Why the fire sale of WBB engines?

I think you have answered your own question. They have new products coming, the GP30 following the 10 wheeler Baldwin is an indication they are upgrading the O gauge range. Little detail additions like what they did to the recent SD90's KCS and Alaska adding wipers, the new sound system, operating cars EZ Streets etc all point to them renewing the Williams image. I'm really looking forward to what they do next. I hope they start fitting interiors to their passenger coaches.

For companies, these "fire sales" accomplish short term goals. Do it enough, and the market just stops paying your price. Williams prices have shot up over the past couple of years. When products hit the market at regular prices, why buy? Just wait for the inventory clearing blow out prices. Is any train Williams issues a "gotta have" at regular price?

Likewise, another company runs 50% off sales pretty much constantly. Why would you buy their full priced products? 

I doubt the market has the will power to wait for lower pricing.

When you have 100 or 150 engines and some company issues something you want, ya gotta have it, and ya gotta have it now.

Nope, but I trust that sufficient numbers of folks are taking advantage of what appear to be outstanding prices.  You can be quite sure that the "sales" won't last long.

Williams did the same thing back in the 1990's. Still a great product.

...keep the rails polished...

It might be as simple as: they need cash . . .

However, they are modernizing their product line as stated above and I thought I heard somewhere they are about to add sound to some models, etc., and they raised prices alot on the new products.  They probably want to get the old, lower price products out of the market so as to not add "confusion" to the new higher prices they hope their improved products command.

BTW I took advantage and picked up a couple more ten-wheelers - going to try to make an articulated 4-6-6-4 out of them sometime down the road . . . 

I have to assume when I see the same dealers stock for a long period of time, things aren’t selling.

If you look at “completed items” on ebay, there is an over abundance of unsold items as well.

Williams is just now getting updated to be more competitive with nice features like hand railings.

The GP-30 is quite nice and I would think the price would be much less than MTH.

The other problem is Williams fault for remaining stagnant for so many years.

Now they have attracted more serious O scalers vs. the old Lionel crowd with the new features offered.

Why the fire sale of WBB engines?

When you sell something in a business, your goal, of course, is to make the most money you can.  You need to focus, however, on the return from all the items you sell and not just a single item.

As an example, if you buy 10 units for a $1 each, and sell 8 of those units for $2 and 2 of the units for $0.50, you still have made money on that item.  That is why most business will have sales, as they make money on multiple units of an individual item and when interest in the item has waned, they move onto a different item to sell.  That said, there are some businessmen, who think they should never sell an individual unit for less than they paid for it - these are the folks who still ask msrp for an item that has been on their selves for years and they don't understand the cost to keep that item in inventory.

Jim

Lee,

Sounds like a neat project.  Hope you share pics of it with us!

Jim

I think they finally realized for a lot of us a purchase of one of their products is dependent on sound .Who wants a silent movie? It'll be so easy to reprogram the true blast plus chip that it'll probably be in every williams product before Christmas.
Like I said before Kader isn't the biggest maker of toy trains in the world for nothing.
With them it's not the money it's because something new is in the wind.

David

I think that most of the new stuff sells steadily and those sellers that plan well see a fairly quick profit on their stock.  

For example, I check a couple of sites, most notably MB Klein, about once a week to look for specials and particularly new offerings that might sell out soon.  I notice MBK buys about 5 of most everything new that comes out from WBB, Lionel, or MTH, and usually they sell about 3 in the first two to three weeks, with many selling out within 60 days.  

The only stuff that hangs around their site for long periods is the rare/different railroads (I would imagine that the Maine and Death Valley RR, or something like that would never sell  . . . ) and then locos I would not expect to sell fast (unpowered DD-35, etc.).  

On the other hand, WesternDepot amazes me with what I hope was a profitable investment.  They still have about 40 of the original (thick metal chassis) K-Line Superstreets panel vans from '98, as well as many NIB original K-Line before Lionel tank locos and other things, tons of them.  Amazing.  Keeping stuff for 15 years is not a good use of cash unless you are making a big, big markup.  

With the really old stuff, like the original K-Line that Lee mentions, personally I would rather buy something is like new condition than brand new.  At least if it's like new, the engine can be give a test run.  With the new old stock its a crap shoot if the engine even runs.

Jim

The owner of the Western Depot, whom I've known since I was a kid, makes his money as a property owner of a number of commercial sites (including the complex where the store itself resides).  The hobby store is more of a sideline; a personal indulgence if you will, than as a serious source of income and profit, so he's in a position where he can comfortably sit on his inventory without a lot of worry.  He knows what he's doing, I can assure you of that.

Just as an aside, his store was one of the original select K-Line Superstores in case you didn't know.

My last few purchases have been Williams as I move back from TMCC to simple and reliable.  Any chance of pointing me to a few sources with bargain prices?  I might make a purchase.

Trainland and Micromark have some williams items that the folks are talking about on this thread.

Bob McBratney, the owner of Western Depot is a REAL GENTLEMAN and a retired Air Force Veteran.  They are the only model train store that I deal with.  They have a great selection of WBB model trains.  They are really nice people.

I like dealing with the Western Depot. I use to see him helping out his brother at Eastern Depot at York. I understand that he was very ill, how is he doing lately?

Scott Smith

W/WBB do not have the Gomez Addams mode:  6 feet, blow up!

Not sure Scott.  Last time I spoke with him was over a month ago, and it was a very brief conversation.  Didn't know he was not doing well, will have to give them a call next week.  I know his son and daughter-in-law have been helping out at the store for the past couple of years, the son originally ran a telephone sales and repair shop next door for the longest time.

I alway took this price delta from Williams and BAC like Furniture and jewelry sales.  List a high MSRP then your sale price with 50 to 75% discounts sound great.  Kind of like what RMT is doing.  I think your paying fair market for what you are getting.  If you pay MSRP, then you have been taken.  G

Like Dave Allen, I believe it has to do with clearing out old product, not just inventory for the new items coming out.  I noticed the price of 10 wheelers increase $20 while the sale on diesels and electrics is going on at one dealer.