It's been discussed many times over the last years about the eventual demise of the Local Hobby Shop - due to too many middlemen in the trade chain (including the government) who all want their cut, then the actual shop owner who also has to make his profit + taxes, to on-line hobby stores with much lower prices which often include any shipping charges. And along comes the CoronaVirus, which forced the closure of many small businesses for an undetermined time. How many LHS's will be able to re-open? Will this be the last nail in the LHS's coffin?

One of the things our local modeling group has been doing to support the last LHS in our area is to use part of our “stimulus check” (where possible) to buy gift certificates for later use. Many of us have been periodically checking in with the owner to see how he’s holding up too. He’s doing ok for now, but the longer this continues the harder it gets.
VR, Russ

Bravo, Russ!

There are no FLHSs here anymore catering to model makers. There is pretty big train shop that has a few models, but not enough to warrant much business from me.

There is a shop about an hour away from me that used to be huge and had a decent selection of models listed so I dropped in. None of what they had listed was on the shelf. I asked the girl who was working and she said, "Oh, let me ask."

An old guy came out and told me if I'd call in advance he could have any of that stuff for me, but his business just switched to being online. He said his business is thriving, but it's all leaving on a truck.

So, if you have an FLHS still, I hope you can keep it going.

Hi Everyone;

IMHO; This Pandemic is or has going to be A World Changer; Look at just how many local business's who will not survive ! The local mom & pop hobby shop's were already in trouble before this. We are going to have to look farther into the future, and see if even the hobby is going to be able to survive !!!!! The main problem is that everything we source is made in just one country; And will there Toy manufactures able to provide there products, which makes model kit's in plastic ! The world is going to be Lucky if it does not go into A World depression, The Cost on everything is going to Sky Rocket beyond our control !!!!!

Stay Safe Everyone; MIKE.

Sadly, it is guaranteed that some more LHS will die with the virus. Like lots of other small businesses and even a few larger ones.

IMO, Russ is doing just about EXACTLY what some wanted and hoped people would do with the "stimulus" money handed out for free to most of us - use it to help keep some of our fav businesses in business by spending it there. People who put it into their savings aren't helping anyone but their bank right now - though many will likely pull it out later to spend when their other monies have gone. And don't mistake me, saving some for a later date when one's wallet is thinner is prudent, as there is likely to be a leaner period in the not-to-distant future for many.

I don't think Corona is any "final nail" in the LHS scene in general - small brick and mortar retail has been on a slide for years - but it is final for some. On-line is the growing way of the future. So, support your local store if you have one and you can! They could well be history for the next generations.

I think it's the online market that really nailed it for most small hobby/shops. I used to have a smallish model shop where I used to live, great owner, catered for trains, RC planes & cars but had a huge range of armour/ships/ aircraft from many makers, so would use that as my main supply when I needed or wanted a kit as there was always so much to pick from... then I went past one day and saw a closing down sale in the window (I admit I did go in and buy alot there and then) and chatting with the owner he said the ease of online and variety of sellers from shops online to individuals on eBay etc had slowly killed him.... Then a week later, shop closed. Real shame. Now I'm in Cornwall and nearest shop is 50 minutes away in Plymouth, but they do have great stock which is a bonus.. but online... That's what killed it all.

Around here the hobby shops started closing down in the late 1980'ies. Mostly due to a dwindling interest from customers, older customers started disappearing and the younger generations have other interests.

Only well managed businesses will weather the shutdown OK. But online hobby sales are booming for most shops in the US. If you didn't do online business, you are in trouble.

Also interesting is the impact to the manufacturing base of our hobby. Wingnut Wings has apparently folded (for now) since the rumor is their entire staff was laid off. They could be the first of many companies close for good due to the shutdown.

Unrelated to the shutdown, Steel Beach Accessories closed for good and Testors finally laid the Model Master brand to rest.

