The other day I received a personal message expressing extreme disdain for you in particular, saying you need an enema.

I put you, AlanMac and JZ on ignore, and you three do the same with me.

I thought this sight was for modeling. How did all this transpire just from a comment about loosing some of the local hobby stores? If I read all the threads, I wouldn't have time to work on my model. Well, at least we do have Keith hopefully for a long time.

The other day I received a personal message expressing extreme disdain for you in particular, saying you need an enema.

It is a little sad how some (very few) people here seem to want to disparage Hobby Shops as being a "failing business model" such that they should all close down as they no longer serve a purpose. Being someone who works in a hobby store I do find the vitriol poured in our direction a little disturbing. We try very hard in our store providing services beyond just sales, that you cannot get over the internet, like fixing modelers mistakes, casting lost parts, opening up kits so people can see exactly what they are getting, matching colours, and, most important of all, selling things to customers who don't have the internet. Believe it or not, there are still people out there without access to Sprue Brothers, Hobbylink et al. Furthermore, there are a large number of people who do have access but are too traditional or nervous to not buy on line.

This is the cyber equivalent of a LHS. You come by, engage in some small talk (not all of which is hobby related. Talking about a singular subject all the time makes Jack a dull boy and reduces invites to social gatherings), pick up, learn and discuss techniques, check out new stuff. All done without leaving the comfy confines of your living room couch, man cave or garage, if you are so fortunate to have one. If you spent even half as much time in a B&M shop shooting the s**t about the hobby as you do online, you'd have even less time to work on your models. The only difference is you can't open up and paw the merchandise. If you got a gripe about how threads seem to get derailed, that's the way it is in real life. Almost any conversation can and will digress at one point. Eventually, the discussion gets back on track and picks up where it left off. Or not, depending on how interesting the topic really was to begin with. BTW, it's "site".

It is a little sad how some (very few) people here seem to want to disparage Hobby Shops as being a "failing business model" such that they should all close down as they no longer serve a purpose. Being someone who works in a hobby store I do find the vitriol poured in our direction a little disturbing. We try very hard in our store providing services beyond just sales, that you cannot get over the internet, like fixing modelers mistakes, casting lost parts, opening up kits so people can see exactly what they are getting, matching colours, and, most important of all, selling things to customers who don't have the internet. Believe it or not, there are still people out there without access to Sprue Brothers, Hobbylink et al. Furthermore, there are a large number of people who do have access but are too traditional or nervous to not buy on line.

Absolutely... It's worth while pausing for a second and considering that not everyone has Access to or confidence in buying on-line.

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It is a little sad how some (very few) people here seem to want to disparage Hobby Shops as being a "failing business model" such that they should all close down as they no longer serve a purpose. Being someone who works in a hobby store I do find the vitriol poured in our direction a little disturbing. We try very hard in our store providing services beyond just sales, that you cannot get over the internet, like fixing modelers mistakes, casting lost parts, opening up kits so people can see exactly what they are getting, matching colours, and, most important of all, selling things to customers who don't have the internet. Believe it or not, there are still people out there without access to Sprue Brothers, Hobbylink et al. Furthermore, there are a large number of people who do have access but are too traditional or nervous to not buy on line.

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Nobody is wishing the demise of any business. For every hobby shop mentioned that offers a warm, fuzzy experience, as if you walked into Floyd's Barber Shop or Sam Drucker's General Store in Hooterville, there are ten that make you feel like you're about to do a perp walk into Central Booking. It's great that there are some places which provide a customer-friendly atmosphere. But, the majority are sterile retail establishments staffed usually by only the grouchy owner who couldn't give a rat's ass about engaging in some idle non-revenue generating chit-chat. He's busy keeping his eyeballs and attention focused on making sure that the guy milling around the paint rack isn't attempting to get a five finger discount. Most aren't idyllic locales worthy of a Norman Rockwell painting where a like-minded band of brothers sit around the electric heater in the back room exchanging paint mix ratios.

If one has a cell phone, tablet or an iPad-like device, one has access to the internet.

Your shop is an exception to the prevailing store model. The one important thing that nearly all B&M shops don't, or can't, offer the potential customer is competitive prices. Maybe the price isn't a primary concern to some; but, it is to a lot of others who want to get the most out of their limited recreational dollars. My loyalty to any business is based on the bottom line of getting what I want at what I consider a reasonable price, not to keep the place open by overpaying for something which can be gotten cheaper online.

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Absolutely... It's worth while pausing for a second and considering that not everyone has Access to or confidence in buying on-line.

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FFS...Online ordering has been de rigueur since the early 2000's....In 16+ years of ordering kits online from various sites, I never had a problem with getting my kits, outside of a few well known examples.

Given what is happening to LHS, online will be the ONLY source for kits.

Retail is changing significantly, not just hobby shops..the only stores that can afford to pay high rentals are high markup items (clothes stores which seem to make up 75% of malls these days) or big box stories that offer a wide range of items.

Back in the 1990s Computer Shows (think model shows with computer parts/software) where a big thing...at the end of the 1990's they where deader then a doornail because everyone switched over to getting parts online.

Personally, I do 98% of my shopping online and from overseas. I get the latest releases as soon as they come out, often at cheaper prices then online stores in the US can offer. Often I can't get the stuff any other way to start with.

I really don't miss the LHS to be honest with you. Its far easier just to sit down and order stuff and have it show up 2-3 days to 2-3 weeks later.

Yep, that's the one thing about LHS I hate and probably drives away potential customers: The over abundance of signs warning of dire consequences for shoplifters, parents who don't keep their kids on a leash and the overly paranoid owners. Those shops deserve to go out of business and I have no sympathy for them.

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Yep, that's the one thing about LHS I hate and probably drives away potential customers: The over abundance of signs warning of dire consequences for shoplifters, parents who don't keep their kids on a leash and the overly paranoid owners. Those shops deserve to go out of business and I have no sympathy for them.

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You might feel differently after being stolen from 25+ times and uncontrolled kids run screaming through store breaking your goods!

Not Ken Lawrence

In either that instance or the LHS, I know I am being patronized, paying a premium for people to be nice to me. That's not my style.

Online, things DON'T just disappear. I think this is what some people are forgetting. What ever you do online stays online forever. There for the world to see at anytime.

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Online, things DON'T just disappear. I think this is what some people are forgetting. What ever you do online stays online forever. There for the world to see at anytime.

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Except of course that REALLY useful article showing exactly how to solve a problem on an upcoming build - those suckers seem to vanish into the digital ether as fast as I can find 'em!

Can't agree more with you.
Simple, plain explanation.
There are some people ready to spend more money in exchange of being warmly received by a retailer, and there are a lot of people who don't care not need that kind of interacción.
The trend in the XXI century seems to be the latter, that's it.