Closure of concessions.

[Towler]

Does anyone know what is happening to the concession outlets.I have heard that some are now staying open whilst others are closing.From a business point of view would it not have been prudent for Hornby to close the loss making concessions and keep open the profitable ones open.I can understand Hornby wanting to sell more online but I dont think that will work.Purchasers want to see what they are buying.Then there is the aspect of models being damaged/broken in transit.  

[81F]

 I understand the one in Boswells, Oxford is closing and is currently havong a 30% off sale. Quite a lot of stock left yesterday. I have already bought six point decoders from them as the offer was too got to miss. 

[trainlover23]

 It is all part of Hornby`s plan to look after the established independent retailer and not sell direct to the public at silly prices

[81F]

 It is all part of Hornby`s plan to look after the established independent retailer and not sell direct to the public at silly prices

This is all well and good if there is an independent retailer in the area. Although there is still one geographically near where I live it is on an industrial estate a good 15 to 20 minute walk from the nearest bus stop and takes two buses to get there, average journey time around an hour. The last time I went the round trip took three and a half hours!

 

I would also add ther prices weren't any cheaper

 

The easiest ones for me to get to are probably about 50 or 60 miles away which is a bit of a treck if you just want to browse! Thankfully I think I have nearly all the locos I need/want.

[Valenta Digital]

Greetings,

    I got an email (from another firm) saying that store concessions are being withdrawn in January, can someone confirm please?

[Rog RJ]

Yes it looks like they are being closed.

[walkingthedog]

Surely not being a concession doesn't necessarily mean that a shop can't sell Hornby products. There is nothing to stop any shop buying any product and selling it, is there? My local toy shop sells some Hornby, mostly track and accessories. 

[NinthPlanet]

 I understand the one in Boswells, Oxford is closing and is currently havong a 30% off sale. Quite a lot of stock left yesterday. I have already bought six point decoders from them as the offer was too got to miss. 

.

It's a real shame that Boswells has decided not to sell Hornby products going forward. I went there this morning and there's a considerable number of coaches left on the shelves. I think their fully decorated 6' x 4' Trakmat layout is up for sale, too. I bought myself a Pullman 3rd Kitchen today as one last goodbye to Hornby products being sold at Boswells. ☹️

[Augustus Caesar]

Hornby are in negotiations with some concessions to see if shops or stores (large) can continue to sell their stock on a private level and not as a concession...

All we can do at this stage is wait and see what deals are done by early next year... keep in mind negotiations can be long drawn out affairs and may not be resolved early at all.

This information is in good faith and common knowledge where I live. Yes some shops may not be able to buy Hornby stock outright so won't sell the product but then again are they not cutting off their noses to spite their faces? They sell other stock from competitors so what's the big issue?

All this is due to a cost cutting exercise and the elimination of larger discounts in some stores...

[Yelrow]

It was not Boswells decision, to stop selling. Hornby removed the concession, according to another forum. They are disappointed to be losing it.. john

[walkingthedog]

What exactly is the difference between a Hornby concession and a shop that sells Hornby?

[trainlover23]

 A concession has the stock on sale or return the ordinary retailer buys the stock

[walkingthedog]

Thank you trainlover, I thought it was something like that. It would account for the reason that concessions charge so much for the products. If they don't sell they can send them back. 

[DipStik]

This is a real shame but it probably explains why the concession, Hawkin's Bazaar in Bluewater Kent is selling off their Hornby stuff at 50% off. Perhaps I had better go back there and see what I can pick up.

[81F]

What exactly is the difference between a Hornby concession and a shop that sells Hornby?

In my experience you cannot use the club discount card in non concessions

 

[NinthPlanet]

Yes some shops may not be able to buy Hornby stock outright so won't sell the product but then again are they not cutting off their noses to spite their faces? They sell other stock from competitors so what's the big issue?

.

Boswells only sold Hornby model railway products. What makes this such a shame is that, when I was quite young (in the 1990s), there were three shops that sold model railway stuff in Oxford and now it's zero. Howes moved out to Kidlington in the mid-nineties (IIRC). They are now housed in a warehouse and don't sell Hornby. There also used to be a shop on the ring road called Motor Books, but they closed a few years ago. The nearest Hornby stockists are now in Banbury and Swindon, which means that there's no benefit to visiting a shop when it costs more to travel there than delivery from an online retailer.

[malB]

Indeed I for one can't help but have a rye smile that the concessions are going to the wall. When within the last year there's been another thread about Model Shops going to the wall across the land. Just on Tyneside alone two well established shops have gone [both in North Shields] Gladstons' first round about Easter and in October/November Rolling Stock. There has been an almost A-Z list of shops in the aforementioned previous alternate thread. All quite sad really.........

 

Whilst using the internet/web is quite useful. I find it useful to visit a shop and see whatever in the flesh before deciding one way or another.

[walkingthedog]

What exactly is the difference between a Hornby concession and a shop that sells Hornby?

In my experience you cannot use the club discount card in non concessions

 

YesI know that but that only affects club members. I meant the main difference and now I know. 

[walkingthedog]

I called in to Boswells about 3 hours ago, I always do when we visit Oxford, and have never bought anything because they are incredibly expensive. Well today they had lots of buildings etc. and rolling stock. They had about a dozen locos half of which were the 9F Evening Star. Even with 30% discount they were only about a pound less than most other shops. They did have a J94 for £35 ex display. 

[yozzer]

I have found that my nearest Hornby concession closed in February of this year. This is a disappointment to me because as mentioned previously in the forum it was ideal to browse and then purchase, very what in computer terminology would call 'user friendly' and I never made a visit without purchasing. I had heard that Hornby had closed some concessions but on visiting my nearest emblazoned on the Craft & Model notice at the entrance to the centre are the words HORNBY & SCALEXTRIC so I thought it was safe.

As it involved a 93 mile round trip with travelling time 1 hour and 15minutes each way this was a huge disappointment. You cannot get to it by bus from where I live.

I do visit model shops but the displays were never as good as my nearest concession. I can understand that the management of Hornby have to turn the business around but they do need to realise that computers' and shops with limited displays areas are not always the answer.

[walkingthedog]

All the concessions are closing. Interestingly the concession in the department store in Windsor got rid of all the Hornby stock but has now started to sell Hornby again but just as part of the toy department.. 

[The son of Triangman]

Normal shops were cross with manufacturers for selling direct to the public and not supporting them. There was a time when the makers just supplied the shops. Selling direct via a makers website and concessions is great for a maker but it takes trade from shops who sell the makers product to the public, there then is no incentive for a shop to stock that manufacturers products because people go direct to the makers website or to a big discounter.

[malB]

The concession in Fenwicks in Newcastle has re-opened as a more general model type shop. Stocking a selection of both Hornby and Bachmann railway item, with Peco on the way. As well as Airfix and other kits too.

[walkingthedog]

Seems like things are looking up malB. 

[Forum-1211528]

The end of the Hornby concessions doesnt mean they will stop selling direct they will still sell models at the Factory in Margate or over the phone or online as they simply want it this way as model shops vanish forever as so many have gone!

I think Hornby needs to stop their silly price act or have models you find are only avalable direct from them, one of the worst examples of this was the four pin DCC chip for the Sentinal and Peckett as i found no model shop could obtain these and you had to order them from Hornby as they refused to supply model shops as they said it was a spare but i told Hornby to stop messing people about so they now supply them to shops!

I think the CONCOR effect will happen with Hornby if they carry on like this as Concor you can only get direct from the manufactures as there is no uk distributor for them anymore so Hornby will sell direct like them and thats it if they carry on like this?