The slow decline of our hobby? What do you think?

[Bruette]

I borrowed the last part of the title of this thread from my great friend Rodney's signature line from the column he writes for the Valley Voice in Tasmania. I thought it was appropriate to give credit where credit is due.

Now for issue at hand.

I would like the opinions of model railroaders on a subject that is dear to my heart; the proliferation of our hobby and what we can do to spread the good news.

Below you will find an edited post I made in the coffee shop and another post from another thread referring to less than prototypical train sets and other pieces.

I am one of the Bradford Exchange's biggest suckers, I mean customers. Considering all the direct marketing they do for these trains I would say the market is pretty good. You can even find their ads in the Sunday papers from time to time.

I have never bought a train set from them, but I have been tempted. The high prices deter me. Now if MB Klein offered them considering their prices I would probably have more than one! I have bought many other items from them, mostly Christmas themed decorations and the like.

The Bradford Exchange has themed train sets ranging from Budweiser to Wildlife and almost everything in between. They even have an Indian Motor Cycles themed train.

http://www.bradfordexchange.com/mcat...%2Ftrains.html

I picked up this Lionel boxcar at MB Klein for $52.99. They have them on display right by the front door, first thing you see and in the O gauge section. They told me since it came out it has been their best selling piece of O gauge rolling stock, by far!

As of right now they are sold out! http://www.modeltrainstuff.com/Lionel-O-Baltimore-Orioles-Boxcar-p/lio-6-81922.htm

Even Toys R Us is selling this boxcar, but at an inflated price of $84.99 No wonder they still have them in stock.

I think it's good to embrace anything that promotes trains. I started with only cheap Christmas trains. It took me 40 years, but I caught train fever. At first I only wanted trains and tracks, but now I want more! I hope to someday be a serious modeler, but I will keep, display and run my whimsical pieces. I think the 2 aspects of the hobby can be combined, at least on my railroad.

Ready To Run sets and other un-prototypical pieces can only be good for the economy of the hobby. Since I began buying more than Christmas trains I have spent close to $30000 and more than half of that at MB Klein. The hobby shops in my area were less than welcoming to me when I came in to buy Tyco and Life-Like or later HO Christmas trains. MB Klein always treated me good. Now those other hobby shops are all gone. It's no wonder to me why they went out of business. I would spend 100% of my money at MB Klein, but they don't always have what I am looking for.

Generally speaking from my perspective I think this hobby can be it's own worst enemy. I have been in several other hobby shops, but was rebuked and sometimes ignored because I was not an elite modeler or interested in becoming one at the time.

From everything I have read this is a trend that began in the 50s with the move to more realistic models. Are we are losing track of what made model trains so popular in the first place; children?

Every year since 2012 I have bought at least 1 Lionel Christmas train set for a kid in my family, not counting my grandsons. If I thought a child or anyone in my family would enjoy one of these themed trains I would buy them one.

I owe so much to this hobby, it is only right to give back a little.

Share our hobby, give the gift of a train set, any train set! You never know what it can inspire.

Here is some examples of the sets I am refereeing to, but not limited to just these there are all sorts of others. Any way we can bring new people and their money into the hobby is good for everyone even the "rivet counters" will benefit.

 

[tootnkumin]

I'm encouraged to think the hobby is in good health, can anyone recall a time when so many products of high quality were being produced by mainstream manufacturers to suit the modern need for instant gratification regarding prototypical accuracy, while still offering entry level models as well. I think this era will be looked back upon as the new golden age for model railroading.

 

[Bruette]

I'm encouraged to think the hobby is in good health, can anyone recall a time when so many products of high quality were being produced by mainstream manufacturers to suit the modern need for instant gratification regarding prototypical accuracy, while still offering entry level models as well. I think this era will be looked back upon as the new golden age for model railroading.

King Toot I am so heartened by your reply!

