This is sort of a spinoff of the NYC thread.... I was wondering when all of you think that the LHS will disappear like the dinosaurs?

I live in "the Little Apple" Manhattan, Kansas and there is only Hobby Lobby with a limited selection of kits...I drove approx 35 minutes to the closest thing to pass for a LHS around, located in Junction City outside Ft. Riley and found only TWO WWII German subjects on the dusty shelves. I'm moving to Topeka, KS (the State capital) pop approx 130,000 with only ONE LHS that has about 10 armor kits which cost about 1/3 more than the net with shipping!

My basic question is "When in your opinion will the LHS go away for good?" but also, Who is responsible?

Is it the LHS that can't or doesn't want to maintain the inventory required to satisfy our plastic fix? or is it simple economics and "economies of size?"

Please, this is not a rant I'm just curious to hear other's opinions.

Hellbent

This isn’t a new problem; nor is it a problem that’s confined to models. The basic economics are against almost any local seller now that on-line ordering has come along. If you can buy the same thing cheaper, and/or have a better chance of getting it, and/or at the speed you want, you’d be a mug not to buy on-line. Since I started eBaying, I’ve kicked myself countless times at finding stuff for as little as a third of what I paid for it. On-line shops are less handy, largely because the gains in price are so easily lost in the shipping (especially if you buy from overseas), but the benefits are still available if you trawl around. (Mind you, I’ve also thanked my lucky stars that I paid only full price on things like Airfix 1/48 Lightnings…)

The tragedy is, I love model shops, always have. In an ideal world I might even own one. Having a really good one a few miles up the road has been invaluable - I can nip in for a pot of paint that my local Homebase definitely won’t have, or a bottle of Clearfix, and check what’s new at the same time. If he shut down I’d definitely be in a spot of bother. But there’s nothing he can do if punters stay away, and if someone offers punters a better deal, that will be the end of it. It’s sometimes described as unfair competition but in reality it’s just competition - “unfair” because one doesn’t like the result. Having said that, for some reason I think my local place has a good future ahead of it.

What we need is more punters. That’s another big problem - models aren’t as popular as they once were, now that there are video games and text messaging and so many other ways to cramp your fingers and ruin your eyesight. I shudder to think what the average age of shops’ clientele is these days; I know there are precious few kids in my club. One thing preventing the whole hobby simply disappearing is its popularity in the Far East, so we have to hope that persists for a bit longer. Meanwhile, I suppose we must do our bit. Attend shows, display at shows, buy what you can where you can, and drum up interest. It may even work!

The local hobby shop is in peril because of several things.
Most patrons of hobby shops are impulse buyers. I got to have that to put in my stash of unbuilt kits. I can't do without it, I can't wait a day, week, month or year to buy it.
The modern system of inventory is in peril because of the fuel crunch. Local Hobby shops can't afford to have a huge inventory. If the owner guesses wrong and stock's 10 items he thinks will sell but does not then he's is in trouble. Unsold stock is money on the shelf.
My local hobby shop is a train shop (all I got localy), I ordered my first 2 models since 1995 about 60 days ago, they came in, I got a nice discount for ordering. I would rather keep him going and order from him than overseas.
I wanted a Famo kit when they first came out, to expensive for me, now they are alot cheeper, same kit though. The rush to buy keeps things expensive, ditch the I got to have it now attitude. Order locally if possable, have them check the price for the item you want.
Just my thoughts on the subject, you may feel differently
Joe

I support my LHS King's in Austin Texas, I also mail order also. I find that if I ask for Kings to order a kit for me I have it in a fair amount of time. If I have to have to have to have it now Ill order it from Great Models or Spure but I give the LHS first crack.

I'm in a luck with South Florida (kind of). We have an LHS with fairly decent model collection, and the prices are great. (Many times cheaper than the prices of the kits that are offered in these forums...) A Grille 17 is 91 dollars, for example; the DML 251 halftracks are from $28-31.
The thing is that Ebay used to be great, and forums were also a very good source of cheaper kits -but as sellers start to ask more than the price of a brand new kit, I found myself going back to that place more often. So I definitely think they'll survive... (The amount of money I spend there...)
They have nothing in AM, though.
Also, most of the LHS' have model railroad, car and airplane sections, that generate revenue. There was a store nearby that got rid of all the plastic models except for the Revell cars, though, so it depends what the management thinks is best for the store.

The weird thing is that back home, in a small European country, with a small modeling community, there are more LHS' with much bigger range in both kits and AM, than any store I have seen in the US.

My closest LHS is going mostly RC because that is where most of the money is now. $300 for the cheap airplanes or a mid-range truck plus the aftermarket accessories vs. $30 for a model. I heard a guy say he gave up golfing for r/c airplanes as he was putting down $1000 for his latest toy. I can't spend that much in his shop in a year but this guy does so every 3-4 months.
They also offer computer games like flight simulators that are closely related to the r/c items, as well as the more popular games. They go where the money is. The plastic model kits just don't sell enough for them to take much of an interest in them. They just moved to a new store which has double the space but their model selection is half as big now as it was before. Their prices are great but it isn't enough to generate interest.
It isn't just the economy, though. My kids build models. All the other kids their age play X-box. Models aren't exciting enough for them unless they move. I guess there is not enough instant gratification in opening a box and just seeing parts inside. After all, it takes WORK to build a model and it seems that anything that requires effort anymore is too hard. But a video game provides that instant gratification, which is why my LHS now carries more of them that the plastic kits.

