New Train shop, what would you want there ?

[TurboOne]

I have had a few people ask what would make a great LHS.

What would it take for you to patronize a shop repeatedly?

Which is more important to you price discount, or extremly friendly service that is helpful, knowledgable and good?

How important is local repair?

So many have switched to mail order or the internet, what do you like about where you shop there? Price is usually the main reason, but is attitude or service important at all ?

What would it take to get you to switch shops either LHS or internet shop?

Tim

[Frank53]

MY local hobby shop is kind of an enigma.

The service and knowledge are excellent - the athosphere is 50's Barber Shop - I expect to see Andy Griffith there someday.

I buy parts and scenic materials, as well as books and magazines, and I will comb the bargin table for something to scale that can be mutilated into something else.

The sell z through g and have two absolutely fabulous z scale layouts which are all handcrafted. The also have a stunning n scale layout and an HO layout running the length of the shop. THis has been a work in progress for a few years, but ever month or so there is significant progress.

The have a pretty nice O Scale layout - about 6 x 16 with four or five trains and very nicely detailed.

All the O scale stuff is "in the back" while the front of the store is all HO, N & Z.

They know there stuff and I can take stuff in and have it repaired in a day or so. I just had two trains in and the cost was next to nothing and the service was fast.

However, the selection on trains is so so at best. They occasionally buy or trade some post war Lionel, which I am always eager to see, but teh pickins are slim. The new merchandies is ordinary.

So for me - it's just ok. Since I only buy PW Lionel, I would like to see more material being bought and sold. If I was a buyer of new material - it would be my first choice to buy from, as I want them to be around to fix my trains, and be a place where I can run down and pick up road bed, or landscaping materials, or electrical materials and mags, as well as to just rub elbows with train folk.

I would pay more to buy locally than on the internet for that very reason - but not a large amount more.

[FJ and G]

Tim,

This is a good question and first time I ever saw this question asked. IMO a great train shop would have a great layout so kids and adults can google at them.

Then, I would sell all my wares at Internet prices. I never understood why Internet prices are much lower than brick and mortar prices, esp. since most internet stores ARE brick and mortar places.

Third, I'd like free catalogues

Fourth, I'd like classes on scenery, electronics, etc, for free

Fifth, I'd like the owner to always be friendly.

I know I'm asking too much, but hey, you asked.

Dave Vergun

[Roger Bielen]

I'm happy with the shop I deal with as far as friendliness, stock, and knowledge. It would be nice if it were a little roomier, though when built around 20 +/- years ago it was probably one of the "larger" stores in Watkinsville. He's a Lionel authorized service center, factory direct dealer. If he weren't grandfathered in he would probably not meet the big bucks criteria the manufacturers set for new dealers now days.

It;s the type of place us hobbiest stop in when passing just to shoot the breeze and say hello, all he needs is the old pot bellied stove and a few chairs.

[pbjwilson]

One of the more unique hobby shops I've seen is/was in Lake Geneva, WI. It was more like a nostalgia/train store. They had a three rail 'o' layout, a selection of new and old Lionel, and neat old toys like "rockem sockem robots". The store had a couple levels and had a snack /icecream shop in the lower level. I'm hoping it's still there, last summer it looked as if new a new owner was taking over. Anyone else know of the stor I'm talking about? It has a great corner location right in downtown.
So I guess I like the concept of a train - nostalga - toy store more than the typical hobby shop.

[Anonymous]

FJ and G:

QUOTE: Then, I would sell all my wares at Internet prices. I never understood why Internet prices are much lower than brick and mortar prices, esp. since most internet stores ARE brick and mortar places.

One of the major causes of the difference is really grabby local governments. Any place with enough population to support a brick and mortar store usually has a local government with a notorious hand out. So the internet places move to where the government is not so grabby, and serve the entire nation. My state, like most of them, has a sales tax. My local hobby store owner tells a tale of a visit from the state tax auditor because he wasn't paying enough sales tax: i.e., not as much as they thought he should be paying. He is a one man operation, and he pretty much had to shut down while they audited his books and he proved to them how little he was selling. Amazon.com was started by a guy that went to high school about ten blocks from here, but you will notice that his operation is not here, it is off in the Pacific Northwest somewhere.

