PLASTIC MODEL RELEASES APRIL 29



	Manufacturer & Scale	Item #	Description	MSRP
Aircraft	Airfix 1/72	5021	Heinkel He111H20 Fighter	$25.75
Aircraft	Eduard 1/48	8231	Mig 21 MF Fighter Profi-Pack	$59.95
Aircraft	Hobby Boss 1/32	83203	IL-2M Sturmovik	$143.99
Aircraft	Hobby Boss 1/72	87248	F9F-2 Panther	$25.99
Aircraft	Kinetic 1/48	48032	Mirage 2000B/N/D	$64.95
Aircraft	Trumpeter 1/32	2296	Me Bf109G-6 Early	$52.99
Aircraft	Trumpeter 1/700	3453	Heinkel He.60	$7.99
Armor	Dragon 1/35	6642	PzKpfw III (5cm) Ausf H Sdkfz 141 Late	$56.95
Armor	Dragon 1/35	9129	54cm Morser Loki Great 041 SP Mortar	$69.95
Armor	Hobby Boss 1/35	82463	PLA ZTZ96 MBT	$59.99
Armor	Tamiiya 1/35	35148	GRM 8 ton Semi Track SD.KFZ.7	$35.00
Armor	Tamiya 1/35	35113	GRM Sdkfz 250/3 Grief	$31.00
Armor	Tamiya 1/35	35319	T26E4 Super Pershing	$65.00
Armor	Zvezda 1/72	6122	Soviet 122mm M30 Howitzer Gun (snap)	$5.95
Figures	Dragon 1/35	6655	Pz-Rgmt 7 10/PZ-Div Soldiers Smolensk 41	$12.95
Figures	Tamiya 1/35	35314	GRM Africa Corps. Infantry Set	$19.50
Figures	Zvezda 1/35	3621	Volkssturm Berlin 1945	$12.99
SHIPS	Hobby Boss 1/700	87022	HMS Astute	$7.99

ARE WE SEEING THE FUTURE?

This weeks posting is not about the Royal Wedding coming up this Friday, where we can see an event that will later be described in history books.  This week is, again, about the Perfect Hobby Shop.

Last week I was contemplating the Perfect Hobby Shop.  What merchandise it would hold, what services it would offer?  While studying the subject further I found a great commentary in Model Retailer Magaine published March 21, 2011.  Seems someone else is thinking along the same lines.  Joey Kerekes, HobbyTown USA in Las Vegas wrote an article: Are hobby shops still needed in the 21st century?

Are hobby shops still needed in the 21st century? - Model Retailer Magazine

Joey speaks of the future of the brick and mortar hobby store.  In his youth he loved to visit the hobby shops and see the new items and talk to the retailer.  Now, his customers come into his store and bring him up to date because all their questions are answered online.  As a result of their online experience "some customers have chosen to not frequent hobby shops at all ...  They tell me that if they shop from home they avoid traffic, get items cheaper and receive those items more quickly. ...  I know this all sounds very bleak, but I hope it will not be taken that way. I do believe that hobby shops will continue to exist in some form in the future. Hobby shops will still offer services not available on the Internet. I do not believe the industry can survive without some form of personal interaction."

I like his last thought about personal interaction as it goes along with my number one criteria of the Perfect Hobby shop and that is  to have someone talk to me.  I just cannot get enthused about ordering from an online store that won't tell me who they are.  Where I have to search to find out what state, or country they are located in.  I want to know who I am dealing with.  Seems like the online stores hire a lot of good computer programmers and designers but I don't get the impression they are modelers. 

Joey thinks it is a great time to be a hobby consumer as there is better selection and great quality available.  If it is a better time for the consumer is it a better time for the small retailer?  Gee, all of a sudden the WalMart vs. small town merchant saga comes to mind.

 

So, now I have come to the end of my thoughts and I cannot figure out how to wind this up.  Is there a conclusion or just continuing questions?

