My favorite LHS closing

Thanks for that great tribute.  In the spirit of your comments, those of us who have entered the latter stages of life could do well to resist "raging against the dying of the light," and instead be grateful for whatever gifts life has given us along the way, and whatever good that is still in our lives. And for whatever good we can still do for those we love and for the world.  Just a thought from an aging proto-codger.

Good for them.  My favorite LHS will be like that when the owner retires, I think.  But for me that is still many a year down the road, I hope. 

Sorry to hear that, Lee!  Your positive attitude towards it is definitely "refreshing" though.

-Mike

Lee, have you considered a 'second career' perchance?

We are in an era when long-time train stores, in particular, are going through this process.  It's to be expected because one does reach a point in life, after many years of labors, when it's simply time to move on.  It's particularly sad to see devoted and successful businesses close their doors, but folks also need to realize that even if a new owner was to take over the business, that does not necessarily mean it could continue for long.  Sometimes--perhaps even often--the owners ARE the business.

The business environment today, too, often makes the decision to retire a whole lot easier, and in part we consumers are the blame for that, along with the officials we elected--at every level--who simply make it difficult for a small business to make a go of it.

One thing is certain:  Every time a hobby shop closes it doors for the last time, we all are a little poorer for it, regardless of whether we live close by or a thousand miles away.  Sure, you can buy stuff via the Internet, but just wait and see where that leaves us in another decade or so.

Reminds me a lot of the stores I went to in New Jersey when I was younger. Kind of like losing old friends and never seeing them again...

Lee - I really enjoyed your remarks.  It sounds like we all have lost a great contributor to what makes this hobby great.

Art

Sorry to hear that, but it sounds like they ran it right.

If I'm reading between the lines right and the store was in a mall(since you said you met them for lunch there, unless that is an unrelated meeting place), that's an extra credit to them, that's a harsh environment not too many train hobby stores have been able to thrive in recently.

-Dave

I am sure they appreciate you as a friend as much as a customer. It is a two-way street (you should know that better than anyone with you great SuperStreets), they will miss their customers and I am sure it is the same for their customers.

Sure nice way to go out on their terms.

The hobby business isn't worth a darn, but that has nothing to do with the "business environment", or our elected officials. The hobby business is a lousy investment for most retailers because of policy and pricing decisions WITHIN the industry.

The business environment is rather immaterial when a small business is trying to operate on a minuscule gross margin, and that's exactly what most hobby dealers face when they are forced to discount product in order to be competitive. Add to that the fact that most dealers must buy through a distributor (even while they compete with retailers who can buy direct from the manufacturer), and it's a recipe for failure.

It may be fashionable on this forum to blame government for everything, but it simply isn't the case here. The hobby business stinks because the industry is structured to squeeze out small operators (or at the very least, to limit their success). This has been true for years and years, and modern developments such as the advent of internet sales and eBay have largely made the situation worse (although eBay can be a good alternative for a smart dealer who needs to generate cash from slow-moving inventory). One other factor must be mentioned--many retailers don't have the skill to run a successful business...and a low margin-low volume business like the hobby business is a very unforgiving business environment.

I was involved in the hobby business for a long time, as a retailer, and as a manufacturing consultant, so I have an understanding of the dynamics of this business. 

Jeff C

Lee, You are a Courageous and Kind individual and Your Comments concerning A Local Hobby Shop, An Owner with a Wife and Family, ready to Retire, is Good News. You may be losing a nearby HOBBYSHOP, but, hopefully Your friendship will go On for many Years to come.

It's true that many hobby shops are feeling the financial squeeze of modern selling methods...My Hobby Shop, ABC IN EVANSVILLE, In., has, like many other hobby shops had to go back to purchasing through distributors, but he is still competitive with the big Mail Order Houses....It's a place to talk to Friends, Get Ideas, get involved with those model railroad guys and girls and visit layouts together...

Yes, Bricks and Mortar do not Make a Business, it's the Human Factor, and that's what makes our hobby so much fun..

That was a Very Nice Tribute, THANKS FOR SHARING YOUR FEELINGS..

Leapin Larry

Dave: I can answer that question for Lee as I visited that shop in 2007: yes it is in a mall.  My wife’s cousin lives in Cary and her husband who is into HO took me there.  It was a well-stocked store and I can understand Lee's comments.  Also at the time I visited they had a large, nicely done 3-rail O gauge layout outside the store entrance in the mall.  That certainly attracted a few people into the mall and the store!

Too bad I didn’t know Lee then!

HTH,

Bill    

It's wonderful to retire based on your own terms and conditions.