I would like nothing better than to see our hobby thrive. This hobby has so much to offer to both young and old. I have never found so much peace and enjoyment since I got more involved with my trains. Only my family can bring me this much joy.

Had my health not failed me I may never have rediscovered my trains. I like to believe something good can come from anything and my trains are the perfect example.

I was worried because of so many build to order products now being offered. Even Lionel is doing it now. On the other hand there is a huge spectrum of starter sets available in all scales for all tastes. That has to bode well for the future.

Thanks for reassuring me!

 

[tootnkumin]

I agree that the days when you could see a model in the shop and think "I'll save up for that" have virtually gone, and there is regret from that point of view. It's a situation that's been forced to an extent on the manufacturers, because unsold stock is investment that's not returning on that investment. A retailer makes no profit from stock that's sitting on the shelves, it prevents them from buying more. Turnover is the name of the game. Fortunately while a particular road or road number may not be reproduced, we are seeing new releases of road names not before available and releases of subsequent road numbers of the previous ones. Modellers have never had it so good. I mean, at least the makers now supply the models mostly with all the detail parts supplied and fitted, all you have to do is go around everything and make sure they don't fall off . No doubt as a nod to the old hands who enjoyed fitting all that stuff .

 

[santafewillie]

I read this yesterday but I didn't really have time to respond. I am not sure that the hobby is in decline. While my observations over the last 35+ years are that it is definitely a hobby for 50+ year old guys, I attribute that more to time and money than to age. When I go to the local trainshows in the DFW area, I see probably 40% folks younger than 50; although some of those younger than 18 are probably reluctant observers. I look at the operators of the club layouts (usually 25+ layouts) at the shows, and many of them are younger. I don't see many, actually none at all, young owners when I take in some of the layouts on the home layout tours, but I attribute that more to the fact that it takes many years to get what they think is a presentable layout for your peers to see.
Prices can be a deterrent to the younger crowd, and there are some manufacturers that I refuse to support, Kadee RTR, ExactRail, Tangent and the top of the line Walthers. I look at some of the RTR from Athearn for $17-$20 at my local discounter, and while it isn't the $3-$5 stuff that I started with, the extra's like knuckle couplers, metal wheels and metal roofwalks and crossovers; along with inflation, are indicators that prices on some lines aren't all that outrageous. I am pleased to see ScaleTrains and their Operator line that just started production; unfortunately I don't have room for any more freight cars...I have now gone 19 months without purchasing a single freight car...cold turkey withdrawal!
While the specialty trainsets that you posted don't interest me in the least way, I think that they are good for the hobby overall. If nothing else, the income gained from selling them allows manufacturers to finance other projects that benefit all. Someone is making those Bradford Exchange sets, I don't think that they are the manufacturer. Additionally, just like back in the early days, watching a train circle the Christmas tree will pique the interest of at least some folks.
The model railroad press has been predicting the demise of model trains for years, going back to the 70's that I can remember. It is correct that true "modeling" is declining, but that is the result of a better selection of available models. One can still model the "old fashioned" way if one wants.
That's my .02¢ worth.

Willie

 

[Boris]

Just spent some time at another forum, reading a similar themed article.

Some things to consider. Today, more than ever, we have a vast selection of products. Back in the 70s and 80s, It was Brass, then Mantua and Athearn, then AHM/IHC, then Bachman and Model Power, then Lifelike. Everything else was for the craftsman who had a machine shop in his garage. Track products back then were mostly code 100 from Atlas. Buildings were Revell. Bachmann, or European. Actually, it's never been better.

The LHS is declining as are all mom & pop small business. That has more to do with the way things are bought and sold as opposed to demand. How many neighborhood groceries are left, and do they offer the same quality/price as Wegman's or even Shoprite?

Back when I started, the man at the store told my mom that slot cars were in and trains were out. That's maybe 1962 or so. She wouldn't let me buy trains for that reason. Couple of years later, the man and his store, were gone. Trains were still around. 60 years later they are still around, as is Lionel, and some slot cars.

