SPRINGFIELD, Mass., Nov. 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation (Nasdaq: SWHC), parent company of Smith & Wesson Corp., the legendary 157-year old company in the global business of safety, security, protection and sport, today announced that it has named James Debney to fill the role of President, Firearms Business, reporting to Michael Golden, President and CEO of Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation.

Debney, 42, joins Smith & Wesson with over 15 years of management experience in multinational consumer and business-to-business environments, including his most recent position as President of Presto Products Company, a $500 million plastic products business unit formerly of Alcoa Consumer Products. In his role at Smith & Wesson, Debney will oversee the company's firearms business.

Smith & Wesson President and CEO, Michael F. Golden, said, "James is the ideal person to lead our firearms business in ongoing, future growth. He has a track record of developing and executing sales and marketing strategies that sustainably grow the top line, while working throughout an organization to implement efficiencies that deliver profitability. He is also seasoned in multi-factory, multinational organizations that address both consumer and business-to-business environments. This makes him especially well-suited to implement our firearms strategy, which is to expand our reach within both the professional and consumer markets for firearms."

During his tenure as President of Presto Products, he created and executed long and short-term sales and marketing and operations strategies that delivered increases in both revenue and profitability. Debney oversaw all aspects of the growing business, which is composed of four business units with five manufacturing facilities in the United States and partnerships in Asia. Prior to Presto Products, Debney held a series of increasingly responsible operations management and business leadership roles with Baco Consumer Products, a United Kingdom business formerly of Alcoa Consumer Products and a $90 million branded and private label manufacturer of foil, film, storage, food and trash bag consumer products. He holds a B.Sc. in Chemistry with Honors from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology, and a Certificate of Business Administration from the University of Keele, both in the United Kingdom.

Golden concluded, "Both our firearms and our perimeter security businesses are delivering solid performance and providing a strong framework for our future growth. I look forward to working with James Debney as he leads our firearms business and with Matt Gelfand as he leads our perimeter security business, as we continue to develop Smith & Wesson into a broader-based provider of safety and security products and services."

About Smith & Wesson

Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation (NASDAQ: SWHC) is a U.S.-based, global provider of products and services for safety, security, protection and sport. The company designs and constructs facility perimeter security solutions for military and commercial applications, and delivers a broad portfolio of firearms and related training to the military, law enforcement and sports markets. SWHC companies include Smith & Wesson Corp., the globally recognized manufacturer of quality firearms; Universal Safety Response, a full-service perimeter security integrator, barrier manufacturer and installer; and Thompson/Center Arms Company, Inc., a premier designer and manufacturer of premium hunting firearms. SWHC facilities are located in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and Tennessee. For more information on Smith & Wesson and its companies, call (800) 331-0852 or log on to www.smith-wesson.com; www.usrgrab.com; or www.tcarms.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

Certain statements contained in this press release may be deemed to be forward-looking statements under federal securities laws, and the Company intends that such forward-looking statements be subject to the safe-harbor created thereby. Such forward-looking statements include statements regarding the size and growth prospects of the firearms and the safety and security markets, the Company's penetration of those markets, the ongoing and future growth potential of the Company's firearms business, the ability of the Company to implement its strategy to expand its reach within the professional and consumer markets for firearms, the performance of the Company's firearms and perimeter security businesses and their strong framework for future growth, and the Company's ability to develop into a broader-based provider of safety and security products and services. The Company cautions that these statements are qualified by important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those reflected by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include the demand for the Company's products; the state of the U.S. economy; general economic conditions and resulting spending patterns; the Company's growth opportunities; the Company's anticipated growth; the ability of the Company to increase demand for its products in various markets; the success of the Company's diversification strategy, including the expansion of the Company's markets; and other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's reports filed with the SEC, including its Form 10-K Report for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2009.

    Liz Sharp, VP Investor Relations
    Smith & Wesson Holding Corp.
    (413) 747-3304
    lsharp@smith-wesson.com

SOURCE Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation

Liz Sharp, VP Investor Relations of Smith & Wesson Holding Corp., +1-413-747-3304, lsharp@smith-wesson.com