Silencer Central CEO Brandon Maddox started out on a traditional track in a traditional industry, professionally trained as a pharmacist and holding an MBA from Duke University. Little did he know that his passion for shooting and hunting would influence his true calling as a pioneer in the suppressor business. Now, Maddox and his vision to make buying suppressors easier for the masses has transformed Silencer Central into a nationwide brand.
The rapid growth of Silencer Central is a true American success story. Starting out as Dakota Silencer in 2005, Maddox initially ran the company from his basement, eventually expanding the business to 42 states where firearms suppressors are legal. His experience navigating state pharmacy regulations in many states gave him valuable skills as he began operations working from home. After a name change to Silencer Central in 2019, the company has continued on an upward trajectory, purchasing a sprawling new Sioux Falls headquarters and 45,000-square-foot warehouse in 2022 that is a sight to behold. Not only that, this past May, Silencer Central announced that the company has reached a huge milestone—100,000 ATF eForm approvals. The success begs the question, “How did you do it?”
“We make buying silencers simple,” Maddox said. “While others might say they share that claim, we continue to lead the pack with our investment in innovation and technology while approaching our customer experience with a lens for continuous improvement. We are always thinking about doing what we do best, better.”
Humble Beginnings
What began as Maddox’s home-based Federal Firearms License evolved into a multi-million dollar manufacturer, wholesaler and dealer. The genesis of Silencer Central is essentially Maddox experiencing frustration while trying to buy a suppressor for himself, along with the quality of the products. After moving to his wife’s native South Dakota in the early 2000s and securing a job in the booming pharmaceutical industry, A varmint hunter, naturally he wanted to take advantage of the state’s abundant resources for sportsmen. At around the same time, Maddox discovered the benefits of using a suppressor.
“I like to hunt prairie dogs, and I was always in search of an advantage to enhance my prairie dog hunting hobby and decided a suppressor would help,” Maddox said. “The first time I went prairie dog hunting with a silencer, I ran out of ammo. I quickly became obsessed with hunting suppressed.”
Maddox asserts that his path truly did begin with the goal of cutting out unnecessary hurdles to suppressor ownership.
“Not to knock them, but I found the experience buying a suppressor from a local gun store to be not that great,” Maddox said. “So, I decided to get my own FFL.” Soon after, he was setting up booths at local gun shows, with his suppressor displays garnering large crowds. It wasn’t long before his one-man-band evolved into the Silencer Central we know today.
Silencer Central’s business model is centered on streamlining the entire suppressor-buying process. Maddox developed the system after drawing on his experiences in dealing with controlled substances when he worked in the pharmaceutical world. The company demystifies complicated NFA paperwork for customers, providing a free state-specific gun trust, submitting all the necessary forms and once approved, ships its products straight to their doors. Additionally, Silencer Central assists with the fingerprinting and photography requirements, offers interest-free payment options and even provides a barrel-threading service for customers using its own machine shop.
“Buying a suppressor can be a confusing process,” Maddox said. “We walk the customer through the process over the phone. We create a free gun trust for each customer, specific to their state, and then transfer the silencer ownership from us, the dealer, to their trust, and then we send it to our location in the customer’s state, and then we mail it to their house.”
America’s Largest Suppressor Dealer
Today, Silencer Central is not only a shining star in the suppressor business, but also ranks highly among all companies nationwide, even earning a spot on the 2022 Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies. (Note: In August 2024, the Inc. website reported that the company has seen a three-year growth of 385%.)
During a visit to Silencer Central headquarters earlier this year, I observed the daily “scrum,” an all-hands, stand-up meeting held each morning in the company’s lobby. Department heads aren’t frantic during this meeting; instead, managers pass a Bluetooth mic to one another for a methodical reporting of sales data, revenue targets, customer service call and email goals, shipping numbers and future plans, all interspersed by input from Maddox. The whole thing is a solid representation of Maddox’s leadership style, which is much more corporate than machine shop dude. I happened to be at the scrum meeting where the whole company learned that it had reached the lofty goal of 100,000 ATF eForm approvals—and nearly every face in the room was beaming with pride about the impressive achievement.