The pity, is having built up a business, that there's apparently no one who wants to buy it. Selling the inventory is one thing. Being able to sell the inventory along with years of goodwill and a customer base is another. With very limited exceptions, the model train world doesn't seem to offer that to retailers.

Gerry

Sorry to hear. Life goes on for all of us in different ways, making different choices. Wishing them Good Luck in the future.

Lee: You would make one heck of a good store owner. 

When you sell a store you have devoted a long period of labor to establishing and growing, you are not only selling a piece of property and the inventory; you are also selling a reputation built up over many years.  Sometimes that can't be replaced.

Well Lee, at least you had the pleasure of the store for the years that you got to enjoy it. I would love to have a "train store" to physically walk into like we all had when we were youngsters.

Thanks very much for sharing this with us Lee.  This is so much better than the dooma and gloom threads on this topic.  

Best wishes for the retirees, and congrats on a successful run. 

-Ken

One thing is certain:  Every time a hobby shop closes it doors for the last time, we all are a little poorer for it, regardless of whether we live close by or a thousand miles away.  Sure, you can buy stuff via the Internet, but just wait and see where that leaves us in another decade or so.

Well said Allan!

I understand what you are saying, Charlienassau, but no, you won't be poorer for it.  You and M. B. Klein can expect an uptick in business because of the closing.

I'm out of full-line local hobby shops, and even some mail order places I greatly miss:  Ted's Engine House - Pennsauken, NJ; J&B Trains - Maple Shade, NJ; M&G Hobbies - Delran, NJ; Mitchell's - Wilmington, DE; Jim's Train Shop - Homer City, PA; and Ma & Pa Junction - Baltimore, MD.

When I need a hardcore train fix, I head over to Nicholas Smith in Broomall, PA. But that's about a 2 hour round trip.

Even though Justrains is still around, it just hasn't been the same since it moved.

Fred

Like I said, no real money for goodwill, customer base, etc.

It would be interesting to hear Jim Sutter's take on this.

Gerry

Tom and Len are the reason I returned to O-gauge after leaving as a teenager. They have a great store with a full repertoire of G, O, HO, N and Z scales, along with scenery and electrical supplies. I often visit there to get my scenery supplies with my wife, who loves to do our scenery. I bought my Legacy system and first Legacy loco from Tom, and Len2 repaired my loco from childhood days.

I will be in Raleigh soon and will make a point to stop by and wish Tom, Jean and Len all the best. They are a class act and will leave a void in my "hobby life." I knew where to find Lee on Saturdays, but now we'll have to find another "train station!"

Bruce

This is just further proof the world is going straight down the pipes tubes.

Sorry Lee, I couldn't resist.

Lee,
    I know what you are talking about, we lost the Iron Horse Hobby Shop, where we had our train club for many many years, a few years back.   The end of an era with Frank Hare gone and Dave at Bill & Walts down sized into the White Oak store, nothing seems the same any more, glad your friends could retire when they wanted. Too bad nobody wanted to buy them out and continue the business however, it's the sign of the times as Allan said, everything changes, our era is not 25 years old any more that is for sure.  Thursday nights have never been the same.
PCRR/Dave



One of the very last meetings of the Iron Horse Train Club, in Franks Upstairs office, at the Iron Horse Train Shop, shortly before Franks passing. 

I'll miss stopping by Tom's when I come back into town periodically. Tom got me back into trains while I was shopping for a gift for my father about five years ago.

I always make a purchase when I come in, looks like it'll have to be a bigger one come this spring.

I too have seen a few hobby shops close here in southeast Florida, one in Stuart and two in West Palm Beach FL. The two in West Palm being BT&L Railway, and 3G's Hobbies, the one is Stuart was Lee's Hobby shop. One more might close here on Lantana Rd. in southern West Palm Beach as he doesn't get as many people coming in to the store.

Tom the owner of Lee's Hobby shop tried to get me to buy the store from him before he moved but it was too much money for me to come up with.

Just remembered there were two other hobby shops in St. Lucie County that closed as well, one on Midway Rd. and one on U.S. 1.

It seems that the internet is killing off the smaller hobby shops lately. If you don't sell on the internet you don't survive today, at least in the hobby world.

The only other really decent hobby shop for me is in Miami FL, Ready To Roll, about 65 miles away, he does a lot of internet sales as well. Or I can hop in my car for an all day journey(there and back) to Daytona Beach for Roundhouse South.

