News from LCT

So, as I understand this, the price will be higher when the consumer orders any of these products direct from MTH? 

Good enough reason to support your local LHS when and where possible.

P.S. I cut/pasted this over to the S-Scale Trains forum.  Seems important to spread the word.

Rusty

What about an LHS that charges full retail for tinplate items now? Is there an incentive for those prices to come down?

I will continue to support the dealers I now do business with.

This direct-to-consumer thing seems to be a growing trend in the hobby (other firms have already been using this marketing strategy in one form or another), and even though I understand the reasoning behind it, I personally do not see it as being anything particularly beneficial to the hobby over the long term.

This should be interesting!Pay MSRP and shipping?

Gunny

Allan,

You are absolutely correct.  I have just a couple of stores to buy from now and I'll continue to do so.  I get reasonable pricing from these folks and excellent service.  I will continue to stay away from ebay and other pseudo shops.

Norm

I find it disturbing.  

Sales of tractors are down.  Do you see John Deere bypassing their dealers to take direct orders at the factory?

Car sales are down.  You think Ford dealers would put up with Ford Motor Company making retail sales from the factory?

Even with the (theoretically) higher price, this still undercuts the LHS.

For those like me with no local train store, what's wrong with a telephone call and mail order from an established LHS?  That's how I do business.  This action is trying to take the business away from retail stores.  IMO, MTH is just trying to claw back some $ from its retailers.  

Seems like MTH is just trying to increase their sales. Not sure that this will make much of a difference.

The problem with niche markets like tinplate and S Gauge is that the market is so small that most dealers can't afford to or choose not to carry the product. Also, tinplate, especially Standard Gauge is rather expensive.

I've also noticed that LCT items are in stock at MTH for a longer period of time than in the past.

I have recently ordered LCT from a local dealer who normally doesn't carry tinplate because I know that he can use the business. He gives me a good discount (probably MAP) and both of us are happy. If an item is out of stock at MTH, I order it from an out of town dealer. I'll continue to do this. I'd rather let the dealers make some of the profit.

BTW, I see that MTH is discounting pre-orders about 12%. Shouldn't affect dealers at all.

The problem with niche markets like tinplate and S Gauge is that the market is so small that most dealers can't afford to or choose not to carry the product. 

I think this is the main explanation. There just aren't a lot of stocking dealers in tinplate, S, and MTH One Gauge, so MTH is creating another outlet. It may actually help the dealers in the long run by expanding the market. I doubt many customers are going to switch from their dealer to direct, unless they are already unhappy with the dealer. Personally, I'm quite happy with Justrains and Jason's and will continue to order from them. (We have no LHS that sells MTH where I live.)

Weaver and Atlas have been selling direct for a long time, for the same reason. 

I don't see it that way at all.  I, like many here, prefer to buy from a local dealer or even a distant dealers that we order from online or by phone.  I don't see any of that changing...I know for a fact that it won't change in my case.

I'm not sure that direct-to-consumer sales do a whole lot to expose potential new entrants to the hobby (if they don't see something, they often won't even know it exists), but I suspect that there will be a sufficient number of dealers around who will still stock tinplate items, just as they have in the past.  And you can be absolutely sure that those who sell online already will not be adversely affected, especially if their pricing is reasonable and their service is good.

As a tinplate fan I’ll continue to buy my LCT items from various dealers. However, as mentioned in some other threads I’m not seeing a whole lot for me in the latest catalog. And, frankly, I’m still waiting on a couple of pre-orders from last year.

Also agree with a few comments above about inventory. I’ve seen several dealers holding the same items in stock 2 and 3 years after their release.