Another Hobby Store Goes Under

[Johnson Bar Jeff]

I lost my local hobby shop eleven years ago,since then i have had to drive eighty two miles(each way) to the nearest shop,needless to say i don,t get there often and when i do, i find it is cheaper by far to buy on line from America,pay freight and wait three weeks for the items to arrive.I too,like to feel,smell, hold and closely look at the items,but can,t always do that,taking a risk of buying items on the internet can be reduced by precautions that generally works.

I haven't lost an LHS, but I sympathize with this situation. I live in the very center of a major metropolitan area (job and also social convenience). The hobby shops are all in the suburbs. I don't have a car (because I don't need one on a daily basis, and it would be ridiculously expensive to keep one when I don't need it on a daily basis), and public transit is time-consuming and inconvienient. Pretty much the only time I get to visit a hobby shop is when I travel to visit family. And then, if I'm looking for something really specific, the shop or shops almost never have it (with the exception of replacement couplers).

Just this past holiday weekend I got to visit a fairly new shop that I think is great: A bright, spacious facility; a large selection of stock in N, HO, O, and G; two operating layouts (HO and O); and a huge selection of books and videos. I actually complimented the manager and assured him I'll be back (I will, too). But there was nothing in stock that I needed, and I wasn't in a position to "impulse buy" just for the sake of supporting the store. I felt guilty for not buying anything. But it's the same old song, when I want something specific, I can usually find it on line. I miss the shop (no longer there; the owner retired and the people who bought the shop were clueless) where trains were bought for me when I was a kid and where I continued to buy trains well into my thirties.

[Doneldon]

J-J:

LHSs will often special order things and maybe even give a discount. One
near me will order from Walther's and charge me the midpoint between
the MSRP and the shop's wholesale price.
                                                               -- D

[Johnson Bar Jeff]

J-J:

LHSs will often special order things and maybe even give a discount. One
near me will order from Walther's and charge me the midpoint between
the MSRP and the shop's wholesale price.
                                                               -- D

I don't doubt it for a minute, Don, but for me, access is the issue. I can't ask a store owner to order something for me when I can only get to the shop every couple of months or so. At least, I don't feel that I can, because I do feel that when I can only visit a shop every couple of months or so, I really can't establish a relationship such as the one I had with the shop that I mentioned where my parents and grandparents had bought trains for me, and where I eventually bought trains for myself until the owner sold the shop and retired. My feeling there is that I might as well order whatever it is that I want myself on line, if I can find it. 

[Doneldon]

J-J:

Perhaps you can send your order through your LHS a week or two before
you expect to be able to go there. My experience is that most dealers
want to be helpful.
                                -- Doneldon

[Johnson Bar Jeff]

J-J:

Perhaps you can send your order through your LHS a week or two before
you expect to be able to go there. My experience is that most dealers
want to be helpful.
                                -- Doneldon

That might work, but, here again, I don't feel comfortable asking a merchant to do that for me if I don't really have a "relationship" with him--which I don't feel I can establish when I can't get to the shop on what I would consider a regular basis--which might be frequently enough that the store folks recognize me when I walk in the door. So I'm kind of caught in a vicious circle here. I'll do what I can.

[RAM]

I am sure that your LHS will be more than happy to order thing for you, even if they have never seen you.

[DWU]

To CNE runner,your comments were not taken as a slam in any way.Ive found that as you say do your homework their are some pretty good buys on ebay.I also attend the train shows in my area,which are dwindling,Ive noticed at least to me attendince is down and sellers and even overall quality on items for sale,again the internet and ebay have made their mark but I really think the economy has an awfull lot to do with it.

[Johnson Bar Jeff]

To CNE runner,your comments were not taken as a slam in any way.Ive found that as you say do your homework their are some pretty good buys on ebay.I also attend the train shows in my area,which are dwindling,Ive noticed at least to me attendince is down and sellers and even overall quality on items for sale,again the internet and ebay have made their mark but I really think the economy has an awfull lot to do with it.

I'm attending one tomorrow for the first time in years. I'm transportation-challenged, but this weekend there is a Greenberg show at the fairly new convention center in Lancaster, Pa. I'm taking the train from Philadelphia up and back. I've always found train shows to be a bit of a crap shoot--sometimes lots of stuff that I need/want or interests me, sometimes hardly anything at all. It will be interesting to see what this one is like. At least, I'll be having dinner with my dad before I return home tomorrow evening.

[DWU]

To Johnson bar   Dinner with dad! Trains wll always be around,Dad wont,enjoy him while you can,learned this lesson the hard way!

[Johnson Bar Jeff]

To Johnson bar   Dinner with dad! Trains wll always be around,Dad wont,enjoy him while you can,learned this lesson the hard way!

Oh, I know. We lost Mother unexpectedly. Spent almost a week with the Old Man over Christmas. I expect I'll have him a while yet. Grandma lived to be 90.