That said, ever since I got burned on a modern Lionel, I really don't like to buy anything without being able to handle it. I am really lucky in that regard, because my local store is the wind down of a much bigger store, and he is in a tiny storefront that is absolutely crammed with stock, and there is a warehouse that pretty much has anything that he doesn't have on display. Consequently, he pretty much matches internet prices and has anything you want, if you know what to ask for. I am also about twenty miles from Ready to Roll, which is in a warehouse and is pretty much an internet dealer, although he is really nice in person, too.

What I really miss is "Old Toy Trains." It was pretty much a hobby, not a hobby shop, and the owner was extremely knowledgeable about everything Lionel had done since about nineteen twenty. A small storefront about thirty miles from here, dealt mostly in used, reconditioned everything he sold, and really took care of his customers. My wife found him first, in a quest for the 1950s Lionel Freight Train that started this revival in my house. He taught maintenance, which I have found that many shops treat as a trade secret. Unfortunately, all good things end, and he passed on.

QUOTE: I would pay more to buy locally than on the internet for that very reason - but not a large amount more.

Me too. Friendly is good, hands on is good, knowledgeable is good. On the other hand, my closest shop who has all of these things (not counting my local store who is currently out of a mechanic) is sixty miles away, and the last time I got an accurate check on prices, he was 160% of internet, or $600 more on a $1600 MSRP item.

[flyingyankee616]

[:D] I would be very happy if there was a hobby (train) shop ,closer than fifty miles away...[:D]

[jimhaleyscomet]

1. Good selection (if I can't see it I might as well get it mail order).
2. Something different each week on sale. If done well then the owner would order in extra and blow it out at minimum margin while still making good margins on non sale items.
3. Used running stuff for discount price.
4. Nice folks
5. For them to be able to stay in business doing the above.

Jim H

[Anonymous]

Hello All: Friendly Staff, More than one manufacturer product line, good reading material, test track, fair pricing, some discounting for repeat customers & multi purchases, E-mail or on-line service. Steve

[cnw1995]

I know that store in Lake Geneva - I think it's http://itsreallyretro.com

Should add my two cents - I vote for significant stock at MSRP or less.. I find myself going to our newest and only real hobby store - crammed with toys, R/C, models, a smattering of train stuff and practically no O - a Plastiville barn, tons of Fasttrack (ick), two K-Line 20th Century Limited diners ($80 ea.), a lonely K-Line police car ($15) and a Christmas 04 boxcar ($60)... Owner says there's little interest in trains in general - 0 in particular - and little margin in it - calls it a 'Christmas Gauge' of interest to elderly browsers who have already bought everything they'll ever buy (ouch) - meanwhile in the background there are lots of people pawing R/C cars and planes...

[Anonymous]

A star trek transporter so when i foget something ,beam me there then beam me back

[3railguy]

A good seletion of Atlas and Lionel O gauge along with Kato and Micro Trains N gauge. I would expect prices to be between mail order and MSRP. I would also expect him to be a seasoned train head. He should be able to service what he sells and offer repair parts.

I often hear stories about mail order deals gone sour on these forums. The reason they went sour is because they did mail order. You get what you pay for.

[GPJ68]

In no particular order:

1 - friendly and courteous service & conversation (all three quasi-local shops I frequent are great for this)
2 - good mixed selection of a variety of manufacturers (two are decent on this, one is 99.9% Lionel only (in O guage), but what a whopping selection they have.
3 - a healthy consignment/used/old stock section, with more than just PostWar beaters if possible. (only one has this)
4 - normal pricing somewhere between mail order and MSRP.
5 - frequent sales, rotating through the different manufacturers and a combination of rolling stock, track, and accessories.
6 - permanent layout that's more than a basic oval (if space allows) and showcases a couple different track/switch/control options. Nothing extensive or highly detailed, but a good test track as well as operating display area. Some recent production/currently available operating accessories as well.
7 - a least a few current production locomotives available to run and display on the store layout.
8 - basic inhouse service/warranty work of manufacturers sold, also willing to arrange packing/shipping to manufacturer (at customer's risk and expense of course) for non-warranty repair/upgrades.
9 - up-to-date information on/familiarity with train hobby and current issues, new manufacturer releases
10 - good magazine and book selection
11 - web presence, site kept current, announces sales, new releases, in-stock listing if possible.

