Bass Pro bringing jobs to Springfield from Nebraska

Last edited 3:01 p.m., Nov. 7, 2019

Bass Pro Shops is relocating nearly 120 jobs to Springfield from Sidney, Nebraska, the headquarters of its Cabela’s unit.

Company spokesman Jack Wlezien provided a statement indicating the 118 jobs will be moved to Bass Pro’s Springfield headquarters in 2020. Employees in Sidney were provided a 90-day notice, and those who choose not to make the move to Springfield will be offered severance, according to the statement.

“This is not a decision the company takes lightly. The company fully appreciates the importance of the fine people of Cabela’s to the town of Sidney and the surrounding area,” the statement reads. “These actions are consistent with the company’s long-term commitment to efficiently provide the highest level of service possible to our customers.”

Bass Pro, which purchased rival Cabela’s for $5 billion in 2017, employed around 6,000 people in the Springfield area as of July 22. That’s according to Springfield Business Journal’s 2019 list of the area’s largest employers, on which Bass Pro ranked No. 3 behind No. 1 CoxHealth and No. 2 Mercy Springfield Communities.

The Bass Pro statement indicates Cabela’s “was facing significant financial headwinds” at the time of the acquisition and that now, “the combined company is stronger than at any other point in its history.”

“This is partially reflected by the fact that since joining together the number of people directly or indirectly employed by the united company has grown by more than 5%,” the statement reads.

The statement did not say how many jobs remain in Cabela’s.

"While the numbers will fluctuate up and down, the Sidney office will continue to house a number of key functions including IT, digital, real estate and human resources," Wlezien said via email.