Train stores....(rant)

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

I’m beginning to really dislike some of them. There is one in particular, I won’t mention the name, but every time I walk in, I get eye balled like I am going to steal something. And I am a paying customer, I’ve bought several things there, some worth several hundred dollars. The “help” has never been helpful to say the least, the owner is nice, not the friendliest, but not that bad. The associate that works there though is to put it plainly a jerk. I don’t think he owns the store, or even half of it, but he sure acts like he does or at least wishes he did. Very arrogant, rude, and pushy. He always stares at me and when you ask him a question about an item you would like to buy, he gives you the most condescending response.

This is basically a toy train store that doesn’t specialize in HO or N scale. They stock some stuff of these scales, but its really old left over junk, the rolling stock all have plastic wheels, most of the engines are pretty bad.

They carry mostly American Flyer, Lionel, MTH, and a good number of G scale trains. One thing I have noticed, and yes it may very well be an unfair generalization, but that the ‘toy train’ stores tend to have owners or workers that are not people friendly, whereas the small old shops that specialize mainly in HO and N scale are home to some of the nicest hobbyists out there.

An example being the Model Railroad Shop in Piscataway, NJ. These guys bend over backwards to make the customer feel welcome. I live over an hour away and although I don’t like the drive, the shop is a real gem. They specialize in HO and N and really know how to treat people nicely. Sattlers Trains in Westmont NJ is another great place.

I’m beginning to throw in the towel when it comes to toy train shops however. I just can’t stand the attitude. If I want something in O gauge, I think I’d rather drive all the way out to York, PA than have to deal with some

2

This sounds like what I was experiencing when I first visited the LHS here. After a few purchases they kind of chilled out and started to be nice to me. I’ve since stopped going there because I find that behavior hypocritical, treat someone like a potential thief when they browse but as soon as the wallet opens, “how are you today, sir?” I can get better deals online (even with the shipping price) and I don’t need to worry about fake smiles or uneasy feelings. Sorry to hear that you’re going through the same, if you do go back, hopefully things change to your liking.

3

Hi!

Like any other kind of stores, “there are all kinds” when it comes to hobby shops. I’m 65, and have done a fair amount of traveling over the last 30 years or so, spending significant time in Illinois, Texas, New York, Virginia, Nevada, California, Florida, and a few other states. Most all of them - to the best of my recollection - were pretty nice, and met or exceeded my expectations.

Of course there were a few that I didn’t fully appreciate the experience. One relates to a very well known major hobby shop northwest of Chicago in the suburbs. I’ve probably been there 20 times or so, and a few of those times I felt like I was looked upon as a potential shoplifter. Given that I was a grown adult, dressed, looked, and acted decently, I felt very uncomfortable there. And of course, while the “regulars” were given lots of “proprietor time”, I was otherwise ignored.

Another “quirkly” hobby shop that I have visited many times is located “between Houston and Dallas”. While the store is a goldmine of stuff, most of it resides in “piles”, and checking out is always a major slow task. I found myself feeling badly when I left the store, and eventually quit going there.

Of course any store or business you can think of would have similar examples, and I must repeat that the vast majority of “train stores” I have patronized have been terrific!!!

For what its worth…

Mobilman44

4

I AGREE. Its so sad at the LHS they are barely hanging on, here in st L we have lost 3 in the past year and they were pretty decent places to shop and BS about all things trains.

My best experience was Henzes Hobby, i needed( which means wanted) a 6 axel engine…didnt matter what kind, but was unsure if it would run on my radius. i had only been in the store 2 times .

i addressed my concern and desire to the owner, allen and he took an engine from the case and sent me home to test it.

it ran great and pulled all my rolling stock( 50 or so cars)

I had it for almost 3 days

when I reurned it I told allen I would like to buy it

he informed me it was from his own collection and had been super detailed and re-engined and was worth about $250 (this was 1994=95 i think) It was out of my price range at that time

I asked him why he let me use that engine and he said I looked trustworthy and that he had no doubt I would return

needless to say I spent all my free time and money there on most all my HO needs. Allen would close on friday nights and about 5 to 10 regulars would hang out and work on his layout or run trains it was a great time before the economy died and took all of our money with it.

i would spend $100 easy. Also i traded wire, phone line cables and blue board( the foam insulation) 1" to 3" for supplies, track, engines and rolling stock.