PLASTIC MODEL RELEASES APRIL 26

                                           

	Manufacturer & Scale	Item #	Description	MSRP
AIRCRAFT	Airfix 1/144	4177	Boeing 727 Airliner	$17.50
AIRCRAFT	Airfix 1/144	4178	Boeing 737 Airliner	$17.50
AIRCRAFT	CyberHobby/DML 1/72	5084	Gloster Meteor F.1	$31.95
AIRCRAFT	Eduard Big Ed 1/48	4944	F-22A Big Ed	$84.95
AIRCRAFT	Eduard Big Ed 1/48	4945	MC.200 Big Ed	$42.95
AIRCRAFT	Eduard Big Ed 1/72	7264	F-16I Sufa Big Ed	$42.95
AIRCRAFT	Kinetic 1/48	48024	S-2F Tracker Anti-Sub aircraft	$89.95
AIRCRAFT	MPM 1/72	72548	Gloster Meteor T. Mk.7	$45.50
AIRCRAFT	Skunk Models 1/48	48013	MQ-9 Reaper	$55.00
CARS	Maisto 1/18	31760AB	Harley Davidson Motorcycle Asst. #28 (12)	$102.00
SPACE	Mach-2 1/72	L013	Vostok I Russ. Spacecraft 50th Anniv.	$109.98

PLASTIC MODEL RELEASES APRIL 22

	Manufacturer & Scale	Item #	Description	MSRP
AIRCRAFT	Eduard 1/48	8189	FW190D-9 Profipack	$39.95
AIRCRAFT	Eduard 1/48	84152	Albatross D.III OEFFAG 253 Weekend	$22.95
AIRCRAFT	Eduard 1/72	2111	B24D Liberator LTD. ED.	$64.95
AIRCRAFT	MPM /72	72567	Gloster Meteor F. Mk. I	$34.00
AIRCRAFT	MPM 1/72	72548	Gloster Meteor T Mk.7	$45.50
AIRCRAFT	MPM 1/72	72568	Havoc Mk.II Turbinlite	$45.50
AIRCRAFT	Special Hobby 1/48	48114	Model 167F-A.3	$75.50
AIRCRAFT	Special Hobby 1/48	48117	CAC CA-13 Boomerang	$49.00
AIRCRAFT	Special Hobby 1/72	72035	Piaggio P.108B II Serie	$72.00
AIRCRAFT	Special Hobby 1/72	72214	D-558-1 Skystreak	$28.50
BOOKS	Hikoki	914	The Secret Years	$56.95
BOOKS	Osprey	F03	Forts Fortification of Verdun 1874-1917	$18.95
BOOKS	Osprey	R019	Raid Storming Flight 181 Mogadisu 1977	$18.95
BOOKS	Squadron Signal	1222	P38 Lightning (SC)	$16.95
FIGURES	Dragon 1/35	6155	Kampfgruppe Von Luck Soldiers Normandy 1944 (4)	$11.95
SHIPS	Dragon 1/700	7089	USS Buchanan DD484 & USS Lansdowne (2)	$23.95

THE PERFECT HOBBY STORE

I told you last month about our trip to Edinburgh, Scotland.  As is our habit when we travel, any time we see a hobby store or a meat market we have to stop and visit.  I am sure you understand the need to see the hobby store, but a meat market?

The meat market is my thing.  My dad was butcher.  He owned his own market for awhile.  When Mother and I visited him at his store I always got a hot dog right out of the counter.  No pre-packaged hot dog.  Loose links stacked perfectly on the left hand side of the meat counter.  Not steamed and or put in a bun; a nice cold hot dog!  On Dad’s day off if a new grocery store opened in our area we would tour the place and he would critique the meat counter to me.  “They cut too many pork chops, they won’t sell”  “the fish is stacked too high, the filets need to be closer to the ice”.  So, you can understand how ingrained the habit of visiting a meat market is for me.

