WESTFIELD, Massachusetts – May 27, 2025 – Savage Arms is pleased to announce several key promotions within the organization as part of its ongoing commitment to growth and excellence. These leadership advancements reflect the company’s dedication to recognizing and fostering talent from within the organization and help position the broader portfolio of brands for success.
Robert Gates, Senior Vice President
Rob brings over 30 years of experience in the hunting and shooting industry. In 2018, Rob assumed responsibility for sales, marketing and product development at Savage Arms. Before joining Savage, Rob held key roles with major industry leaders such as Smith & Wesson, Glock, Vista Outdoor and Surefire. His deep expertise has played a crucial role in transforming the Savage brand and expanding its product range. In his new position, Rob will oversee product development, sales and marketing for Savage Arms and the Bowtech Archery Group.
Beth Shimanski, Vice President of Marketing
Beth joined Savage in early 2017 after over a decade at Polaris Industries where she held various roles in international and product marketing, along with roles leading product development. At Savage, Beth has led the marketing function for the last 8 years, has helped reshape the brand, and has brought several innovative products to market. In her new role, Beth will continue to oversee marketing for Savage Arms but will also be responsible for the marketing efforts of the Bowtech Archery Group.
Steve Colaluca, Vice President of Operations All Firearms
Steve has been with Savage Arms since 2013 and has held multiple positions at the Westfield facility including Sr. Manager of Factory Operations, Director of Operations and most recently V.P. of Operations. Steve has led a lean transformation of the Westfield production facility, significantly improving efficiency, throughput, and team engagement, in addition to driving cross-functional collaboration across supply chain and engineering. This new role will add the Lakefield, Ontario rimfire factory to Steve’s responsibility, while retaining oversight of operations, product strategy execution, and business performance, now across both facilities.
“These promotions are a testament to the outstanding leadership and expertise demonstrated by our team members,” said Chris Bezzina, CEO/President of Savage Arms and Bowtech Archery Group. “We are excited to see how their continued contributions will drive our companies forward and enhance our ability to serve our customers with new, innovative, and top performing products.”
About Savage
Headquartered in Westfield, Massachusetts, Savage has been producing firearms for more than 130 years. Savage is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of hunting, competition and targeting shooting centerfire and rimfire rifles, and shotguns. Their firearms are best known for accuracy, performance and innovation. The entrepreneurial spirit that originally defined the company is still evident in its ongoing focus on continuous innovation, craftsmanship, quality and service. Learn more at www.savagearms.com.
About Bowtech Archery Group
Bowtech Archery Group® products are the solution in premium archery equipment to suit the needs of any archer. A leading manufacturer of premium archery products, Bowtech Archery Group, distributes worldwide through a wide range of channels and outlets. Consisting of a diverse group of premium archery brands, Bowtech Archery Group provides accuracy-focused, performance-driven, and durable archery products to customers worldwide. These products include the most accurate compound bows suited for nearly every archer in the Bowtech and Diamond brands, as well as premium crossbows and accessories by Excalibur Crossbow. Rounding out the line are industry-leading archery accessories from Black Gold sights, TightSpot quivers, Ripcord arrow rests, as well as a full line of Octane products.
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