[choochin3]

I for one would like to see in a new train store,in addition to new stock have
used trains that are either reconditioned, or for parts that are priced for folks that are
on a spending limit.
Sometimes I find prices for these items prohibitally expensive.
Especially items like a 1110 scout locomotive for $50.00
I think that is too much for that and similar items.

Cheers,
Carl T.

[Anonymous]

I just found my neighborhood train shop, and we are getting used to each other. I don't know what the margins are, but since I am buying a bunch, he is giving me 10% off. One little thing, he goes MSRP or less on new stuff, and carries a lot of Lionel and MTH. His old Lionel, however, is astronomical. That may be because he is a collector and only has really good stuff; I am not experienced enough to know. It just seems that when something catches my eye, it is priced at eight to ten time original price (no kidding). About the best bargain I have seen there is a milk car in worn condition for $85.oo. He has a pre-war Hudson with no front wheels and no tender for $135.oo. The front wheels I can get, I have no clue where I would get a tender. He showed me the price book, with a tender and in good shape, the item lists for over $2K. That tells me you collector guys are crazy.

QUOTE: I often hear stories about mail order deals gone sour on these forums. The reason they went sour is because they did mail order. You get what you pay for.

Very true, usually. I am in Miami, with a highly volatile population base, and frequently the storefronts give less service than a good mail order house. That is because they don't much care about repeat customers, they want to screw you and get it over with. And there is not much a storefront or a mail order house can do about manufacturer's poor design or quality control. Except warn you and lose the sale, and I have had quite a lot of both kinds of establishment do exactly that. That's why I almost always order by phone and not over the internet. There are a couple of camera stores in New Hampshire that know my voice. Thinking back, that's how I got introduced to MTH. I was grousing at Orange Blossom Hobbies (now defunct) about a Lionel, and the salesman there was smart enough to show me some of Mike's trains. It was before the great technology rip-off, and they were hands down better than the Lionel I was complaining about. More detail, better functionality, and cheaper. Hard combination to beat.

[3railguy]

QUOTE: He has a pre-war Hudson with no front wheels and no tender for $135.oo. The front wheels I can get, I have no clue where I would get a tender. He showed me the price book, with a tender and in good shape, the item lists for over $2K. That tells me you collector guys are crazy.

Well if it's a 763 or better yet, a 700E I would snap it up in heartbeat at that price and it's probably gone by now. A sheetmetal tender for a 763 isn't real difficult to find but a diecast 700E tender is tough. You could settle for a reproduction or postwar 773 tender.

[TurboOne]

All excellent ideas. Thank You very much. If you have more, please keep adding to the list.

Tim

[Kooljock1]

I like CPj68's list, and will add one more. And this is probably the most important to me. I want a store that doesn't bad-mouth any of the manufacturers. If I've decided to buy an item, I want positive reinforcement, unless there's something obviously defective. I don't want you telling me I'm a moron because I like PW items instead of scale, or whatever.

Jon [8D]

[Anonymous]

Well, 3railguy, would you believe a 229? Priced at about what it's worth in excellent condition with a whistling tender. I told you he was high.

Now I got no idea what price book he was showing me, but I looked it up in Greenberg's 2005 and the prices run from $120.oo to $150.oo, all with a tender.

He's still a nice guy.

[Anonymous]

Kooljock1: I want a store that doesn't bad-mouth any of the manufacturers.

We part ways here Kooljock. If they don't like some manufacturer, I want to know why? If it is because of bad design or poor product support, then I want to know about it. If it's because of low MSRP and no margin, that's a different story. My local guy doesn't like Williams. His reason is low resale value. We politely disagreed, and proceeded to enjoy trains together. Of course, he didn't knock my regard for Williams. That could be annoying, as you pointed out. Especially in regard to something of which you are already a proud owner.