When & why did Menard's start selling trains? There isn't one anywhere near me & I'm just curious about their stores & the history of their branded trains.
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Railroaded, I believe Menards has been in the train business for a number of years now. They sell them at their stores at Christmas time and on the internet all the year. Since they started they have added quite a few items to their stable of trains. I think CABINET BOB on the forum could definitely give you better answers along with a few others on here. Try posting your questions on the last Menard posting..........Paul
Menards is basically a home improvement store. When you enter one, you would not find it much different that a Lowes or Home Depot with whom they are competing against. They do carry some groceries and a have a fairly extensive pet center along with other things that makes them "more" than the other two. Go to the Menards web site and you can get a sense of what they offer. As for the trains, that is an interesting question. As Paul said, they have made some train stuff for several years. They teamed up with Woodland Scenic a couple of years ago to make a few buildings. It was last year though that they decided to become a bigger player in the market.
Why? My guess is that it was another way to bring folks into the stores to see how they compare against their competitors. The rebate incentive has gotten a lot of press on the forum as the only way to use the rebate is in-store purchases. But rebates are offered on many of the items in their stores not just train related things. The trains, I believe, are bait to introduce our small market of folk to the stores. I also believe that they have been surprised as to the success of this venture. And I have also a sense that it is fun. They have hired a wonderful liaison between their products and those of us on the forum, Mark. Mark seems just like the kind of guy you would want to have as a neighbor, always helpful, courteous, and willing to help. Menards truly seems to be a customer-centered model.
Rick
paul 2 posted:Railroaded, I believe Menards has been in the train business for a number of years now. They sell them at their stores at Christmas time and on the internet all the year. Since they started they have added quite a few items to their stable of trains. I think CABINET BOB on the forum could definitely give you better answers along with a few others on here. Try posting your questions on the last Menard posting..........Paul
So the stores only stock trains at Christmas time? How much stock does the average store carry?
Ranger Rick posted:Menards is basically a home improvement store. When you enter one, you would not find it much different that a Lowes or Home Depot with whom they are competing against. They do carry some groceries and a have a fairly extensive pet center along with other things that makes them "more" than the other two. Go to the Menards web site and you can get a sense of what they offer. As for the trains, that is an interesting question. As Paul said, they have made some train stuff for several years. They teamed up with Woodland Scenic a couple of years ago to make a few buildings. It was last year though that they decided to become a bigger player in the market.
Why? My guess is that it was another way to bring folks into the stores to see how they compare against their competitors. The rebate incentive has gotten a lot of press on the forum as the only way to use the rebate is in-store purchases. But rebates are offered on many of the items in their stores not just train related things. The trains, I believe, are bait to introduce our small market of folk to the stores. I also believe that they have been surprised as to the success of this venture. And I have also a sense that it is fun. They have hired a wonderful liaison between their products and those of us on the forum, Mark. Mark seems just like the kind of guy you would want to have as a neighbor, always helpful, courteous, and willing to help. Menards truly seems to be a customer-centered model.
Rick
Do they have outside venders making the trains & sending out orders? I placed an on line order & they sent me a statement saying that the "vender was filling my order." I didn't really get what they meant by that.
Sounds like Menards is contracted with various train vendors, which when an order is placed with Menards, they have it "drop-shipped" from the vendor's warehouse. This minimizes shipping costs and inventory costs.
TM Terry posted:Sounds like Menards is contracted with various train vendors, which when an order is placed with Menards, they have it "drop-shipped" from the vendor's warehouse. This minimizes shipping costs and inventory costs.
No, all orders are shipped from Menerds warehouse via Fedex,Speedy Delivery or Ups,etc.
To try to answer both questions...as was stated, Menards does not normally carry a lot of train stuff through most of the year. Many stores remove anything train related off of shelves, others may have some train stuff and store the rest away. They make room for spring, summer, and fall stuff. They do have an inventory list on-line that you can see if a particular store has anything at that time. Again to remind everyone, they are not a train store. But all of the items that have not been sold out are available on-line. Just go to their website.
As for "vendor", it has been postulated who actually is making the cars for Menards. So, although the language is a bit ambiguous, the vendor must supply Menards with the train items. At least that is my best explanation.
Rick
I have heard that through the Lionel NASCAR connection Menard Sr got interested in trains......the rest is history. Lionel via their NASCAR die cast div made some of the first Menard's die cast cars when Paul started driving.
