Lionel not at the i hobby expo?

I am not sure why Lionel needs to be there...they seem to be on top of the world without doing another show.  MTH...smaller, less resourced company...needs to work at it all the time...especially with the Lionel onslaught.

After looking at the list of exhibitors, the common thread among train manufacturers is HO. Atlas, MTH and Bachmann all have HO product lines, where Lionel gave up theirs long ago. 

Even though there may be 20,000 consumers attending, that number is very watered down, because it is a general hobby show, and not train exclusive. I can see why Lionel wouldn't think it is worth their while to participate. Easy business decision.

If you were only going to do one show in October, would you pick Chicago or York?

Bottom line, know your audience.

I attended RCHTA, the shows name before it became iHobby, for many years. It was almost necessary for a manufacture and hobby shop owner to attend.  But this was pre internet days. Also the hobby business was bigger then....think how many hobby shops have gone away since the 1980's.  Today with the ability for manufactures to put videos on the net, e-mails and even virtual catalogs instantly and almost for free the need for a trade show is much less.

Add to it the cost to benefit ratio and iHobby is not as vital as it once was. If you will notice major players in the plastic model hobby have all dropped out.....some 2-3 years ago.

The last year I attended was 2001. I always enjoyed going.....I met many famous people in many different hobbies. (shared a Coke with Neil Young!) But to show how cost have gotten away........

I was waiting at a booth to talk to a salesman we had been working with....he was busy....I was tired.   I saw a stack of chairs next to the booth....thought it would feel good to sit down. I grabbed a chair and a guy started yelling to stop. Seems it was $5 for a union guy to get a chair from the stack and place it 2 feet away.  I stood until my salesman was done. When I relayed my story to my sales guy he said 'don't ask how much it cost to plug in a electric cord!!!'. This cost run away and the net make it more and more likely hobby trade shows will be gone very soon.

I am sure Lionel does not see the benefit in shipping everything from Charlotte, a week of meals and hotel, transportation and 'fees'. I don't blame them. The plastic model companies now hold their own 'trade show' on Facebook the same day as iHobby....cost??? ZERO

I went to most of the Chicago Hobby Expos during the glory days in the 1990s.The vendors displays were incredible.I went to the Hobby Expo last year and it was a let down.I will go again this year,something is better than nothing.I wish Lionel was there,but at least MTH has a small but nice booth.

Dan

Lionel hasn't attended in years.

iHobby is loaded with young families with kids. If all they see is HO, are they going to buy your O product?

There is zero chance of getting new customers at York.

I also have to agree with what a few others have posted above, like AMCDave, Dan and Russell.

Shows are very expensive and you need to allocate all your resources wisely.

As in FYI, Lionel WILL is hosting/demonstrating at the Chicagoland Lionel Railroad Club/LRRC open house on September, 27th. The iHobby expo is the following weekend. In this case, if I had to pick one event in the Chicago area, they chose the one I would pick.

Lionel can target very enthusiastic Lionel/3rail/3RS types or they can attend a show that MIGHT draw in a few new people but will cost much more for the show.

There are way more shows then manufactures so it’s inevitable that some shows will go unattended by our favorite manufactures’.

Wise choice in my opinion.

Charlie

Ever heard of 'Customer acquisition cost'???

At iHopbby I can see it nearing $2000-3000 per customer......that works for about one week and you close your company doors. Lionel knows what it is doing not attending.

iHobby is a show designed to entice dealers to place their orders.  That's when business is done.  Seeing most Lionel dealers have to go through distributors nowadays, it doesn't matter if they are there or not.

The fact the public is allowed in over the weekend is only window dressing.

Rusty

Agree, and with zero chance of making that up at York skip that show as well.

Exposure isn't always about new customer acquisition. York is clearly about playing to Lionel's base. Do you have any idea how many VL Big Boys sales York spurred. The forum lit up for more than a month. 

Lionel making trains for Menards is far better exposure than a trade show. 

I only have first hand info on cost from iHobby. But I'd wager that the cost of setting up at Youk is less than a tenth of iHobby.......and in place of 2-3% of those in attendance interested in your product I bet York is more like 90% attending at least look at your product.

Smart marketing....