Charlie owned a hobby store for several years.  A small place, 500 square feet.  There was a variety store going out of business in our town and we got wonderful shelving and a glass display counter from them.  We thought it was the perfect hobby store but like most Mom and Pop stores it drained our time and although we made a profit it wasn’t enough in those years.

So, what is the perfect hobby store?   I Googled my question and found a fellow Blogger Joe Daddy http://www.joe-daddy.blogspot.com/ writing in 2006 on the same subject.  Joe-Daddy is a railroad enthusiastic.  He had very specific criteria:  The parking lot must be clean and have big spaces; the store must have a bathroom near the front door; there should be a Kid’s hostess to help entertain your child while you look; special sections for layouts, scenery, electronics, demonstrations.  A training room, repair center and a snack bar.  These are great ideas and the image of the store is great.

For, me though, the number one criteria would be a friendly staff that would talk to me.  Too many times we have gone into well designed stores with lots of merchandise (now I am getting like my father – they have too much merchandise it will never sell) and several employees.  There may be a slight look up to see that the door has opened and then they go back to looking at their manuals, talking on the phone or to each other.  Too often I have walked around the store 3 times and never been approached to see if they could help.

The goal of this blog is to remind you of when you would drop by the local hobby shop and stand around the counter talking with the owner about the latest kit release.   But,maybe the perfect hobby store doesn’t exist any more.  I have been talking with our distributors about the current state of the hobby industry.  In the US there are only 10% of the distributors that were in business 30 years ago.  Shops cannot afford to carry all the

Inventory – especially accessories set. Overhead eats away at the profit.  So, what do you think?  Do people really go to hobby shops any more?   

PLASTIC MODEL RELEASES APRIL 19

 

	Manufacturer & Scale	Item #	Description	MSRP
AIRCRAFT	Smer 1/40	801	Fokker S 11 Instructor	$14.99
AIRCRAFT	Smer 1/40	823	Fiat CR.42 Falco	$14.99
AIRCRAFT	Smer 1/40	824	Spad S.VII C.1	$14.99
AIRCRAFT	Smer 1/48	802	Fiat G.55	$16.99
AIRCRAFT	Smer 1/48	803	Fokker D.VII	$14.99
AIRCRAFT	Smer 1/48	804	RAF S.E. 5A	$14.99
AIRCRAFT	Smer 1/48	812	Bristol Bulldog	$14.99
AIRCRAFT	Smer 1/48	816	Albatross D.III	$14.99
AIRCRAFT	Smer 1/48	818	Fairey Swordfish Mk.II	$24.99
AIRCRAFT	Smer 1/48	819	Avia BH.11	$14.99
AIRCRAFT	Smer 1/48	820	Macchi MC.200 Saetta	$17.99
AIRCRAFT	Smer 1/48	827	MiG-17 PF/PFU/Lim 6M	$24.99
AIRCRAFT	Smer 1/72	828	MiG-29A Fulcrum A	$26.99
AIRCRAFT	Smer 1/72	832	I-153 Chaika	$14.99
ARMOR	Tamiya 1/35	35140	US M60A3 Tank w/105mm Gun	$38.00
BOOKS	Osprey	MAA258	Men At Arms: Flags Am. Civil War(2)Union	$17.95
BOOKS	Osprey	W54	Warrior: Confederate Cavalryman 1861-65	$18.95
BOOKS	Squadron Signal	2048	WWII US Sherman Tank in Action	$18.95
DECALS	Fighter Decals 1/48	48055	S2 Tracker Trefetchen (for Kinetics)	$16.00
DECALS	Fighter Decals 1/48	48056	Navair Centennial Tri-Tone Trifecta	$16.00
DECALS	Fighter Decals 1/48	48057	A6E Stormin' Intruders Desert Storm	$16.00
DECALS	Fighter Decals 1/48	48058	Test, Eval, Adversary Centennial Celebration	$16.00
FIGURES	Polar Lights 1/8	855	Spiderman Comic Book Scene	$28.95