Jimmydieselfan This might ruffle a few feathers on this forum but there is a shop in my area that fits a few of these catagories.All he sells is HO. Thats it. He's a grinch too. Great selection, not so great prices. One time I walked in and looked around for a bit ,then I asked ''wheres all the N scale''? He looked at me like I was from Mars and said ''We don't sell that little stuff''. Just the way he said it to me really irked me so I said ''You should because I was ready to drop 500 bucks here today but I guess I will just go to _______________.'' He just looked up at me and gave me a blank look. BTW the name of the place starts with a B and ends with a s
This might ruffle a few feathers on this forum but there is a shop in my area that fits a few of these catagories.All he sells is HO. Thats it. He's a grinch too. Great selection, not so great prices.
One time I walked in and looked around for a bit ,then I asked ''wheres all the N scale''?
He looked at me like I was from Mars and said ''We don't sell that little stuff''. Just the way he said it to me really irked me so I said ''You should because I was ready to drop 500 bucks here today but I guess I will just go to _______________.''
He just looked up at me and gave me a blank look.
BTW the name of the place starts with a B and ends with a s
He's not quite a grinch, but he can be a bit unhelpful. I can't figure the guy out--sometimes he'll chat with customers; other days, he just sits in his office and works on his computer.
He does discount on prices, though--if you want sticker shock, go to the Hobby Shop in my neighborhood, "the dungeon." They've got everything, but everything is MSRP, and the "help" is none too helpful much of the time.
Gary
dale8chevyss loathar You forgot the Chain Store hobby shop where all the locations have the same three models of Bach locos and 300 peices of rolling stock in 3 different road names and 2 styles of cars. Not to mention the almost completely empty rack of Polly S (not Polly Scale) paint. And completed depleted shelves of WS scenry left over from their grand opening. Usually those are the only shops within a 4 hour driving distance and they are only open for a couple of months then close.
loathar You forgot the Chain Store hobby shop where all the locations have the same three models of Bach locos and 300 peices of rolling stock in 3 different road names and 2 styles of cars. Not to mention the almost completely empty rack of Polly S (not Polly Scale) paint. And completed depleted shelves of WS scenry left over from their grand opening.
You forgot the Chain Store hobby shop where all the locations have the same three models of Bach locos and 300 peices of rolling stock in 3 different road names and 2 styles of cars. Not to mention the almost completely empty rack of Polly S (not Polly Scale) paint. And completed depleted shelves of WS scenry left over from their grand opening.
Usually those are the only shops within a 4 hour driving distance and they are only open for a couple of months then close.
And then no two months after each other---and also randomly, so you can't predict when the openings occur. Oh---Grinch bought both now you say----eeerrgh.
Any argument carried far enough will end up in Semantics--Hartz's law of rhetoric Emerald. Leemer and Southern The route of the Sceptre Express Barry
I just started my blog site...more stuff to come...
http://modeltrainswithmusic.blogspot.ca/
The grinch ran sloppy hobby in my town for a while. But now that he retired, the only option nearby is the national chain. Although I will give them credit, they offer a lot of options.
loatharYou forgot the Chain Store hobby shop where all the locations have the same three models of Bach locos and 300 peices of rolling stock in 3 different road names and 2 styles of cars. Not to mention the almost completely empty rack of Polly S (not Polly Scale) paint. And completed depleted shelves of WS scenry left over from their grand opening.
Modeling the N&W freelanced at the height of their steam era in HO.
Daniel G.
How about the shop that berates those who model in the minority scales. Obviously they are upset that they can't sell me much beyond modeling supplies. Hey, I take the time to browse the popular scale aisle, they would be suprised how much HO I would purchase in prusuit of my S modeling endevors if not for the attitude, I must say Allied Model Trains and the Whistle Stop in Pasadena are not among them.
I had a excellent shop within two blocks on my home that understood this, they carried not a single item for HO or N, Just S and O scale. Service was excellent and they maintained stock going back prewar for the tinplaters as well as recent releases for the scale folks. Special orders were no problem, they disposed of slow moving merchandise on a frequent basis at train shows at discounted prices, heck they would give you the show price before the show!
The shop folded up when the owner was killed during a botched robbery, the saddest day was making my final purchases from the grieving widow.
