Cabela's

The company that would become a sporting goods reseller and chain was started in December 1961 in Chappell, Nebraska. Richard (Dick) N. Cabela purchased $45 worth of fishing flies at a furniture expo in Chicago which he then advertised for sale in a local newspaper advertisement. When his first effort produced only one response, he placed an ad in a national magazine, Sports Afield, which was more successful. Cabela and his wife, Mary, mailed the orders and kept a record of all names and addresses.

In 1963, Cabela's brother Jim joined the company. The mimeographed catalog became a printed catalog, and the operation moved into the basement of a family store and then to a former American Legion Hall. In 1968, the company moved again into a former John Deere dealer facility in Sidney, Nebraska. Cabela's then sold fishing gear as well as equipment for hunting, backpacking, and other outdoor activities. In 1991, a 75,000-square-foot retail store was opened in Sidney. More stores were built, decorated with outdoor scenery, mounted animals, and aquariums. Some stores included shooting ranges and archery ranges. By 2014, there were 50 stores across the U.S. and Canada.

On February 17, 2014, founder Dick Cabela died at his home in Sidney, Nebraska, at the age of 77.

About half of Cabela's sales come from hunting-related merchandise with about a third derived from the sale of firearms, ammunition and accessories in 2012. Additionally, in 2012 30% of revenue came from direct sales (through catalog and online orders), and 59% from physical retail stores. The remaining 11% of revenue came from its financial subsidiary and credit card business.

In 1996, Gander Mountain, prior to declaring bankruptcy, sold its mail order business to Cabela's with a non-compete clause. In 2007, Cabelas brought suit against them to prevent their re-entry into the mail-order business. Gander Mountain won the lawsuit and began selling online as well.

In February 2013, Cabela's sued Gander Mountain for patent infringement over a fold-up cot that Gander was selling. In December 2013, Gander sued Cabela's for cybersquatting. In March 2014, Cabela's sold their recreational real estate division, Cabela's Trophy Properties, to Sports Afield. The name changed to Sports Afield Trophy Properties. In January 2016, Cabela's sold their Outdoor Adventures & T.A.G.S. divisions to Worldwide Trophy Adventures. On October 3, 2016, Bass Pro Shops announced an agreement to acquire Cabela's for $5.5 billion. In September 2017, Cabela's became part of Bass Pro Shops.

Retail stores

The largest Cabela's retail facility is in Hamburg, Pennsylvania, with more than 250,000 square feet (23,000 m2) of floor space.

In 2007, Cabela's purchased family-owned S.I.R. Warehouse Sports Store in Winnipeg. In 2010, the Canadian Head Office and Distribution Centre moved across the city, leaving the original location as only a retail store. The company had intended to be a part of the 1,400,000-square-foot (130,000 m2) Lac-Mirabel project near Montreal, which was to include 220,000 square feet (20,000 m2) of retail space, and was planned to open in 2008. But instead, Bass Pro Shops became one of the mall anchors. In 2011 Cabela's opened a 70,000-square-foot (6,500 m2) store in Edmonton, Alberta and a 50,000-square-foot (4,600 m2) store opened in Saskatoon in 2012 another 70,000-square-foot (6,500 m2) store in Calgary, Alberta opened in 2015.

In late 2011, Cabela's announced a new retail initiative called Cabela's Outpost Store was located in Union Gap, Washington, while the second was opened in Saginaw County, Michigan. The Outposts have seasonally rotating merchandise, online order kiosks, and in-store pickup.

As of January 2024, there were 70 Cabela’s stores in the U.S. and 10 in Canada. Many of these stores were rebranded as Bass Pro Shops throughout the following year. 49 stores remained with the Cabela's branding as of April 2025.

On July 5, 2017, the Federal Trade Commission approved the acquisition of Cabela's by Bass Pro Shops. The acquisition was complete on September 25, 2017. The two brands have a few things in common: they were founded around the same theme and both brand’s store locations were designed to deliver a “destination-like” shopping experience. Cabela’s and Bass Pro Shops locations have also doubled as wildlife exhibits and draw in many tourists. A Cabela’s in Michigan saw 6 million visitors a year and was the state’s largest tourist destination.