now im waiting to see if Im going to be in this house after april 2010 before i start building my next layout

thank god for the queeny park show… i always get good deals there and still have 1 decent LHS that treats me ok

remember a is a and 1 is 1 and they cannot be what they are not

value for value is the only value worth valuing

5

Boy if this doesn’t sound like a train store on Rt. 35 just the other side of the Navasink river I don’t know who it could be…lol Am I remotely close? You are spot on about The guys up at The Model Railroad Store, It takes me an a little over an hour to get there and I can’t afford the gas to just drive there on a whim so my visits are not as frequent as I would like. Whihc may be a good thing because I save money this way…lol

Unfortunately where I live we only have one local hobby shop who specializes more in RC then anything else and his prices aren’t competitive at all but if I need some paint or some little do dad it’s not worth the gas to drive the hour north. I hear you on how some of these people treat paying customers and I experienced it first hand at a train store that is no longer in business where the guy was asking a couple of se a bunch of questions regarding garden railroading and was prepared to spend some good money. He wasn’t a tire kicker. I sw him get out of a new Benz and the Rolex on his wrist was worth more then I had in the bank. He was very pleasant and even asked if we would be willing to come give him a hand setting this up for his grandson who he just loved to spoil and was willing to pay us for our time. We told him that wouldn’t be necessary jsut buy lunch. Well the guy working the counter was just a gigantic jerk the guy just looked at him and shook his head and turned to us and said sorry fellas but I’ll spend my money else where.

It’s no difference then any other business I guess some individuals just lack the people skills needed.

6

Wow! I remember Henzes! Loved to go there anytime I was nearby. You

7

Unfortunately, “inventory shrinkage” is a problem in retail stores. So, store owners can’t afford to totally ignore the problem, but, I’ll agree that making everyone feel like a thief is a poor way to maintain a business relationship.

Not everyone is suited to a career in retail sales. The staff at my LHS, and another hobby shop I go to when I’m in that area, is very knowledgeable and friendly, even to people they’ve never seen before. Good business practices are important, but knowing who to hire and how to treat your customers is another big reason why some shops survive and others fail.

Support the good shops, and don’t mourn the poor ones when they shutter their doors.

8

I will go a long with Darrel about K-10 Model Trains. I am lucky to live with in two miles of the shop.

Cuda Ken

9

I have shopped in various hobby shops (train shops) around the Kansas City area for more years than I like to think, starting while I worked for Santa Fe in Topeka KS and drove over to KC for trains. I moved to KC in 1970 and have been here ever since. I have shopped at a variety of hobby shops in the metro area since then. Many were hobby shops with trains section, the rest are train shops.

One thing I noticed over the years at these shops was the attitude of many shoppers/modelers who came in expecting to find just what they wanted (needed) and were arrogant and abusive when the clerk /owner was unable to immediately supply them. I remember many comments after these people left the shop by the help about how rude and arrogant model railroaders were/are.

I suspect many hobby shops/train shops are caught in a catch 22, they want to sell products, they want to provide for needs, but don’t want a bunch of BS from customers when they can’t immediately get what they are looking for or for the price THEY want to pay. I don’t know how model railroaders compare to hobbiests in other areas, but too many I have observed are not people I would want to invite over for a session or a visit. There are those who are demanding and opinionated in all areas of life, but I have certainly seen more in this hobby than I would like to see.

So shops have gone away, product sales and distrubution has changed, costs have gone up, availability is often limited for the hobby shop just like the modeler. For example, go out to the ExactRail web site and look at how much is actually available. Same with Tangent. The market is there but it is costly.

So I use mail order for a lot, but I still visit Doc’s Caboose in KC nearly every week to see what is new, what is available. I pay the price he asks without comment or gripes. After all if I want it bad enough

10

I have dealt with the Model Railroad Shop in Piscataway, NJ for 60 years and find them to super-accommodating. My 1st train set was purchased there in 1950.

11

Hi Again!

In talking about hobby shops - the good and the not so good - I am reminded of a terrific artical MR put out about 15-20 years ago. It was in response to all us “train nuts” who though we would be in our personal Valhalla if we owned and operated a model train store.

As I recall, the article was written by someone who had done just that, and he listed the “ups” and “downs” of being an MR and running a train shop. Of course, the “downs” way outnumbered the “ups”!

