For Sturm, Ruger & Company, which was founded on the groundbreaking .22 semi-autopistol designed by founder William B. Ruger Sr. nearly half a century ago, small caliber autos and revolvers are a staple, but a .380ACP semi-auto is a gun of a different color. There has never been a .380ACP or any handgun of this category in the company’s history, until the LCP “Lightweight Compact Pistol” was introduced this year.

“One of the things Ruger has been doing the past couple of years at the NRA Show and other events,” explains Ken Jorgensen, Ruger’s Coordinator of Media Relations, “is called ‘Voice of the Customer,’ a series of surveys asking consumers what they would like to see. What we heard from a large number of people was a real demand for a reliable .380ACP. Over the last few years these customer survey results have contributed to several projects, including development of the LCP, and given the orders we have had for the gun since its introduction, the survey was right on target.”