Just a few thoughts on a quiet Sunday morning.

 

[Bruette]

Willie and Boris, thank you. This is exactly what I was looking for when I started this thread. Notice the "?". You both gave me the perspective I was looking for; experienced real world model railroaders, same for King Toot.

I am well read and I have done many hours of research, but I am a novice. I have only had a permanent/temporary layout since January 2013. It is temporary only because I plan to move. Before that all I had was Christmas trains. As a boy I had a Tyco set and tried to be a model railroader, but frustration and a lack of any support when I had questions gave me an easy out, and I took it, I gave up.

But the desire was always there. I would still set up my trains at Christmas and I would buy a few things each year to add to it. Even though they seldom ran more than a lap or 2 around the tree. Almost every year for 40+ years I had a Christmas train and when I was in my teens they ran more and more reliably every year from then on.

Circumstances I have discussed several times before led me back to my desire for Lionel trains. I am extremely grateful for this hobby. I would not have this hobby had it not been for that Tyco set. That is why I give train sets for Christmas. Maybe 40 years from now one of those kids who got a train from me will take up this hobby. I will smile on them from purgatory if they do.

By the way I believe it is either Athearn or Bachmann that makes the trains for the Bradford Exchange. I know the track is Bachmann EZ track.

I have a 2004 Athearn Coca-Cola Christmas train set with Bachmann EZ track I bought from MB Klein. That set ran reliably for 8 years with no maintenance other than cleaning the track every few years.

Thanks again for the replies and I hope they keep on coming. I am looking forward to hearing from all the experienced model railroaders thoughts on this subject.

 

[railBuilderDhd]

I have also been reading about this topic on other forums and asking this myself. I noticed a drop in users on forums and the sale of trains on eBay. I think we just see the cycle of the hobby is all or we are more in tune to what is going on. The hobby is far from dead and I think we see more special markets for high end models then before.

I'm doing all I can with my son and myself now. I hope my son and even a friend or 2 will follow in their interest. I know my son is in love with all things with wheel and trains are high on the list. He is excited to build the layout in the basement. He wants to get it done faster but I want him in more then just the trains. We try to keep a balance. And who is to say he will be interested when he is older at all...?

Dave

 

[montanan]

This is an interesting subject Louis - Saw it over the weekend and have thought about it a lot.

I am a lot like Joe. When I started my layout around 30 some years ago, The choice of locomotives were fairly limited to what is available today. Athearn was probably among the better locomotives, and it took a bit of work yo get them to run like what is available today. DC of course was all that was available back then. I am still operating DC, but with the DCC systems available today and with the sound locomotives it definitely makes things a lot more interesting. The locomotives we have today have excellent details compared to what was available years ago. I had to add a lot of details to my locomotives to bring them up to what is available today.

Freight cars. Not a lot of choice years ago. Tyco, Roundhouse and Athearn blue box kits were probably most common. The majority of my freight equipment are Athearn kits that have had Kadee couplers and metal wheels installed and all were lightly weathered. I probably paid around $4 apiece for them. They can still be found at swap meets and on line. When they are in a train with more highly detailed cars, it can be hard to tell them apart. New The new highly detailed freights cars can go anywhere from the high $20 range up to $40 or more for a car.

Price. This is a lot different today than it was back then. An Athearn locomotive could be had from $30 to $40. When Atlas brought out their line of Alco locomotives with the Kato drive, I picked them up for around $50. Locomotives today with DCC and sound can run from $200 to $300 or more. That can take quite a good bite out of someones wallet.

Yes, local hobby shops are o the decline, but there are a lot of internet retailers out there and almost all of them do sell at some kind of a discount.

All of the new products, locomotives, rolling stock, building kits, detail items etc show that there is a demand for them or the time and expense of bringing them on the market wouldn't be there.