Lee Fritz

I think Alan Miller was right when he observed: "Sometimes the owner is the business". The local train shops that I have known over the years which have done well -- whether small, or large like Milford Ohio's "Davis Trains", just were not the same after the founder and  owner were no longer on the premises, whether by illness, death or retirement.  So much of the attraction and success of train stores is built around unique, interesting, outgoing and friendly owners. Dick

I frequented Tom's when I lived in Cary and always appreciated having a local shop where you were welcome to browse and the staff was always eager to please.  Even if I could not find a major purchase to fulfill a need, I would pick up a copy of OGR or some other small item, just to show my appreciation.

The mall that Lee spoke of is more of a large strip mall, but does not get the traffic that a large mall would get, but these days, that too is seemingly in decline.  This mall housed a Burlington Coat Factory, a Northern Tool, and probably most significantly, a DMV office right next door that generated a lot of visibility. Still, it was easy to justify a trip there just for the Trains and it seemed there were always other customers there when I was.  The Holiday season was very busy.  

Coming through the front door you are greeted by a mix of nick knacks, railroad memorabilia,  and other gifts, and then its on to the small scale and O Gauge room, and lastly a room dedicated to Large Scale.  Yes, there was something for everyone.  I recall even seeing some consignment and PW inventory from time to time.  

Between this store closing and Greensboro Electric Trains (my favorite), it is a loss to hobbyists no doubt, but there are others in commutable distance on that rare occasion you need a piece of track or other item, but true, its a lot less convenient.  Perhaps when Amazon has drones delivering packages the same day, we won't miss them so much.  I do believe that Cary will be a prime market for that, but whether there is a store that delivers in such a fashion affiliated with Amazon will tell the tale.  That's the future folks.

I recall chatting with the proprietor of Western Depot on one occasion Up in Yuba City, CA.  My wife loves to remind me of what he said about owning a train shop whenever I bring the possibility of owning a shop myself... "If you want to retire with a Million dollars, Start with Two."  LOL!

And then there are sometimes wonderful things that happen when a beloved shop owner retires like Doug and Valley Junction:  http://www.dunhamstudios.com/valley.htm

Well, I spoke too soon.  I just got an email this morning stating that my favorite LHS will be closing after 40 years.  Sad for me, but I can't blame him.  Now I don't know what to tell people to get him for gifts as I always had people get me gift cards from the store.

Not that it matters, but may I ask which shop that is? I though AZ Train Depot in Mesa was the only place selling O Gauge here.

No, there are 3 major O gauge sources here in the PHX metro (You can sometimes find Lionel sets at Hobby Lobby or other retail stores.).  Roy's Train World and Burling's Ton of Trains are the other two, both of which I prefer over AZ Train Depot.  But Roy's is the one closing.  Roy opened the store 40 years ago because of the lack of a decent Train store in the Valley, and he passed it to his son Tim when he retired.  Roy recently passed and after much thinking, Tim has decided to close the store and do something else since that's the only job he has ever had.  This is definitely one of the places where the man made the store.  Unfortunately Roy's was also the place where I got info about local train events and the only decent source I know of for the other Gauges besides O.

Thanks. I've never heard of Burling's, so I'll have to look it up (does it carry MTH?). I have been to Roy's, but that was before I got into O gauge, and it's a real shame to see the shop closing. That seems to be the problem though with shops like Roy's, passing it on to the next generation, sigh...

Edit: I see Burling's is over in Fountain Hills and they do sell some MTH rolling stock. The website doesn't say anything about what track they carry, if any. Guess I may have to take a run over there one of these days, it's about the same distance/time as AZ Train Depot.

Burlings is an adventure all by itself. I was there about two years ago. Trains stacked everywhere. Plenty to go through. Have fun,

Bob

Yes, Burling's doesn't sell much new there, it's mostly stuff he's collected and resells.  It's like a bazaar for toy trains.  It's worth the trip at least once to just look.

As for Roy's, Tim took and ran it well for years.  He just has the foresight to know that the day of the mom and pop LHS is near it's end, so I'm guessing he's calling it good while the getting is good instead of waiting until their hurting.  Plus he's had a lot on consignment lately from estates or widows cleaning out stuff, so I think most of his clients are rather late in life and aren't needing to buy much anymore.  The younger ones, like me, are all tech savvy and can find what we need online.  The shop will be missed, but because the train community is small here hopefully our paths will still cross at events.

Well said, I think you pretty much summed things up for the fate of the LHS.

I am fortunate in that we take 2-3 road trips a year and there are some shops along the way, like Legacy Station and Summerfield's. I won't be in a buying mode though until I get my bedroom space next year and even then, I don't plan on buying all that much stock.