Dave
N Scale Diesels......I like 'em
I've got one for you.Not being a hobby shop owner but I can relate. We were building a large house in the McLean area of Northern Va. The person who wrote the contract came on site with a large gathering of people and they walked in with out an appointment into the unit under construction. First of all he did not have any safety gear on and because he came in with permission we were not able to provide any. Secondly we had ongoing activity inside that he or his "guest could have been injured and or ruined the finishes that were under way. When I recieved word that they were in the house right away I went over to check it out . When I arrived I kindly asked him first to make an appointment and secondly if they would leave and come back on another occasion. At this point he started in a tirade about how we should be able to let him any time he desired and pretty much kiss his royal backside. I listened until he was finished. Then I matter of factly pointed out to him that slavery went out in 1865 and just because he was buying a product from us he did not own us. He left in a huff. But later he called and apologized and we went on to be on very good terms. I bent over back wards to assist them in the moving , helping with other issues they had.
3railguy danmerkel In my 35+ years of visiting hobby shops, I've seen this kind of behavior more than once. Anyone else? dlm Oh heck yea. Hold up Harry. Stands at the counter bragging to the cashier about all his stuff while you stand ther waiting to get rung up. Constantly gives you a snide look to go away. Finally, pays for his magazine and leaves.
danmerkel In my 35+ years of visiting hobby shops, I've seen this kind of behavior more than once. Anyone else? dlm
In my 35+ years of visiting hobby shops, I've seen this kind of behavior more than once. Anyone else?
dlm
Oh heck yea. Hold up Harry. Stands at the counter bragging to the cashier about all his stuff while you stand ther waiting to get rung up. Constantly gives you a snide look to go away. Finally, pays for his magazine and leaves.
Must be a relation of Line Up Larry--haggles and argues with poor cashier over 14 cents--and walks out after store accumulates 6 people in a line----
Next to the Phantom Hobby Shop is the Ghost Hobby Shop. It closed years ago (Can't tell when). Could be a long time buyer of a MR ad. Shows up in Atlas, MTL, never updated email lists of hobby shops. Lives on the Internet forever. Eventually becomes a post on the Trains.com Forum. What do you mean that Trost hobby shop closed.
Another type could be the Hobby Shop Museum. Since they never have a sale, don't advertise, they rely on the few modelers in the area to stop by. Old timers that visit the old neighborhood may stop by on vacation. How they stay in business is the owner lives in the upstairs apartment, no rent. The owner's spouse or children may have other jobs. Family run business or pays near minimum wage for youngsters to do most of the heavy work. Bare wood floor, every item behind a glass counter, don't touch. Could just have that rare train set from the 1960's woth big bucks for a collector in the original box.
Ummm, I wonder if "EHS" would like to leave the frozen north and come down here to north Houston?????
Mobilman44
ENJOY !
Living in southeast Texas, formerly modeling the "postwar" Santa Fe and Illinois Central
3railguyYou must mean EHS
Yep, that's the one.
sschnablWe've got one in Green Bay that I think is very good. They are strictly trains (Z, N, HO, G) and the shop is clean, well lit, and stocked quite well.
You must mean EHS.
We've got one in Green Bay that I think is very good. They are strictly trains (Z, N, HO, G) and the shop is clean, well lit, and stocked quite well. They typically have things 10-20% off, and in August do customer appreciation days where there are deeper discounts. What I like most about this shop is their service. They are heavy into DCC and will do decoder installations, custom painting, you name it. They also hold free clinics every Saturday afternoon and Tuesday evenings that run the whole gammit (backdrop painting, benchwork, wiring, track laying, structure building, DCC, layout design, etc.) It has been an extremely helpful experience
Scott
A friend of mine recently told me about a train shop he visited in the Hagerstown, MD area that charges full list price or more for its merchandise and, get this, charges admission to customers if they want to see his operating layout in his backroom. Admission is $2.50 for adults and $0.50 for kids. Talk about doing everything possible to improve your public relations and encourage the hobby. I told him he could do much better on line than with this guy.
Bob
In all fairness to the hobbyshop owners/employees being chastised here... while I'm sure that none of US would fall into this category, how about the 9 (or more) types of hobby shop customers??!? Having dealth with the public (but not in a hobby shop), I can tell you that some "customers" you are much better off without...