I will agree that us old folks are probably the mainstay of the hobby, having more time and money available, but there is still interest by younger people. I am sure that todays electronics and video games are taking a bite out of younger people getting into the hobby, but there are still a lot of them interested in the hobby. I have had a lot of people visit us over the years and a lot of interest ing the hobby was there. Got a few going on their own layouts. When I manage to visit my model railroad friends in Missouri, they do have a lot of younger people not only showing up for open houses, but also operating the layout.

There is hope. I think what is one of the main reasons folks think the hobby is slowing down is because of all of the mom and pop hobby shops that are closing. With all that is available on the market today, I can see where it coud be quite costly to maintain a decent inventory.

 

[Bruette]

I have also been reading about this topic on other forums and asking this myself. I noticed a drop in users on forums and the sale of trains on eBay. I think we just see the cycle of the hobby is all or we are more in tune to what is going on. The hobby is far from dead and I think we see more special markets for high end models then before.

I'm doing all I can with my son and myself now. I hope my son and even a friend or 2 will follow in their interest. I know my son is in love with all things with wheel and trains are high on the list. He is excited to build the layout in the basement. He wants to get it done faster but I want him in more then just the trains. We try to keep a balance. And who is to say he will be interested when he is older at all...?

Dave

Dave you are high on the list for father of the year! Great post, I was very happy to read it. It's reassuring to hear your confidence for the future of the hobby and heart warming to read about your son. Father and son is the foundation of our hobby.

This is an interesting subject Louis - Saw it over the weekend and have thought about it a lot.

I am a lot like Joe. When I started my layout around 30 some years ago, The choice of locomotives were fairly limited to what is available today. Athearn was probably among the better locomotives, and it took a bit of work yo get them to run like what is available today. DC of course was all that was available back then. I am still operating DC, but with the DCC systems available today and with the sound locomotives it definitely makes things a lot more interesting. The locomotives we have today have excellent details compared to what was available years ago. I had to add a lot of details to my locomotives to bring them up to what is available today.

Freight cars. Not a lot of choice years ago. Tyco, Roundhouse and Athearn blue box kits were probably most common. The majority of my freight equipment are Athearn kits that have had Kadee couplers and metal wheels installed and all were lightly weathered. I probably paid around $4 apiece for them. They can still be found at swap meets and on line. When they are in a train with more highly detailed cars, it can be hard to tell them apart. New The new highly detailed freights cars can go anywhere from the high $20 range up to $40 or more for a car.

Price. This is a lot different today than it was back then. An Athearn locomotive could be had from $30 to $40. When Atlas brought out their line of Alco locomotives with the Kato drive, I picked them up for around $50. Locomotives today with DCC and sound can run from $200 to $300 or more. That can take quite a good bite out of someones wallet.

Yes, local hobby shops are o the decline, but there are a lot of internet retailers out there and almost all of them do sell at some kind of a discount.

All of the new products, locomotives, rolling stock, building kits, detail items etc show that there is a demand for them or the time and expense of bringing them on the market wouldn't be there.

I will agree that us old folks are probably the mainstay of the hobby, having more time and money available, but there is still interest by younger people. I am sure that todays electronics and video games are taking a bite out of younger people getting into the hobby, but there are still a lot of them interested in the hobby. I have had a lot of people visit us over the years and a lot of interest ing the hobby was there. Got a few going on their own layouts. When I manage to visit my model railroad friends in Missouri, they do have a lot of younger people not only showing up for open houses, but also operating the layout.

There is hope. I think what is one of the main reasons folks think the hobby is slowing down is because of all of the mom and pop hobby shops that are closing. With all that is available on the market today, I can see where it coud be quite costly to maintain a decent inventory.

Chet that is very kind of you to share your thoughts in such detail. You are spot on with my thinking of decline; the missing hobby shops.

Very informative post my friend, thanks again!

 

[Bruette]

Good night Everybody!

 

[logandsawman]

Well, a five year old came by last night with his dad and he was head over heals for the train! He ran the throttle for over an hour and no question he is hooked for life.