Since Menards is a home improvement/supply store, that just happens to carry O guage train items AND the necessary materials to build a layout...why do they not offer a "starter layout" and "layout expansion" kits? These would be the necessary materials (2X4, 1X4, homosote, plywood, screws, electrical wiring, switches, etc.) to build your bench work AND the tubular track to make a basic (or more complex) layout.
The basic set could be a simple 4X8 size and the expansion set can change that into a 4X16 or 8 X20 or ?? By adding more expansion "kits" you can grow your O gauge empire!!! There is no special inventory needed, just aggregate the needed component SKU's into a database (like the Menards deck and garage kits) and let the consumer choose what they like.
To me this is a Marketing 101......1st day of class lesson. Hey MENARDS........LEVERAGE the goods you currently carry to EXPAND your market base and profits!!! If anyone at Menards needs some schooling on "how to" do this........I will trade my time to "train" your people for train cars........(Pun Intended!!!)
Ranger Rick posted:Menards is basically a home improvement store. When you enter one, you would not find it much different that a Lowes or Home Depot with whom they are competing against. They do carry some groceries and a have a fairly extensive pet center along with other things that makes them "more" than the other two. Go to the Menards web site and you can get a sense of what they offer. As for the trains, that is an interesting question. As Paul said, they have made some train stuff for several years. They teamed up with Woodland Scenic a couple of years ago to make a few buildings. It was last year though that they decided to become a bigger player in the market.
Why? My guess is that it was another way to bring folks into the stores to see how they compare against their competitors. The rebate incentive has gotten a lot of press on the forum as the only way to use the rebate is in-store purchases. But rebates are offered on many of the items in their stores not just train related things. The trains, I believe, are bait to introduce our small market of folk to the stores. I also believe that they have been surprised as to the success of this venture. And I have also a sense that it is fun. They have hired a wonderful liaison between their products and those of us on the forum, Mark. Mark seems just like the kind of guy you would want to have as a neighbor, always helpful, courteous, and willing to help. Menards truly seems to be a customer-centered model.
Rick
Highly unlikely Menards started a train line to enhance store traffic. O gaugers are not that numerous or important to make a difference, especially if you consider Menards operates in the Midwest and plain states primarily. Most stores only stock trains for about three months and with dwindling supplies for most of that time.
No, it's more likely because John Menard has been a toy train enthusiast who saw an opportunity to participate in the hobby as a manufacturer primarily through online sales. (Remember, most products are announced after the seasonal stocking is done or long before it begins again.)
Naturally, he did it his way, finding the most cost-effective approach to make the venture profitable yet affordable.
More subjectively, I have to say Menards stores are much more vibrant than either Lowes or (especially) Home Depot. Much less like a warehouse and much more like a department store, albeit with hard goods instead of soft goods. I have always especially liked the lighting department, though the seasonal department in the newer stores are certainly a highlight.
Railroaded posted:When & why did Menard's start selling trains? There isn't one anywhere near me & I'm just curious about their stores & the history of their branded trains.
To answer your first question, Why, John Menard is a train guy. Menards started in the mid 2000s at Christmas with an exclusive Lionel set. They added Lionel flat cars as separate sale items that featured different loads, Menards Impala SS stock car, Menards truck cab, Menards trailer are the ones I have. The Lionel sets I know of start in 2005, that is the first I have. WC 442 steam freight, CNW 442 steam freight , CNW 442 steam passenger, WC 442 steam passenger, CNW 040 steam freight, MILW 040 steam freight, SOO RS3 diesel freight. I think there was a WC (GP38?) diesel but I missed getting that one. The SOO may have been the last Lionel in 2013? In 2010 or 2011 they started with the Menards branded separate sale cars. Lighted pick-up truck, trailer, sign. Non lighted cars with concrete block pallets and other building materials followed. They had some coupler problems at that point. The newer cars have been a step up in quality. Menards listens to customer feedback and has improved the trucks and couplers. My local store, Monona Wi, has a 1/2 aisle with trains year round. Unfortunately, they don't put any of the new releases that are shown here week to week. Usually around October the new items show up in store. Madison East now has very little at Christmas and nothing now. That used to be the biggest store in the Madison area, now is the smallest and will be closing in the near future as they are building a large store in near by Sun Prairie.
