Pangbourne: Royal Berkshire Shooting School sold to gun specialists
The Royal Berkshire Shooting School at Pangbourne has been sold 27 years after it was founded by Dylan Williams.
James Purdey and Sons, the gun and rifle specialist, has acquired the Royal Berkshire Shooting Group (RBSG) which includes the Royal Berkshire Shooting School set in 65 acres of an area of outstanding natural beauty; the Gun Shop, a retail outlet with meeting and hospitality facilities; the Royal Berkshire Sporting Agency; and The Really Wild Clay Company which arranges simulated game shoots across the UK.
James Horne, chairman of James Purdey, said: “We are delighted to welcome the RBSG team and combine these two outstanding brands, offering our shooting customers an expanded range of first-class products and services.”
The new owners have stressed that RBSG will continue to offer its existing range of services, but with the addition of selected Purdey products.
“Customers of the Royal Berkshire Shooting Group will still be able to enjoy the products and services they know and love,” said Horne, “with exciting additions from the Purdey portfolio.”
Dylan Williams, managing director and founder of the Shooting School in 1991, said: “To have created a business from scratch that a globally recognised brand in our industry wishes to acquire is really quite humbling. It is a testament to the incredible efforts of the Royal Berkshire staff, both those currently with us, and those that have helped us along the way. To each and every one of them I extend my heartfelt thanks and appreciation and we look forward to working closely in the future with the dynamic Purdey team.”
James Purdey and Sons has been making the finest shotguns and rifles since it was founded in 1814, and has offered a selection of high quality clothing and accessories since 1974. The company, which holds three Royal Warrants, has a shop and gun room – the famous Long Room - in Audley House in Mayfair, London and its factory in Hammersmith, London.
Dylan Williams (left) and James Horne.