In the past year we had a local OK train store here in New Jersy close up shop. Don't ask me why he seemed to be doing a land office business but hey a sign of the times I guess. So like all model railroaders I go out in search of a new train store.I first find some clown just outside of Red Bank NJ on Rt.35 who is Mr. ebay and has nothing but easy track and doll house junk and a wall full of Lionel stuff. He's one of the guys who under no circumstances give you a refund even if he junk is flawed he gives you store credit only!
So months go by and I finally made the pilgramige up to Dunellen NJ to "The Modle Railroad Shop" Man this place is train hevan. An obviously old shop with the quintesential old guys running the place but nicer more plesant more knowledgeable guys you would be hard pressed to find. Let me tell you this place aint big by no stretch of the imagination but they have it all. I saw out of issue Walthers Kits that I haven't seen in years. The do repairs and installations, they have every book and magazine imaginable and the typical nice clientel that in my opinion is part of the train store experience. You can go in on any given day and swap ideas with guys or find a new way to do something or find an impossible piece that you've been looking for.
I've got an everything under the sun hobby shop right in my own town but I'll drive the hour or so to get to my new train store. Glad to see there are some still out there left for us to go hide from the wife
SRen The Professional Hobby Shop: This place is clean and well lit, the staff is knowlegeable and friendly, and the inventory is first rate! Not only do they have everything you need to get started in the hobby but they also have a wide selection of detail parts, scratch building supplies, structures, ...just about anything you could possibly need. These establishments are first class but rare. No Trains Hobby Shop: This place has automobile kits, RC kits, Military Kits, Airplane Kits, Ships galore but nothing for model railroaders! Rolling Stock Only Shop: The place is full of rolling stock and engines, you need a car lettered for an obscure short line, this place will have it! To bad they have hardly any track, scenery supplies, structure kits, or all the other things you need to build a model railroad. Sloppy Hobby: Poorly lit, dust all over the inventory, clutter everywhere, buckets in the aisles to collect rain water dripping through the ceiling, these shops would be great if they were not public health hazards. The Grinch's Hobby Shop: This establishment is run by a guy who hates people, especially children who are not allowed in his shop period! He hates customers who ask questions and don't you dare ask to test run a locomotive before purchasing it! This establishment does most of its business by internet and mail order. The Never Open Hobby Shop: This place may be located in a strip mall surrounded by stores with normal business hours but this shop is never found open. It does not matter what time you visit this place, be it 10 o'clock, noon, or 4 in the afternoon it will never be open. Rumor has it this place does most of its business by mail order leaving one to wonder why the proprietor is wasting his money renting retail space. Appointment Only Hobbies: Very similar to the Never Open Hobby Shop, this place is always closed unless you call ahead so the proprietor can open it for you! Flea Market Hobbies: This place has a lot of second hand stuff for sale, to bad most of it is junk! He has boxes of old Tyco rolling stock and bushel baskets of old Lionel tin plate track, all of it at over inflated prices! The Price is High Hobbies: Everything in this place is selling for MSRP, sales are unheard of at this store. The proprietor is still trying to sell his Erlt HO box cars for $30 when the same products are on sale on-line for $10.00. The neat thing about this place is that there are often times hidden treasures on his shelves, looking for that obscure kit that was discontinued 10 years ago? This place may very well have it!
Do you live here in Northeast Wisconsin??? I could tack a name on to each shop you described within a 50 mile radius of me (ignore my screen name as I do N scale as well as 3 rail)
I can't really put a name to them, but there's the hobby shop that sets up at the local mall during "hobby weekend" & deal with all sorts of non-hobby type people
The problem is, they assume EVERYONE is like that. What I'm getting at is about 20 years ago, the above occurred at a local mall here. A buddy of mine & I went over to check things out. A month or so before, he had asked me a question about an old '50's era Lionel loco. Although I'm not a Lionel fan or collector, I -did- know what he was talking about, as I had come across what he was asking about in a Lionel book that was at one time a part of the collection at the library where I work.