I would say there is a future for the hobby.

 

[Iron Horseman]

There are many ways to look at the topic. Not wanting to repeat or debate what others have said I'll take a different view.

It also depends upon from "when" one is considering the decline to have begun. In the early days of modeling the railroads were the primary source of transportation. Trains were a part of every day life and "in your face" so to speak. I remember the first time we went to the airport viewing area just to watch airplanes land and take off. Airplanes were the new exciting "in your face" mode of transportation. There also used to be 105 class 1 railroads in the USA. Now, there are 6 to 9 depending on how you count. The steam locomotives that inspired awe in children and adult alike are long gone. I would guess that 99% of the population of the USA has never seen a steam locomotive running other than in an amusement park or tourist line type setting. (as an aside, the Pacific class locomotive on the Smokey Valley that I rode last spring never got to get the train limping along at more than 15 miles an hour. Not much to be impressed with there at all. Contrast that to what it would look like belching smoke and steam at 80-100 mph like they used to). All that being said, I think one can apply the out of sight out of mind principle. Hard to get a person interested in something they don't see every day and even when they do "see" they don't notice them. One of the country and western groups put out a song a few years back about how the trains don't run anymore. From the song one would think there were no trains anywhere anymore. We have come a long way from every boy wanting a Lionel train set for Christmas.

It is a natural thing to have less interest in one thing when there are so many more things competing for the same attention. Airplanes, automobiles, trucks, rockets, drones. Even in an affluent society there is still only so much money, time, and resource that can be dedicated to a hobby or interest.

Model railroading has another disadvantage of being a space hog. After the trend in larger housing from the 1950s (where the two or three bedroom one bath 800-1000 square feet was average) through the 1990s (where the average had moved up to 4 bedrooms and 5 bath 3000 square feet monsters), the current trend is the opposite (Thanks IKEA). Tiny houses (300-500 square feet) are the newest popular thing. DINKs that want to spend all their money on "experiences". They say, "We don't sink money into space consuming possessions". They are spending all their liquid income on climbing mount Kilimanjaro, deep sea diving in New Zealand, and sipping wine and dancing in clubs on the Mediterranean coast. Where could a model railroad fit in all that? Why have a model train when one can go to Europe/Asia and experience the real Orient Express?

So just by "natural selection" of the three items above the number of people that have the chance of becoming a model railroader is greatly reduced from what it once was.

As for the equipment and cost, I am very glad to see the Thomas the Tank engine type things as well as all these non-prototypical paint schemes. What that does is take something a person is familiar with and put it into a "train" context. A person would never "see" a Norfolk Southern box car, but that same box car with Superman, or Tide Detergent, or a sports team on it catches their eye. So yes, I think that does have the effect of attracting people to the hobby and some of them might actually catch the bug.

Where I think our hobby is lacking is the mid-range stuff that Athearn and MDC used to fill. I don't need and don't want every single piece of equipment on the layout to be a museum show piece. The likes of Exact Rail and Intermountain are overkill for an operating layout. I'm guessing 90% or more of the visitors will not notice if the box cars roof walks are not see through grating, or if the hand rails are molded on rather than separate pieces of wire or plastic. On the other hand, I know that 90% of the really high end stuff will have something broken by the end of a year of operation. One of my friends who has a large layout was commenting that if he were to do it again he could not afford it anymore. How does one fill a yard (or two) with hundreds of cars when they now cost $15 each - for the cheap ones? One can always make their own niche in the hobby, but I am saying in general I think we are getting bi-polar. At the one end is the new interested person with non-prototypical equipment of marginal quality, at the other the person with vast quantities of Genesis and Atlas (or even brass) locomotives and the rolling stock from the likes of Westerfield Models or Funaro & Camerlengo.

