Fireworks stands appear across Montana twice a year — in the festive build-up to the Fourth of July and New Year’s Eve. However, in Wyoming much of the rush on fireworks to ring in a new year is out-of-staters buying more than locals.
At Ron’s Fireworks & Minnows outside Worland, a closed sign turned customers away Sunday. In his 40 years of selling fireworks, Ron Study said he’s learned to focus mostly on delivering great fireworks for Independence Day. Some diehard fireworks aficionados also like to light fuses at the stroke of midnight Dec. 31, but Study said those hardcore pyro-inclined customers are waning.
“I tried being open for (New Year’s), but I haven't even had anybody stop by today,” Study told Cowboy State Daily. “Besides, I don't really have anything left over. I pretty much sold out this summer.”
Study did save a sizable stash for the annual Christmas fireworks display in Worland, which he said he puts on for free “right down here by the railroad tracks and on Main Street.” He also sets some aside for family use onNew Year’s Eve.
“Something for my grandkids. I've been hiring my grandkids and my daughters, and they all have been growing up running this place with me,” said Study, who orders his fireworks from a supplier in Missouri. “I always like all the artillery shells mainly. You know, the big artillery shells you load them up one at a time,”
Study prefers fireworks that rocket into the sky, then explode in a cascade of flashing colors.
“So, I got one this year called The Shocker,” said Study. “And it had, I think, 24 shells in it. It was a good one. They were about $90.”
To supplement fireworks, Study also sells live bait minnows.
“I've got shiners and sucker minnows and flatheads,” he said. “I wild catch them. I catch them out of the ditches around here.”
Trump Returns
Like South Dakota, Nebraska, Idaho and Utah, Montana allows the sale of fireworks for a set number of days leading up to the Fourth of July and New Year’s Eve.
But on the Crow Reservation in Montana, the state’s largest fireworks store operates under tribal law and offers explosive excitement year-round.
Matt Belue started Baachachik Fireworks in 1994 and chose the name because, “That's the Crow word that means the greatest of all, the best.”
Belue said the top seller headed into the new year is a big box of shells called “Trump Returns.”
“Trump Returns is a reloadable artillery,” said Belue, who orders 80% of his fireworks directly from China. “In the summer it was $400. Because he won, we decided to lower the price to $250.”
“They come in those big 40-foot-high cube containers,” added Belue, who is waiting to hear more about President-elect Trump’s proposed tariffs. “Trump's new tariff on imports will not affect fireworks, I think. Those tariffs are to level the playing field, right?”
Belue figures Chinese fireworks won’t get hit with tariffs because he said all the fireworks he sells are manufactured in China. There are no U.S. manufacturers that would benefit from a tariff, said Belue.
Belue makes buying trips to the big fireworks wholesale states of Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Missouri, which import in bulk from China.
“Missouri and Indiana, I think it's kind of a hot spot for it,” said Belue. “I mean, there's huge fireworks stores. One, it's twice the size of a Costco. They have 240,000 square feet of fireworks. It's one of the biggest ones I've ever seen. That's crazy, insane.”
Apparently, that’s what it takes to meet demand for fireworks, said Belue.
“In 2022, the United States consumed over $6 billion in fireworks,” he said.
As for the most gung-ho fireworks cities in Montana, Belue singled out Billings.
“It lights up pretty good on New Year’s,” he said.
Ron’s Fireworks & Minnows near Worland doesn’t see any bump in business ahead of New Year’s Eve. (David Madison, Cowboy State Daily) 
Left, Trump Returns is the top seller ahead of New Year’s Eve celebrations, according to Baachachik Fireworks in Hardin, Montana. Right, Ron Study, a 40-year fireworks veteran, recommends The Shocker. (Courtesy Pyro Dudes and Dominator Fireworks)
Colorado Will Be Popping
In Torrington, Kid Fireworks reported no significant bump in sales for New Year’s Eve. Phantom Fireworks in Cheyenne does see a pre-holiday rush, but not by locals. It’s located just across the northern Colorado border and attracts a lot of business from Wyoming’s southern neighbor.
“We haven't gotten too much Wyoming business,” a Phantom worker told Cowboy State Daily “We've gotten a lot of Colorado business, so Colorado is gonna be popping off for sure. I think our biggest one going right now is the New York Salute Finale. That one goes for $139.99.”
Meanwhile, at Pyromania Fireworks north of Missoula near Arlee, Montana, the store’s voicemail greeting indicates sales are brisk: “We are busy gearing up for the New Year's season. Our warehouse will be open Dec. 26 through the 31st.”
In Utah, New Year’s Eve sales are minor compared to two other big fireworks holidays: Chinese New Year celebrated in Salt Lake City and Pioneer Day.
Zachary Peterson, manager of Phantom Fireworks in Evanston, Wyoming, just across the Utah border told Cowboys State Daily in 2023 that starting in early July, the store sees thousands of customers per day as opposed to only a few on most days throughout the year, with customers stocking up for Fourth of July and then Pioneer Day celebrating Brigham Young’s arrival in the Salt Lake Valley on July 24.
“It's mostly Utah people that we see throughout the year,” said Peterson.
David Madison can be reached at david@cowboystatedaily.com.
