Let's not get off on a tangent here. My posting of the closing was just a public service announcement not a prediction of doom and gloom. Gee whiz, people.
There have been three near me that have closed within the last few years. It’s difficult for the brick and mortar shops to compete online. All of the closures were retirement with no one interested in taking over. I’m now driving 45 min for paint and scratch building materials. No one nearby that sells Unitrack.
I ordered a bunch of Micro Trains rolling stock from them, maybe it will help them a little. Easy to do when I have next to nothing in Rolling Stock yet. That stuff adds up QUICK, even at the great prices.
So is the hobby dying or are we obtaining more and more items from the internet more like everything else and is our selection growing? Sumner
I think I may be a good example of the changing times. When I was in the hobby in the late 80s and 90s, I had the luxury of being in an urban area with a couple of hobby shops close by. I now live in a rural area with the nearest [very small] shop 45+ minutes away. So, much of my purchasing is now done online, which did not exist 30+ years ago.
Your story is quite common these days. We had eight hobby shops close around here. Some were small but there were a couple of big ones also. Now there is only one remaining and the proprietor there passed away in January. His son is running the store but is only open 1 1/2 days a week. How long that will last is a good question. But the problem is not one that only the hobby industry suffers. I see vacant store fronts in small towns and shopping malls. A couple of shopping malls are or have been torn down. One was built next to a strip mall/shopping center and at the time of its construction everyone thought the strip mall was doomed. Well, the strip mall is doing good and they are demolishing the shopping mall.
I don’t know about that, but their web page is a “mom & pop” level of achievement - it might be ok for shopping from a desktop, but for shopping from a mobile perspective, it’s very obtuse. Things are displayed very small; you can click on individual product photos, but have to move back to check the price or add to cart. And beyond that, sold out items are interspersed with with what is in stock, there is no means to sort it out. And there is more, but I’ll pass on piling on. But they’re not the worst. There is one other dedicated N scale site whose listings, in addition to those issues I mentioned above, chronicle everything they’ve ever stocked. If you want an Atlas Caboose or Micro-Trains box car, you have to wade through reams of “sold out” items while looking for what they DO have.
So one of the biggest factors of any mom and pop businesd would be the cost to lease retail space is crazy high anymore. I looked into possibly purchasing one of my LHS's when thr owner retired. I had a little retail experience with the golf shop back in the 1980's. When I was told about the lease agreement my interest went away faster than Wylie Coyote on an Acme rocket. So while the major tenants of the shopping center, Target and Kroger's, get deals on the square foot cost the small locally owned business pays a significantly higher price. Sure the anchors lease more space, but they also generate a lot more in sales thanks to their size, marketing g power, etc. And these locally owned business tend to be more of a specialty shop so foot traffic and thus revenue is going to be less over that of a retail giant. I've watched several small business come and go in that center over the years. How to change that is above my pay grade.
The post I responded to mentioned "mom and pop business." That doesn't necessarily imply a brick and mortar shop. Those are archaic relics in a growing number of situations. Retail space is a loser in the internet age, with some exceptions (think groceries, hardware, paint, lumber, etc., although those aren't necessarily guaranteed to stick around either). Does MT still only sell to dealers who have a physical store?
Ditto here I'm in Newnan GA and the nearest, limited hours train shop (sign on door & web is WRONG) is in Riverdale (2 counties over) and don't even mention model "slot-car" shops which I know not where!
Most of my on-line purchases have been either canceled or take a very long time. Like my order from Walmart has been close to six months. And now my PayPal has been compromised and much stolen.
Retail space rental is absurd around here. The price per square foot chases many renters away, not sure why building owners would rather have their storefronts sit vacant as opposed to having a business in there. A friend had to move her archery shop because her original building was sold. She couldn’t find a place in the area with rent that could afford her any profit. I don’t think the hobby is on its last legs, but the market place has changed. Hobby shops have been up and down for many years. A profitable shop near my home town closed down in the early ‘80s due to a retirement. I recall going to several up until the early 2000’s with huge display cases full of brass, not anymore.
I'm not sure the local hobby stores are any worse off than so many other retailers. They are all forced to compete with online storefronts with much lower operating-cost-to-sales ratios. Just look at shopping malls to see an example of the dying local retail business (excluding home centers and grocery stores.) While I have both HD and Lowes within 15 minutes of me, I still go to my local Ace Hardware store for many things, and it is less than 5 minutes away, with far better service. My local train store, not a general hobby shop, in Hurst (NE Fort Worth) is probably a lot like most train stores, with lots of HO, and probably half as much N scale stuff. Larger (O, G) scales also garner more shelf space than N, but there's a lot more N scale merchandise per foot of shelf space. Of course there are lots of products that are not scale-specific, and useful for N scale (especially WS terrain and scenic materials.) There is another good train store (again, not a general hobby store) in N Dallas (Addison) that I haven't been to in years. The drive is not particularly enjoyable at any time of day or week (and I enjoy driving for 2 days to SLC UT or Charlotte NC, except for going through Atlanta.)
Are you speaking of Angelo's or the "new" Model Train Crossing, which is a very well stocked shop now?
Yes Model Train Crossing in Hurst. It's about 20 minutes from me. I didn't know there was an "old" MTC. And yes, they are well stocked, except perhaps in N scale structures (but they do carry the WS built-ups). I haven't been to Angelo's since 2018 (per google), and they didn't have that much N scale then, IIRC.
Small business, not just trains, has been declining since about 2000. It's what the leadership at all levels seems to desire. Just wish the mail orders would work better. That's all that seems to be left. Oh well!!
Capitalism vigorously seeks efficiency. Online retailers are more efficient than brick & mortar ones, because they can use less expensive, more industrial real estate (think pre-fab warehouse/office space), and most of their employees do not need retail/customer service experience/personality, a dress code, etc. So, every time we choose an online order rather than purchasing from a local retailer to save money, we are voting to close down that local retailer. Brick & mortar shops: use 'em or lose 'em. Most will order stuff they don't stock for you, too. Is it as convenient as picking it out online, and having it show up on your doorstep? No, but does that online discount firm offer advise, answer questions, etc., for you (some do)? I think online retailers could improve in a very helpful manner: What if they offered future discounts/credits for quality reviews (good or bad) for their products? But in a commodity market (one retailer's Kato locomotive is as good as another's), there will still be customers that read the quality reviews on site A, but then purchase it from site B that has it just a bit cheaper. We customers have to understand the destructive nature of our exclusively seeking the lowest cost.