I think it depends a lot on the “niche” a shop is in. Our LHS (really, it’s 26 miles from me) caters only to plastic lovers, and carries a really deep line of kits, tools, paints, decals and aftermarket. He also has direct ties to Stevens International and other distributors around the country, and stays on top of what’s new in the hobby. As a result, he draws modelers in from around the region (and there are many in the local area as well, with strong IPMS and other club representation). He also has a strong representation in OOP kits, and keeps new stuff coming in the door. But, I also agree, the current pandemic and it’s effect on the economy has to have an impact— on the manufacturers themselves, Wichita will in turn affect the distributors and retailers all over. Not to mention the slow downs in the transport chain. So, it will definitely be harder to survive. Even for the mail order folks I think. WNW was all mail order (but was always a very narrow niche market too).
VR, Russ

Will some manufacturers permanently fold? I expect that that can happen.

But I do think that we will see others pop up whenever we globally get beyond this crisis...

Kit and accessory manufacturers are not like restaurants... Many chefs and cooks and other folks involved in running restaurants are now out of work, and owners are stepping away from what could well be dead businesses. Some, maybe many, owners will likely elect to move on to other things and leave behind the bruising they have experienced. The workers may well eventually find other employment, and so won't necessarily be available or perhaps interested in joining another eatery business. And eateries actually are venues for products - which are created and developed and prepared according to the interests and skills of the employees. When those experienced employees are lost, the ability of the restaurant to continue making its specific stuff may well shrink or even vanish. Think about eateries that you have known which changed hands and management... Some improved, some stayed about the same, and some became junk. When restaurants die, their products generally die with them and become lost to the future.

Model kit and accessory makers are different. Their current products are already engineered and ready for actual production. The designs have been completed, the molds and templates made. The current employees are actually using those real fixtures to make the products. The line employee skill-sets are not generally the design and engineering and mold-building skills, but more on the machine and process operator side. It's like assembly-line auto workers. They use the extant design and templates to build the cars. They don't create new parts nor designs.

When kit maker company x folds its doors, its on-hand designs, molds, and templates become salable hard assets... They remain in boxes ready to be fully resurrected by a new owner. So, even though the company has vanished and its products are no longer currently being made, chances are some new owner can come along and buy those assets and hire machine-drivers and packagers to quickly start up production of those same exact goods under new management. I see this as being likely in the post-virus future. Old companies will die off and old owners will quit the biz and move on, but their stuff will be picked up and put back into service by new owners, so the (desired) old products are likely to return into the market under new company names. We've seen molds get sold and re-sold among model companies for years. New owners who perceive a market for kits and accessories will be able to buy up ready-to-go molds and templates from defunct companies. Which stuff comes back is of course dependent in large part on prospective new owners seeing profit potential in reanimating specific products from failed companies. I think that we will see a fair amount of this after the virus - look at the past few years which have seen numerous new companies join the hobby and bring in lots of new kits and AM products... This has happened because folks out there see opportunity and DEMAND to be profitably met among us modelers. This will happen again in the future - unless, of course, we modelers roll over and quit and don't "demand" those products anymore.

Just my take, of course! OMMD!

Cheers! Bob

Howdy Y'all
I don't have many choices for a LHS. There's a Hobby Lobby 90 miles away, Hobbytown 90 miles away in the opposite direction and a real hobby shop over 200 miles away. When this is over I plan on visiting one or two of them and buying at least one kit from each. It's not much but everyone does it, then...
Take care and stay safe,
Don "Lakota"

Which one is that? The only ones I've been to up that way were a Hobby Town in Bellevue (Not bad as Hobby Towns go) and Bridgetown Hobbbies in Sandy near Portland, which I fear has probably been out of business for a while. There used to be a fairly good little shop on JBLM across from clothing sales, but it's been gone for quite some time.

The largest of our city’s few remaining LHS seems to be doing just fine at the moment. I was in need of some debonder last weekend to unglue a repair I had been trying to make on my daughter’s eyeglasses. They are doing what many businesses are doing, big and small, which is curb side pickup.

You order online through their website, and they txt or email you when your order has been picked and then you go there, call their phone line and a staff member comes out to your car and hands you your merch. You have either paid online, or you swipe the stripe at your car... kinda like back in the day at the local A&W!

The whole process took me less than a half hour from start to finish, including drive time to and from. Edmonton is a fairly small city for a provincial capital, about a million people and with the Covid, traffic was light and travel time on the main roads was quicker than normal.

I think the stores that will survive have already been changing their business model to cope with the ever decreasing global isolation, and ever increasing global market to the point where their “Local” nature is now broader than it was a few years back.

