Federal Ammunition, the world's largest sporting ammo manufacturer, has announced a new look and feel.
Now you will be able to better tell the difference between Federal and Federal Premium Ammunition.
New packaging, new offerings, and a new approach are helping Federal Ammunition maintain their spot amongst the best of the best.
Most any shooter who's been around the range once or twice knows all about Federal, and knows they're a reliable and trustworthy ammo producer. They may not be as familiar with a few changes that have come about, all made in an effort to help enthusiasts better understand the product they're getting.
The Name Game
The company calls their new shift in branding "The New Look of Authority," and it starts with the name itself. The brand shooters know as Federal Premium is now simply Federal.
"For many years, we've been known as Federal Premium," said President Jason Vanderbrink. "But the fact is we manufacture a huge list of ammunition products via several sub-brands, and Federal Premium is just one of them. Granted, it's our exclusive sub-brand crafted at the highest tier of quality, but by using it as our overall name, Premium began to lose that meaning."
Vanderbrink also explained that over the years, as the company focused on its many outstanding sub-brands and launched numerous specialized products, the Federal brand faded into the background, losing some of its consistency and strength on the shelf.
"That is changing," he said. "We are embarking on a new, comprehensive effort to revitalize the Federal name. At the same time, we will also treat Federal Premium as it was always meant to be—an exclusive category of the best ammunition available."
Two key components of this push are a new, modern logo and redesigned packaging.
"Our previous logo was 15 years old," said Vanderbrink. "The packaging designs were great, but they didn't carry a cohesive look across the product line. The best brands in any industry create consistency on the shelf. Federal needed that consistency and simplification."
The new Federal logo features a stronger, bolder font that's been customized to show motion and cutting-edge technology. Its simple design is derived from the original Federal logo, harkening back to the company's roots, but it has a contemporary feel with the iconic Shockwave logo.
The Complete Package
Federal ammo has already started to use its new, stronger, more authentic logo in United States TV, print, and digital advertising. And of course, the logo is a primary feature on the all-new packaging, which will be rolled out for the entire product line.
The design will make it easier for consumers and sales associates to quickly identify Federal products on the shelves. Beyond the bold, eye-catching aesthetics, the most important attributes of the product, such as caliber, bullet weight and use, are clearly, consistently communicated across all Federal product families.
"With so many ammunition options at retail, we made sure this packaging stands out and immediately communicates what we know consumers want to see," Vanderbrink said.
Despite the new look, all products that have existed under the Federal product category will continue to do so within the new structure and packaging; it's not reserved for only new products. This includes proven favorites like Federal Power-Shok, Top Gun, Speed-Shok, Fusion, and American Eagle, as well as more recent additions like Syntech, Train + Protect, and Non-Typical. Self-defense, hunting, long-range target shooting, and more ammo will all see the changes.
Premium Still Reigns
Although Federal Premium is no longer the overall brand name, all Premium products are still active at the heart of the company.
Federal started the Premium line back in 1977 by doing something that was unheard of at the time. Rather than just load its own bullets into its centerfire rifle and handgun cartridges, Federal began using the top projectiles from companies across the industry and loading them to its own extremely tight specifications.
In essence, this produced handloader quality from factory ammunition, essentially changing the company—and the shooting sports industry—forever. And it's a concept the company continues and expands upon today with new 2019 centerfire ammunition loads with projectiles including the Barnes TSX and Berger Hybrid Hunter.
As the decades passed, Federal Premium products were introduced in shotshell ammo, rimfire ammunition, reloading, and muzzleloading categories—including game-changers like Black Cloud, Hydra-Shok, Prairie Storm, HEAVYWEIGHT TSS, and Gold Medal Sierra MatchKing.
"Federal Premium products are the absolute top-performing, most technologically advanced ones in every category," Vanderbrink said. "Whether you're hunting elk with Edge TLR, shooting a match with Gold Medal Berger, dropping ducks with Black Cloud, or defending your home and family with HST, Federal Premium delivers what nothing else can."
New Look, Same Legacy
Federal remains on of the industry's leading handgun ammunition and rifle ammunition manufacturers and the new name, logo, and packaging are testament to the company's continuing progression.
As they continue churning out American-made ammo from their Anoka, Minnesota factory, we can rest assured they'll keep producing stuff that's innovating and outperforming on a consistent basis. They've got, quite possibly, the widest variety of ammunition available from one company. That's saying a lot.
"It started almost a century ago with our founder, Charles L. Horn, and we're proud to carry on that legacy today," Vanderbrink said. "The New Look of Authority is here."
NEXT: 5 NEW FEDERAL AMMO RELEASES FOR 2019
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