Unfortunately the bipolarity is not just with the equipment but also the attitudes. The forum on the other side of the tracks is the classic example. Experienced "serious" model railroader's who instantly want newbies to do everything the "right way" (meaning the way they do it). It has to be big and overly complicated. Long explanations to "help" the person avoid a problem that occurs 1 in 10k times. Rather than helping, it most often ends up confusing the new person with needless details. The person becomes frustrated and overwhelmed rather than starting the journey of fun learning that model railroading can be. I was once told that I had posted something that wasn't accurate. I had to point out that while their explanation had been 100% technically accurate, it was just so much blah blah blah. I pointed out that my much less accurate description is what had helped the person solve their problem. Over on that forum, Heaven's forbid that someone mention they are thinking about doing a 4x8 HO layout. They will be bashed three ways from Sunday. I'm convinced that forum has been responsible for many new people leaving the hobby before they even really got started.

I'm saying I think making the transition from toy trains to scale model railroading is much harder than it ever used to be. I'm glad I am not there in my personal progression on this model railroading adventure.

The hobby is not dying or dead, never will be. It will change as times and people change. It may become less popular, but that is not death. The vendors will come and go and adjust marketing strategies to try to make money. The new number of really good model railroad museums like the Greeley Freight Station Museum - ummm I mean the Colorado Model Railroad Museum have come a long way in introducing the general population to the hobby. Support your local clubs and/or museums, and help them be friendly and lead newbies into the hobby.

 

[Bruette]

David thanks for sharing that. Every year my grandsons' school tours an O gauge layout at the local fire house and the faces the kids make are priceless. It's become an annual event I enjoy. Last year my boys and I have begun to tour more of the display layouts.

Iron Horsemen that was brilliant, you never disappoint me. You brought up things I had not considered and make some great points. Times do change and culture has much to do with the current state of our the hobby. I will have to look into a local club and I already am a huge fan of the B&O museum and my boys love it as well. I am going to have to comeback and more closely study your post to give a detailed and proper response.

I certainly feel better having started this thread and I gained a lot of knowledge to boot! I fell much more confident in the future of our hobby. I was wrong to compare 2016 with the 1950s. Sometimes I am too much of a sales manager, you can't gauge everything by sales figures. In fact sales seem to be much better than I perceived.

As King Toot said "this could be the new golden age" I am not as familiar with niche markets as I am with mass marketing. I looked at a lack of TV and other advertising as a sign of decline. I watched one by one all the neighborhood hobby shops close. It has happened in other markets too, Most neighborhood hardware stores are gone, but the hardware business is probably stronger than ever.

The trend to "build to order" may in fact be just a precursor to much more diverse product lines. New manufacturing techniques could bring about 'custom build to order" where we can specify what products we want. Lionel began do just that a year or 2 ago and they are expanding it each year. So far it has just been holiday and special occasion things, but who knows where that may take us. Maybe in the near future I will be able to order a custom built Chessie/B&O FM Trainmaster with a custom road number. Mass production may be less prominent, but that could be a good thing.

Lionel's custom build to order products are being assembled in North Carolina. Maybe custom products could be the driving force that brings manufacturing back to the USA. So far the custom American made things I have bought from Lionel cost on average about 25% more than other similar products, but I am willing to pay the difference.

My time is short today, but I will return to this thread and reread all the posts. There is a lot to digest and absorb, thank you everyone!

 

[Railrunner130]

It seems to me that the model railroad industry is changing with the times. Sure, the brick and mortar stores are disappearing, but they are evolving into other things. The craftsman part of the industry, for example, has largely gone underground. Somewhat literally. It hasn't disappeared, but it has typically moved to the business owner's basement. From this basement, he can design, build, laser cut, mould, market, sell and ship his dream product.
As for the proverbial corner hobby shop, I'm not sure what direction they are heading. IF they can adapt to the internet- Ebay and Internet sales, as well as cater to a certain niche market, they should be fine.