Local means global to a tech savvy business nowadays, and those that embrace that paradigm shift will thrive, even during a pandemic... after all, we’ve all been modelling more of late than normal haven’t we?

I too am saddened by the effect on local hobby shops. As mentioned before, even before the shutdowns and shelter in place orders, the local hobby shops were already in trouble. In my hometown, since the mid 2000’s we went from 5 hobby stores to now just one! (currently temporarily closed)

For now, my model stuff is coming from online, and I have been trying to find more “mom and pop” sellers, but it is hard. When my local store opens up and when it is safe to do so, I will definitely be making some large purchases there haha

Luckily the last remaining local store here dabbles in a variety of hobbies, so it draws a large crowd. I hope it sticks around!

Skyway Model Shop in Renton, owned by Emil Emmerich. The others are lightweights In comparison, the one on JBLM was an extension store from a shop based in Lacey and Chehalis WA, they carried some good stuff, but paled in comparison to the selection at Skyway and are long gone now. The two Hobbytown’s (Siverdale and Southcenter) are just ok, but they deal in everything, and again pale in comparison to Skyway. It’s the go-to shop (for just plastic) in the entire PNW area. Although Masterpiece Models in Vancouver WA I’ve heard is pretty good too, and I do know the owner, John Geiger informally, but have never been in the shop. He owns Masterpiece Model Manufacturing that does lots of movie prop and resin stuff. He also deals in lots of OOP kits, like Skyway.

Here’s my take on the direction of the hobby in a pandemic— if on-line retailers, the LHS, AND manufacturers have the wherewithal to outlast the economic impact of the next six months or a year, they’ll make it. But, the issue isn’t “outlasting” a slowdown as much as the impact of the loss of customer revenue and the base of dedicated customers. Simply put, if there’s no money going in the pockets of consumers, then there’s no money for luxuries like models, which means distributors and manufacturers will be left wanting. And manufacturers won’t invest in making anything if they can’t sell it. You can’t eat or wear models. And you can’t use them as investments if nobody has money to buy them. Let’s hope we can get the economy SAFELY rolling again sooner rather than later. The only way to do that is to isolate and suffer a bit now.
VR, Russ

That's in my opinion the right way to go for a small LHS: Specialize in a field, locate in a rather metropolitan area, and give some valuable reason to customers to visit you: Old stuff, brand new stuff, ties to the community, and the most important: Knowing what you are talking about! Being actually tied to the hobby, even building and displaying yourself, and knowing your field is the key I guess.

I mean take Andy from Andys Hobby Headquarter as an example: Who of us wouldn't want to visit him, chat with him and others there and eventually get a kit (or a dozen if it pleases ) and other stuff there? Or take MBK here in Germany: For their "Sommerfest" they are regularly overrun. They know their stuff, have deep ties to the community, always have some special guests there, are active in social media (just as Andy is) etc. I know, MBK doesn't have a front, they are actually an online-only-distributor. My point is: We are always looking forward to the summer fest to actually go there and be there in person!

And then still the competition will be there, no doubt. But those well run shops with ties to the community will survive and be supported by the bulk of us, I am pretty sure...

There’s a lot of wisdom from the above contributors & I’d just like to compliment all you guys for such sane, intelligent & rational discourse, the world’s getting very short of it - especially now.

Two observations. The first is that the moment we all started ordering stuff online, rather than through our LHS and waiting x weeks or months, well that was the beginning of the end for many LHSs. I’m guilty too, impatient to get the goods on the workbench. So if we’re looking for someone to blame for their demise (and this was well advanced before Covid -19) a lot of us only need to look in the mirror. There’s no other explanation given the explosion in manufacturers & products over the past 20 years or so.

Second, my last remaining LHS worth the title (HobbyCo in central Sydney) appears to be still doing OK despite paying some of the highest commercial rents in the city, and on two floors. Why? Because it has a pretty good online supply outlet too, and in-store has long diversified into (too me) incomprehensible modern fantasy/sci-fi kits yet also managed to keep excellent railroad and craft sections. The traditional aero & armour sections wax & wane depending on their ordering policy, but every time I go in there are typically 15 to 25 customers and most buy. Having said all that they’ll probably go bust next week, but I make a point of buying everything I possibly can there & would sorely miss it if it folds - I think we all share that love of walking into a good LHS & handling the merchandise, doubtless reminding us of our long lost youth.