One booth had mostly railroad books, & had the very same book. I picked it up to show him what I had been telling him about, & suddenly the female owner of the booth said very sternly, "If you're not buying, DON'T TOUCH!!!" Her attitude peeved me extremely, treating us like "mall kids", even though at the time we were in our early 20's (& had clean hands!) But I said nothing, & put the book back. But buddy went ballistic on her for several minutes! The gist of it was, "How are we supposed to know what we want if we can't look at it or touch it, etc, etc!!!" & he ended his tirade with, pointing at me, "& let me tell you something else..that guy right there knows more about trains then you've ever known or ever will!" The lady was absolutely speechless. We left (I was hoping his loud rant wouldn't attract security, fortunately it didn't) But doggone it, I agreed with him 100%!!!
I never had no use for that type of proprietor. Some years later, I was reminded of the above incident when a commercial for the Yellow Pages was on TV. It was a toy store with tons of toys, but no customers. When a representative of the Yellow Pages came in to ask why he didn't use the YP, his response was, "Well, if I did, I'd get customers....& they'd come in &...touch...my toys...I don't LIKE...people coming in & touching my toys."
I've been to some of those, but not to the Never Open Hobby Shop... Every time I go past they're closed!
Left Coast RailDoes anyone have any information on the place in Washington mentioned above? Someone else told me about it a while back but I can't find it when I do a Google search.
PF&S Ry. Supply
566 S. Ione Rd., Pasco, WA
509-266-4384
Here they are on the map, about 10-15 miles north of Pasco, WA
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=&daddr=Ione+Rd&hl=en&geocode=%3BFRvvwwIdvxzn-A&mra=ls&sll=46.392322,-119.065361&sspn=0.0214,0.038452&ie=UTF8&ll=46.394897,-119.071026&spn=0.085597,0.153809&z=13
Having spent some time in retail myself (though NOT in hobbies, but Music & Movies and general merchandise), I can appreciate some of the things that HZ said above. Outside of that rare case of someone who is independently wealthy and runs a train shop out of love of the hobby, hobby shop owners are trying to eke out a living just like the rest of us, and they have to make enough in sales to cover their rent (unless they own the building), utilities, advertising, insurance, and employees, just to hit the big ones. Granted, there are other rewards. but its a rare person who can stay at a job at which they don't make a living.
This said, stocking policy and inventory management and accounting are subjects about which entire graduate level courses are taught. I'll try to post a few general observations here without getting into too much detail -- yes, I know it's a complicated subject. Try not to nit-pick.
First of all, in order to make money, a store has to actually sell things. It sounds obvious, but it precludes a store stocking all kinds of specialty merchandise unless they have enough fast movers to cover the slow stuff. This is why most LHS's are "Toy and Hobby", and carry stuff like Thomas the Tank engine and Playmobil as well as model trains. Profit margin (how much profit you earn on each unit sold) is also a factor, and the reason a lot of people (especially the "old fashioned" types who don't use computers and sophisticated accounting programs) don't offer discounts. Most of us have heard of LIFO and FIFO inventory systems, but what about FISH (First In, Still Here)? There's a lot of it out there. Once you've depreciated the inventory value to zero, you have nothing more to gain by holding it, and it's just taking up shelf space (and maybe lowering the customers opinion of your store). Well-managed retailers recognize this and will do just about anything (2 for 1, deep discount, etc.) to get rid of it.
So, presuming that your LHS owner really is trying to make a living, he's going to weigh any suggestion you make against this formula (modified by his own circumstances). If he hears enough requests for an item, he may conclude that it would be worth stocking. Special orders are a guaranteed sale, however, and will usually be taken, but that's a vanishing business now that virtually everyone has access to the Internet.
Customer base is important, too. Large metropolitan areas can support a more specialized store than rural areas.
But the bottom line is that you're going to get some of all kinds in the business. But HZ is right in that we often need to look at it from the shop owner's perspective.
Connecticut Valley Railroad A Branch of the New York, New Haven, and Hartford
"If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right." -- Henry Ford
There is also the phantom hobby shop. This is the shop that went out of business a few years ago. It was the only hobby shop within two hours of you. Now whenever you need something small, that costs more to ship then to buy, you are haunted by the spirit of the phantom hobby shop!
Can you tell that there is no hobby shop in my town?
This is why some people are purchasing from Walthers online or eBay. No nasty high handed people to deal with. I do have to say- living near Baltimore gives me at least two excellent train shops to work with.
I have to laugh- some were referring with scorn to lower end products like Athearn etc. - for some of us that cannot spend a zillion dollars on a hobby, these lower priced alternatives are "where we live".