The unique regulatory framework that governs suppressor sales is a key obstacle for Silencer Central’s mission. For years, this fact has created a bottleneck for firearm owners interested in purchasing suppressors. The company worked with the ATF to create electronic Form 4 approval processes to cut down that wait time. Maddox uses the analogy of a fast food drive-through window to illustrate this.
“You’re a customer at McDonald’s and order your burger with no modifications, and your food comes out quickly. McDonald’s excels at that. This is similar to ATF dealing with suppressor applicants that have straightforward background checks,” Maddox explained. “But, if you modify the standard order, say, extra tomato or no onions, they are going to have you pull out of the lane and wait, which is analogous to a background check that requires additional review. The ATF will wait for months before getting to your Form 4 application, because you must wait in line.”
Now, thanks to Maddox and Silencer Central providing input to the ATF, when the company submits applications on behalf of its customers, about 71 percent have their FBI background checks completed the same day.
It’s not only on the approvals side of the suppressor business where the company is making waves. Silencer Central also offers its own impressive lineup of Banish multi-caliber suppressors, ranging from the svelte Banish 22 for rimfire guns to the beefy Banish 46, which can handle cartridges ranging from .338 Lapua up to .45-70 Gov't. The latest addition to the lineup is Banish Speed K Ti, a 5.56 mm NATO suppressor manufactured from titanium introduced in May. Although only four inches long and weighing slightly more than a half-pound, the Speed K Ti is a heavyweight when it comes to performance, reducing sound by 24.4 decibels at the muzzle and 20.6 decibels at the ear with a 16-inch barrel.
NRA Golden Bullseye Pioneer Award
Recognizing Brandon Maddox’s achievement as a firearms industry leader, NRA Publications awarded him with the 2024 Golden Bullseye Pioneer Award, citing how he “has changed the landscape of suppressor use and ownership thanks to his efforts to greatly simplify the silencer-buying process.”
Maddox received the Golden Bullseye Pioneer Award during a special breakfast at the NRA Annual Meetings and Exhibits in Dallas on May 17, 2024.
“A heartfelt congratulations to Silencer Central founder and CEO Brandon Maddox on his Pioneer Award recognition,” NRA Executive Vice President and CEO Doug Hamlin said. “Brandon epitomizes the entrepreneurial spirit that is alive and well in the United States of America. He has really opened up the silencer new-product category to the masses.”
In addition to the Pioneer Award, Silencer Central’s new Speed K suppressor was highlighted by NRA’s Shooting Illustrated magazine with the Suppressor of the Year Award. Typical for Maddox, he was quick to point out that it was a team effort that led to the honors.
“Receiving the Golden Bullseye Pioneer Award and having our Speed K suppressor named Suppressor of the Year is a tremendous honor,” he said. “It is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the entire Silencer Central team. We remain committed to our mission of making the process of purchasing and owning suppressors as simple and accessible as possible.”
NRA isn’t the only organization that sees how Maddox and Silencer Central have changed the landscape of the suppressor business for the better. Last year, Maddox was tapped to serve on the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation Board of Directors, recognizing his business acumen and more than two decades of strategic leadership experience.
For his part, Maddox recognizes that even though he is the visionary behind Silencer Central, the company is growing so fast that the time may come for him to cede the leadership role.
“Creating a new business model is not always the hard part, the hard parts are being persistent and finding the right people,” Maddox said. “The challenge for me is living up to the expectations of being a CEO and making sure that I’m the person the company needs.”
In the meantime, Maddox plans to continue expanding Silencer Central.
“There’s a ton of interest in silencers right now, and the market keeps growing,” he said. “We’re making sound business decisions, focusing on communication efforts and providing top-tier customer service. My goal is to see Silencer Central in 10 years with 10 times the business. Hopefully more people give our company a try and tell their friends about their experience.”
Learn more about Silencer Central at silencercentral.com.