I've noticed that there are a few shops that appear to buy a significant majority of their stock from Walthers. Nothing against Walters, but that's pretty run-of-the mill. I've seen one of these shops go out of business in the last year. One shop I go to has a good selection of Digitrax, tools, scenery items and wood products. They also carry Grandt and a few other products. Another favorite shop of mine carries a lot of older kits and used rolling stock. He also has a ton of brass.

 

[tootnkumin]

It's hard to see how the LHS can compete effectively against on-line selling in this age unfortunately. Those that don't do both and are very well organised at both, have a hard row to hoe. They do, or did, have a big selling promoter, of having stock you could see and hold in your feverishly shaking hand. (the OP knows all about this when he visits M B Klein's shop) Only a few seem to have mastered both methods. Those that have resorted to becoming mostly "We can get it in for you", are doomed because they have lost their greatest sales asset. The fact that is now not necessary to go down to, or even phone the LHS to find out what they have in stock and instead, go online, is hastening their demise. I even don't go to those online ones that don't have a real time stock inventory of available and how many (I hate the ones that you have to take a punt when you order and if you do, get told they can't fill the order) One of the reasons the aforementioned Kleins is always my first port o' call.

 

[Iron Horseman]

It's hard to see how the LHS can compete effectively against on-line selling in this age unfortunately.

There is another component to this too. The "inventory tax" is a killer for small businesses. In time gone by a product was only taxed once when purchased, so a product could sit on the shelf forever with out costing the store keeper anything but shelf space real estate. This tax now taxes that same product year after year so eventually any possible chance at a profit when selling it is gone. New old stock used to be one of my favorite things to find at hobby stores in the 1970-1980s. That is all gone. That is why the on-line retailers don't really stock anything either but use the drop ship model.

A book supplier we used to get books from had 100s of copies of various titles we were selling. One time we put in the order and it was returned as out of stock. We asked how that was possible as sales had been light and we expected the supply to last. Turns out the warehouse tax had kicked in and they took them all to the land fill. We had to pay to re-publish one of the books. But this time they are all purchased from the warehouse and are on a pallet in Mark's garage.

 

[tootnkumin]

I'm not aware of that tax being applied here (better keep that one quiet). If there is any logic at all to it, it can only (apart from another sneaky way to raise more revenue) be to promote the movement of product to ensure continued employment and business survival through the production chain by encouraging discounting to clear old stock. Does explain the limited run methodology adopted by the manufacturers and the inventory reduction pricing of such online retailers as Kleins.

 

[Boris]

There is another component to this too. The "inventory tax" is a killer for small businesses. In time gone by a product was only taxed once when purchased, so a product could sit on the shelf forever with out costing the store keeper anything but shelf space real estate. This tax now taxes that same product year after year so eventually any possible chance at a profit when selling it is gone. New old stock used to be one of my favorite things to find at hobby stores in the 1970-1980s. That is all gone. That is why the on-line retailers don't really stock anything either but use the drop ship model.

Taxes, are a legitimate cost of doing business, as are heating, lighting, water and sewer, rent, payroll taxes and healthcare. A retailer that still holds old merchandise in inventory for years, is a bad business person. It takes "Capital" or willingness to take on debt to build inventory, and that implies "risk". You have to have product to sell, and product ties up capital if it doesn't move ergo, if it's not selling clear it out, instead of raising the price each year it sits on a shelf. Jeff Bezos' business model instantly made the mom and pop small business model obsolete. Kleins buys only what they know they can sell. If a product doesn't move within a certain time, an incentive is applied to help move it. Same with Trainworld, although they order more of an item than MBK in many cases, (and also charge a little more).

 

[tootnkumin]

There still are a few hobby shops here within driving distance i.e. about 2 hours, that carry much in the way of trains. One in particular, specialises in US prototype pretty exclusively (don't think he carries anything else). Has his shop on his own land next to his house, but is only open on a few days and 1 evening. Is like the old time hobby shops, model packages etc from floor to ceiling, with lots displayed in glass cabinets. All still carrying their original prices, never discounted. There's going to be a big sale day one day.