I do wish MR would do an update or a repeat of this article, for it really told a story.

Some of the points that the author brought out were:

  • the kind of trains (i.e. scale/road/time period, etc.) are not necessarily what sells. I believe he pointed out that he didn’t think much of “Thomas the Tank” stuff, but he sold a lot of them.

  • he also told about the many types of customers, including the ones that wanted internet prices, bought stuff online and wanted his help with them, browsed and handled and never bought anything, complained about prices, and criticized other customers choices, etc., etc.

  • he talked about shoplifters, and how some of the most unlikely people can be thieves. My police lieutenant nephew has told me this a number of times - well dressed and good looking and nice personality does not necessarily equate to an honest person!

  • and of course he talked of the slim NET profit margin, the high cost of inventory, and the difficulty of second guessing the marketplace as to what will sell - or not.

Anyway, it was a great article, and it would be nice to see an update on it.

Mobilman44

12

And I can almost guarantee that the guy who sold it to you is still there right? A great little place for those of you who aren’t fortunate enough to love with in driving distance this place is pretty unique as far as train/hobby shops go today. First off the only sell trains and maybe a fire truck model or two but you can justify that by saying there for the O scale crowd. The first time I pulled in their parking lot I was like this can’t be the place, it’s a small stone building that looks like the trim hasn’t seen a coat of paint since JFK was president. When you walk in you are amazed at how much inventory they have almost everything you have ever seen in the Walthers Catalog is in this place. Not to mention all the mom & pop companies are represented too. I’ve been going there for about 5 years now on and off and steady for the last tow years and I’m still finding new stuff every day. Recently I had some work done on a locomotive up there and the factory directions weren’t in the box. I mentioned to the repair guy Don who is an ace at fixing trains no problem I’ll just email em to you. Ah they don’t have email and probably between the three of them they couldn’t turn on a computer…lol

They have a DCC guy who does sound installs like I’ve never seen before and their prices are very very reasonable. Heck as cheap/frugal as I am if I’m willing to drive over an hour to get there you know their prices have to be good.

You’ll go in there on any given day and you’ll see several BS sessions going on through out the store about this or that all pertaining to model railroading. Everyone in there is very friendly, very knowledgeable and not just in it for the quick buck. It’s just nice to find friendly people and service like that in today’s world where everyone just wants yo

13

I’m lucky, the folks at my LHS have always appeciated when I walk in the door, from the 1st time to the last time. Saturday I whipped in real quick to pick up a decoder I needed on the way home from work. As usual, being a Saturday, there was the King and his court jesters standing around holding court ( “expert” model railroaders I believe they call themselves) [:-^] Anyway, I grabbed the decoder I needed as was standing there waiting for one of the blowhards to shut up long enough so I could excuse myself around them to the cash register, One of the owners said, “guys, move to the side for paying customers”

LOL I loved it, he told me later they come in, drink the coffee and eat the donuts, page thru the latest issue with sugar glazed fingers, and then leave without making a purchase. There are clowns on both sides of the counter.

14

I suppose I’m lucky. There are two really GREAT hobby shops within a 12-mile radius of where I live that deal in nothing but trains. Just about all scales. Well stocked, with great help. It’s always a pleasure to visit them, and I always come home with more than I need (yah, RIGHT! [:P]). Prices are below MSRP, and special orders are usually filled within a couple of weeks.

Funny story: I was in one of them over the Christmas holidays. Two new clerks, both looking like high-school kids working there for the season. Very polite, very nice. I got what I’d needed and was handing my credit card to them over the counter. One of the kids looked at my card and then blinked, seeing my name.

“Are you the guy that has the Yuba River Sub?” he blinked.

Surprised, I said, “Yes.”

He turned to the other kid and said, “You’ve got to get on his Website. He’s got the most amazing collection of brass steamers I’ve EVER seen! And he RUNS them!”

I left the shop chuckling to myself. Good God, I’ve become a Minor Celebrity, LOL!

Tom [:-^]

15

My LHS treats people well, but the issue is that they won’t keep what sells. They are a mostly RC car/plane shop, so I try to keep that in mind. When I first went there, they had a lot of Atlas, P2K, Spectrum, WS, and other odds and ends and real good prices (I got an Atlas Trainman hopper and a Bachmann silver series flat for $16!!, they had 2 Trainman GP38-2s in BN at $50 a piece; really wish I would have bought them). The next week, all of it was gone and it was never restocked. A while went by, then N-scale stuff was put it, along with a bunch of low-level model power and bachmann cars. It’s been a while and all the low-level stuff is still there, but all of the good stuff is gone… Dullcote, knives, and other stuff is the same way.