Mike Habersack http://rail. habersack. com
Maryland - the land of pleasant living...
There is a shop here in Milwaukee where the floors evidently do double duty as the cat's litter box. I take a deep breath, run in (fortunately the owner is always in a sour mood so there is no need for chit chat at the counter), try to find the item on the shelves (or on the floor which is often jammed with stuff), try not to step on any inventory, make my purchase (no discounts because that "interferes with my inventory control") and leave, and only then breath normally. I own a cat but this place is awful.
Why do I go there? Because I can find stuff that has been out of production for years.
Dave Nelson
- Luddite Hobbies: This place is usually run by somebody who still thinks it's the 1930s. Often times they are The Grinch's Hobby Shop too. They refuse to take checks or credit cards and still think "we can order anything out of the Walther's catalog" is a major selling point. DCC? Sound? Nevah hoid of it.
-The Fanboy's Hobby Shop: Very well stocked and a veritable treasure trove of modelling, assuming you model in the same scale, era, and or roadname the proprietor does.
-Tumbleweed Hobbies: The shop that's never in the same location twice.
Whoa! After reading a lot of these posts, I can't tell you how absolutely LUCKY I feel out here in the wilds of Sacramento. We've got two PROFESSIONAL hobby shops here--Bruce's Trains in Sacramento and Railroad Hobbies in nearby Roseville. Both are relatively large stores, well stocked, and a crew of employees who definitely know their stuff--and are really well versed in that seemingly lost art of Customer Service.
Of course, both shops pretty much service all of Northern California, which has a whole slew of model railroaders between here and the Oregon border. They carry a good stock of locos, rolling stock, and lots of the needed accessories, including a lot of detail and scratch-building parts. Both shops tend to focus on 'western' railroading, with a lot of SP, WP, UP, ATSF, but that doesn't mean that you can't find other locos or rolling stock for other roads. Both stores sell at less than MSRP, and both stores are very happy to test-run that loco you're interested in. And if you have a problem with a balky locomotive, Bruce has a repair service "The Train Doctor" in-house, who does good work, while Mike, the owner over at Roseville Hobbies does good repair work himself.
And of course, what sets my little mind a-droolin' is that both stores usually have a nice selection of Consignment and sometimes new Brass at really reasonable prices. In fact, a year and a half ago I walked into Roseville Hobbies and stopped cold at the brass display case, because there was the locomotive of my dreams, a brand-spanking-new PSC Rio Grande 2-10-2. Mike came over, grinned. I looked at him and said, "When did you get THIS?" He blinked and said, "Oh man, you mean I forgot to PHONE you?" (both shops know that I am a rabid Rio Grande steam-freak). I walked out with it. He even gave me more than the usual discount (but don't tell anyone !)
For my money, you couldn't do better than these two shops. We're really fortunate in this area.
Tom
Tom View my layout photos! http://s299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/TWhite-014/Rio%20Grande%20Yuba%20River%20Sub One can NEVER have too many Articulateds!
Well I am another Kokomo Indiana person, live there, I primarly shop at the Train Exchange, I know the owner personaly and he plans to move to a larger shop in the near future as they are totaly out of space in thier current building. The other shop in town will remain nameless, but its one that the everything is full MSRP or more, owner constantly complains how ebay, train shows, online retailers and the other shop in town are ruining his life. I might pick up a magazine there or a tube of walthers goo if I am in dire need. Indianapolis isnt to far away, my wife and I go there atleast once a month, Then I stop at Watts Train Shop in Zionsville, anything you need G scale and my local source for Marklin HO trains, Big Four Hobbies out in Plainfield. I love the Train Exchange as its like a big family amoung all the modelers that frequent the store. We gather on friday night, guys bring thier wives, cookies and sometimes even pizzas show up. The prices are great, and if he doesnt have it, he can get it. He carries a nice selection of HO and N scale buildings, The newest from Athearn, Roundhouse, P2K, Williams and even a bit of G scale. The train shops that have lost or never had the "customer service" aspect to thier shops will not survive, neither will the ones that dont advertise or sell online as well as their retail store. The one I frequent the most does all three, He has the retail shop, website and sets up a booth at select train shows. Cheers Mike and Michele T
LHS mechanic and geniune train and antique garden tractor nut case!