tells us about her life-long ambition to shoot.
“There never seemed to be a good time. I brought up six children, and somehow got involved in bringing up their children! Then my mother was really poorly and needed a lot of care. She moved into residential care, where she died seven years later, shortly after my husband was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.”
Colin’s long arm wraps around Marie’s shoulder. “Granddad died earlier this year,” he says.
Colin, a trainee architect, has been shooting for about five years.
“I’ve picked up a few medals in local competitions,” he says, “But I’ll never make the big time. I’m concentrating on my career. But I really do enjoy target shooting, and I’m looking forward to teaching Nan – she’s gonna be brilliant!”
Alan
Alan, from Wolsingham in County Durham, is, essentially, a creature of habit.
“I’ve been a Weihrauch guy since 1974,” he tells us.
But when the Zbroia Kozak appeared on the market, Alan was love-struck!
A lightweight and well-balanced bullpup with sensitive trigger and built-in barrel shroud, the Kozak is ideal for quarry shooting. The rifle is named after the Cossacks – democratic, self-governing communities in Russia and Ukraine, who turned their backs on serfdom and religious persecution. Cossack means ‘free man’.
“People are going mad for the Kozak,” says Alan. “I’m left-handed, so the ambidextrous stock is perfect for me.”
When asked about the Pellpax delivery service, Alan says, “Superb. Bang on time.”
Thanks so much to Keith, Marie, Colin, and Alan for sharing your stories with us. And thank you to everyone who popped by to say hello!