Then there is the matter of 2 that I visit in Pensacola. One is great, the staff are all MRRs, they are usually helpful, keep of a good supply of stuff, have decent prices, and have a used box. I’ve picked through that used box several times and have gotten a bunch of good deals. However they don’t have a whole lot in the way of kit-bashing supplies, paint, decals, and kits… The other has kits, kit-bashing supplies, paint, and decals, but is usually full MSRP and is mostly suited to other forms of model building.

16

Speaking of good hobby shops…if you all ever come to Pittsburgh, A.B. Charles is worth a visit (or 8). I’ve never had a problem with those guys, even when it was over something that I’d screwed up.

For example, some years back, I was given a 25-ton crane by Walthers. Not sure why, but when I went to install the trucks, one of the screws sheared off…destroying the bolster. I attempted to drill out the offending screw, and re-tap the threads, only for the blankety-blank tap to snap too! What are the odds :stuck_out_tongue: When I explained the problem to the guys at the shop, after some good-natured kidding, they said they’d order me a new one, at no cost to me. They wouldn’t take a cent for the part! But, after several months (and eventually years!) the part still hadn’t shown up. I was a bit annoyed. In fact, the shop owner thought I was going to rip into him, and kept apologizing. He was literally freaking out over it. Until, that is, I told him that it wasn’t his fault, and I had no problem with him. In other words, my annoyance was directed squarely at Walthers :stuck_out_tongue:

17

I’m lucky - 25 minute drive from Model Railway Post Office in West Milford. Ray (owner) has to be one of the nicest guys out there and he has a phenominal memory of poeple’s names and of the such. He has a very nicely stocked HO store with some N gauge, and although he doesn’t have the cheapest prices around I don’t hesitate to give him my business as the shopping experience is worth the extra few dollars as is his help/insight.

18

Not pointing a finger at any individual but:

When you are in a hobby shop, particularly one that has a large inventory of RC cars, check out the customers as they walk through. How many are wearing their hat backward, or even worse, sideways wearing clothing 4 sizes too big with their pants far below their waist shuffling when they walk because it’s not “cool” to actually tie your shoes or wear a belt? How many have tattoos in the most interesting places? How is THEIR attitude? Do they greet the staff as they enter?

Then, having chosen to wear that uniform, they are astounded that store clerks watch them closely.

It has been my experience that when you treat retail clerks, wait staff, and others who’s job is to help or serve you in a friendly courteous manner they treat you in a similar manner.

19

As a business owner (machine shop) and hobbyist I’m always seeing both sides of the coin. Literally. One thing I can say from that perspective is that if you’ve been civil and still disrespected by a snotty clerk, TELL THE OWNER! If an honest shop owner has tried to carry a decent stock and is generally helpful and you just walk away, he’ll never know why. When his business fails, you loose a chance at a decent shop and he looses his or her shirt. (No comments on the shirt stuff fellas). If they’re not apologetic about the incident, NOW you have your reason to walk. I’m a business man, but I’m also a consumer. A good Hobby Shop can be cultivated by working with a cooperative owner. A good LHS is so core to the social heart of this hobby that if they die, we’ll all loose.

20

My LHS is like the one in the quote above. while not many experienced modelers congregate there, there aren’t a TON of experienced modelers in my town that I know of. It is a family-owned shop and the owners are also the storekeepers. While some items that I can get excellent savings online I buy there (locos and rolling stock mainly), I love visiting my LHS and stocking up on paint, scratchbuilding supplies, etc. And if they don’t have something, I can order it from either Walthers or the manufacturer through them. As tot he toy train store you mentioned in your post, they also carry, Lionel, Thomas the tank, model car kits, R/C planes and cars, and toys. There are stores of all kind sin this world, and it seems the ones with the best attitude thrive. I’m not sure how long the store has been here, but it ix definitely here to stay. If you ever drive through, drop in there. they also have a website, though I think the items listed are whats on discounttrainsonline.

It sounds like that toy train shop you mentioned will eventually bite the dust, as they same to have a downright crappy attitude.