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Hobby Shops, was RE: (erielack) New EL car from Tangent Scale Models!

There is something I don't get about hobby shops and their insistence in most of the rest of the
country that they "have to" charge full retail, or as in the case below, more than MSRP.  Here in
New England, or more specifically, in eastern Massachusetts, the norm is that there is a discount
from the MSRP.  Now, how much discount?  If you are the average Joe, who just walks in off the
street and has never been in the store before, you might or might not get a discount; different
stores have different policies.  Some no discount, some maybe 5%.

But if you're a recidivist customer* then the discounts at most stores are more on the order of 10%.
And if you're a member of a Club in the area, it's at LEAST 10%, maybe 12 or even 15% (that's a
little rare, though).  And this applies, generally, to the bottom line.  It doesn't matter if you're
buying MR, or RMC or a book or whatever, in addition to the models or detail parts.  My favorite
shop, a 40-minute drive away, even 10-percent's the special order stuff he gets for me.  And he gets
that more or less instantly, within a few days.

I feel sorry for you guys in full sticker price territory.

SGL

* Read: habitual repeat offender; I have designed prisons, so I know the terminology . .  ;^)

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Paul Brezicki [mailto:doctorpb_@_bellsouth.net]
> Sent: Sunday, November 09, 2008 7:14 AM
> To: EL Mailing List; Josh Blevins; Pat Moore; Paul Tupaczewski
> Subject: RE: (erielack) New EL car from Tangent Scale Models!
> 
> I doubt that Pat's referring to LCCS; at approx 125 miles, it's not exactly
> "local" for him. You're correct about their higher prices, but this applies
> to almost all brick-and-mortar hobby shops. It is one of the best in the
> Southeast (those who attended the ELHS Southern meet would attest to that),
> and they sure come in handy when you suddenly discover on Friday afternoon
> that you don't have the detail part, paint etc that you need for your
> weekend project. (For the record, I support them by buying some of my
> freight cars and books that I could acquire more cheaply elsewhere.) Lots of
> LHS's have disappeared due to mail-order/internet; there are none left in
> Charlotte (metro population almost 1 million) that cater to model RR. I'm
> not criticizing your opinion on this, it's a personal thing; I'm just giving
> the other side.
> 
> Getting off this tangent and back to Tangent, EL acquired 130 of these cars
> for service to ConAgra at Martins Creek PA. For the most part I gather they
> shuttled back and forth from Buffalo elevators, but what did they do outside
> of the Great Lakes shipping season? Did they carry grain produced in EL's
> Midwest territory, or did they supplement the SOO unit train fleet?
> 
> Paul, do you know anyone who has Tangent cars? I'm considering buying the
> 6-pack, as I need to add to my EL CH fleet.
> 
> Paul B
> 
> From: Josh Blevins <stillbre_@_yahoo.com>
> Subject: RE: (erielack) New EL car from Tangent Scale Models!
> 
> David has been trying to find shops to carry his product.  We've found a few
> shops that are willing to.  Train Masters in Duluth GA, Old Fort Model
> Trains in Old Fort NC, Antique Barn in Wilson NC, Des Plaines Hobbies in Des
> Plaines IL, Mike Rose Hobbies in MA, are just a few to carry the product.
> I'm assuming the local shop in NC that you speak of that refuses to carry
> the line would be Little Choo Choo in Spencer.  They say their clientele
> won't pay the prices and that no one is asking for the products.  They have
> a case in their warehouse but have never put it on the shelves.  They've
> marked the prices up to $50/car which is more than buying them direct from
> Tangent.  Just as well, I've quit using them anyway.  Gas prices have been
> too high to make the hour drive up there only to pay higher prices than what
> I can mail order.
> Stepping off my soap box now.  Sorry for the rant.
> 
> Josh Blevins
> Charlotte NC
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
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