I think you nailed it with those last words

Exactely! Could spend hours there and file through everything and just breathe in the whole atmosphere!

WNW shutdown like Steel Beach and MM was happening regardless of any shutdown. WNW parent company Weta was having local (NZ tax dollar) funding issues reportedly which lead to TVAL and WNW closing. The shutdown probably speed that up.

Decades ago I worked in an A&P in Southampton. (That's Safeway or Winn Dixie for many of you) I worked in the meat department. The head butcher told me the seafood section never made money - in fact lost money. They offered it as a service to the customers, and because many such stores don't offer seafood the idea was it would bring in customers for seafood who would continue to shop for other things.

The successful hobby shops I've seen have a similar business model.
My favorite, Colpar's in Aurora, CO. does a thriving business with RC. (a HobbyTown by the way) Their sister location in Lakewood appears to be more geared toward gaming. Whenever I'm in either store, there are always customers involved in those things, with the occasional dude like me perusing the plastic aisles. I've never shopped at either one without purchasing something.
Contrast that with TWO HobbyTowns in the Springs, one on North Academy, and one on South Academy. The North one recently closed its doors. They offered nothing extras, and their staff didn't particularly seem interested in the hobby. It wouldn't surprise if the one on South Academy was closed as well, as it was even more lame.
Same thing in Fort Worth - they just lost a HobbyTown in the past few months, and the one in Arlington shut down in the past couple of years. Plastic itself just won't keep them afloat.

There was a guy in Fort Worth who use to own three area hobby shops, all named Olde Tyme Hobbies. He used to say he barely made a dime on plastic kits - it was electric trains and all of the associated supplies that kept him afloat. (Well, until his arms got tires and all three went under.)
When I get home I'll look through my files for some shops that had some pretty novel ideas.

I can’t agree totally, Skyway is ALL plastic, no RC, no diecast, no trains, no games. He survives for precisely that reason (that’s what his customer base wants, and he’s fortunate enough to be in a large metropolitan area). He is also EXPERT at what he sells, and if it’s new, you’ll find it there. He also carries an incredible line of paint, glue, aftermarket, decals, tools, books and magazines, and lots of OOP or old kits too to suit just about any taste. He also lets Modelers exam kits before buying, and will buy or trade collections (if the trader/seller settles for less than wholesale). If he doesn’t have it, he’ll get it for you (with minor exceptions— RFM has been a problem for him lately). He also does big sales, clinics, and will mail order. This is why he stays in business when others folded. I worked in a similar shop, but we dealt in 1/9 figures and diecast as well, plus a little balsa and some high end RC aircraft and boats. We also did well, as we catered to the customer. But when the owner died, the heirs wanted to squeeze money out of the shop, so they reduced everything to just $$$- no customer service. The shop lasted about 3 months when the business manager and I quit. Sometimes there are outside influences that can also kill a good business (beside Covid-19 that is).
VR, Russ

Hi;

Now we all have discussed this all before; And there are all maner of reason's Why the Local Shops have vanished, Internet sales, High Rent for retail space, Shrinking Dollar value, Cost & Profit margins, lack of Customers, Lacation.!! These all are reasons that don't work out to A successful business ! We should worry about how to inject new Blood into the Hobby; And trying to get the Younger people to Throw Away there Game Computer's

CHEERS & GOOD LUCK; MIKE.

Ever since the closure of Model zone I have not been in a model shop for over 7 years.
I do miss the excitement of going there on Saturdays and looking at the kits and talking to the staff.
Think there is an article on the Liverpool store somewhere on this site.

Karl, if you are on Merseyside, have you tried the Widnes Model Shop? They have a really good selection of kits, wide range of manufacturers and some cheap kits on offer. I only know about it because I visit my daughter in Liverpool (obviously not at the moment!).In fact, even though I live 160 miles away, it may be my nearest LHS! I have talked to the guys who run it, father and son, who are very knowledgeable. They said a previous time I was there that they didn't have time for mail order/internet sales as they were so busy in the shop! They do however have a website:
https://widnesmodelcentre.co.uk/