We have 5 hobby shops in the city . I go to every one . If it's not at one it will be at the other ones . I only do ordering from one they can get me almost anything I want . Now if it's for an OOP then I will go online either buy or trade . But even here the hobby shops cater to the r/c group and younger kids . I do WW1 aircraft there might be about six kits there and all of them Camels or Fokker DR.1 . I have enough of these ones already ! WW1 here doesn't sell very well here. But WW2 and up . Sells very well . Just depends on what you are in too .
Russ has hit it on the nose : Computers and X-Boxes . The only tools you need is your two thumbs ! No sanding stick , hobby blade , paintbrushs , glue .
As along as there is a hobby shop I'll keep going them .

You all make excellent points. I'm just frustrated that the "little guy" seems to be going the way of the dodo.

I think that young folks (under 18) have a lot to do with it. Russ brought up a great point. They HAVE to have all that electronic stuff.

Joe also brings up a good point. How many folks out there are gonna buy a 1:48 Tamiya Firefly this year? Chances are not alot in a local area.

Does anyone know what the average markup is on a kit for a LHS?
What is the average markup on RC stuff?

Hellbent

10 years ago I had 10 (ten) good hobby shops all within easy driving distance (25 minutes or less).

Now I have 3.

The survivors are all very strong and have been around a long time but who knows...

I checked with my buds at the LHS and they said for most shops approx. 40% mark-up on kits. They explained that the issue was having to carry all the inventory that they do. For example they said that if they stocked every line item eduard PE had they would have about $30,000 just sitting on the shelf in PE alone! Knowing what modelers want is also very difficult. For example, trying to guess how many Italeri M7 Preists that they will sell in a year. How could you possibly know that?

One thing that was brought up was possibly having video games in the store as well for more business when younger folks came into buy games they might pick up a kit as well. I could see how that would help pay bills and is a good marketing idea.

It was an interesting conversation and really opened my eyes to the struggles they face. It strengthened my resolve to support them as best as I can. If we want them to stay we need to put some bucks their way.

Hellbent

Hi Hellbent. I spent a few years in the Little Apple myself. Worked at the West Loop Amoco station for a year after getting out of the Army and then at Guerdon Industries which I doubt is still there. Left Manhattan in 78 cuz it was just too hard to make a living out there. Anyway, we used to have a couple hobby shops around here. One that was south of me also catered heavily to the RC set but had a fantastic model selection as well. It was one of those places that had so much stuff one person could barely fit down an aisle. Great atmosphere and always a friendly group hanging around. The owner passed away and his wife wasn't interested in continuing to run it and the store and building were sold making her wealthier than she would have been had she continued to run it. The other one in town here closed because while the owner liked what he did retail space just became unaffordable and he went under. We got a hobby department store a few years back and their model section is really sad. I learned elsewhere on this forum there is a pretty cool shop north of me that I plan to visit when work calms down. My own thoughts are a local hobby shop has to make up in service and making their customers feel like they are important what they lack in inventory available on the internet. It may be hard but I think it can be done. Here's an example: We had a great record shop here once. After I had been in a couple of times the employees got to know me. The folks there learned my musical interests after awhile and it got to where they would let me know if something i would be interested in came out. Sometimes I'd just go in and browse through their inventory. Most times I'd have conversations with them for a while after buying something. I wasn't the only customer they did that with, but it made me and the others feel good. Even though I could have bought a lot of what I bought from them cheaper on line, I still stayed a regular customer because of their service. Alas, a new owner changed things and turned it into a sterile brightly lit bland place where cheery, but annoying, young people in bright red vests with name tags asked every 5 minutes if they could help me find something while following me around the store. Nobody there knew any more about music than they did selling shoes. Just browsing seemed verboten. I could have re-entered the store every 15 minutes for 8 hours and nobody would have realized I had been in there before. They went out of business after less than a year. No service, no sales. No sales, no business. The moral is that I think a LHS owner has to have his/her heart in it and go that extra mile to make fellow hobbyists feel like family. The conversation he had with you makes me think he's going a long way to being that way. I wish him well.

BTW: Where is he located?

Hey now, I am 14 and I dont touch that vidieo game stuff, and I dont have a darn Ipod. And when I am not modeling I am working out or working with my dad or playing football. And I am the oldest of 5 kids so were all busy.

thxs,
John

[/quote]
Hey now, I am 14 and I dont touch that vidieo game stuff, and I dont have a darn Ipod. And when I am not modeling I am working out or working with my dad or playing football. And I am the oldest of 5 kids so were all busy.

thxs,
John [/quote]

John, We need more guys like you out there!

Hellbent

I live in a small town about an hour either way of a big city. In one, I have a hobby lobby, michaels and a LHS that has some decent stock. I need to head back soon, he was having a really nice sale (picked up a 1/35 char b1 and a 1/48 king tiger for just over $50). To my other side I have 1 shop I haven't been in yet.

In town I have a lhs that is kinda in the middle of bfe. THe guy is nice and very knowledgable. He mostly has rc and planes (most his business) but has a single double sided shelf overflowing with kits. Not a whole lot there I would buy outright, but occasionally I see a kit I get. I even walked in and talked to him as he was building a revell germany flying wing. Seeing the kit being built made me find it on the shelves and buy it. I even drove out to see if he could help me with an airbrush issue (45 mins later, it was a teflon ring that disentegrated).

After talking to him on numerous occasions, I know hes having problems with business, mainly because of location.

It seems that those that want to find a lhs will, but most people aren't just going to browse and find one.