Model Train Journal

Lionel Trains Retail Store Tour! Concord, NC

Watching the video saved me a trip to Concord.

Looks like they made a major investment in setting up that store.

And a massive inventory of product. I like watching the layout run.

That layout kinda looks like the one that was at FAO Schwarz in New York a few years ago

Didn’t Murph work on one of the layouts at FAO or Macy’s, probably a decade or so ago?

I think he refurbished the one at FAO. That's what reminded me of the one in the video.

Wow! What fun and Will and his girl did a nice job on the video. 1441.00 for the Greenbrier really looked like a good deal considering some of Lionel’s current pricing. He mentioned 30% off on some inventory, too bad it’s a little far for me to drive.

Greg, just hire about 10 guys to go up and do a smash & grab. Pay 'em pennies on the dollar. One of them might have what you want.

Mitch wrote:Greg, just hire about 10 guys to go up and do a smash & grab. Pay 'em pennies on the dollar. One of them might have what you want.

I don’t think they even lock you up for anything under 900$

Neil & George need to see this. Lionel seals the grave. MTH engines with Lionel Legacy!

jlong wrote:Neil & George need to see this. Lionel seals the grave. MTH engines with Lionel Legacy!

I'm not so sure. Back in 2006, MTH introduced those beautiful PRR I1s Decapods (PS2) in their catalog. I had a pre-order for one until I gave up on DCS and cancelled it. Since then, no one brought out a Decapod until Lionel introduced them in their previous catalog. Those are MTH shells running Legacy, which is about as good as it gets (although very pricey). Mike has been selling his Premier tooling to all comers (Lionel, Atlas).

I don't think MTH is dead yet. Mike's chaotic "going out of business" odyssey (2020-2021) resulted in an alternative (and profitable) business model. Frankly, I think he fell into **** and came out smelling like a rose. He's a partner (maybe the controlling one) in 3 businesses - MTH Trains, DCS Sales & Service , and Parts. He gets to ditch the catalog, warehouse, inventory, QC (not that there was much of that), and warranty (now carried out by the stores with parts paid for by MTH, no compensation for repair time), and he goes to the bank regularly. And he gets to use up all the inventory and remaining tooling making special runs for the big distributors. In the process he also killed those train stores who were foolish enough to put all their eggs in the MTH basket. "Hey Flounder, you f***** up, you trusted us."

No, he's not dead yet. That would take a wooden stake through the heart (and a ton of garlic).

George

Clearly not remotely dead yet. But totally transformed from one of the two major players in three rail O gauge to another fringe player. Still supplying locomotives and rolling stock to existing hobbyists. MTH appears to have essentially vanished from all but a much reduced number of storefront hobby stores with no sets produced for many years, and high volume sales entirely a thing of the past. A boutique operation.

The field is pretty much left to Lionel for whatever exists of higher volume sales, full range of products, new tooling, innovation, etc. Mike Wolf certainly had a substantial impact on the hobby, challenged the leader effectively and made himself a small fortune. But he never achieved his dream of owning Lionel, and MTH will possibly disappear when his remaining few employees retire. Maybe the parts operation will continue for a good while as Mike Reagan is relatively young and energetic. But I'd guess MTH itself as a supplier of locomotives, rolling stock, transformers, etc. and the DCS operation in the midwest will likely dwindle or die in the coming decade or so. Time will tell.

All this stuff is almost as amusing as back in the days of the BIG lawsuit over on OGR.

E7 wrote:All this stuff is almost as amusing as back in the days of the BIG lawsuit over on OGR.

You mean like Neil poking at MTH foamers with the truth and watching the place implode with mach 5 butthurt?? That was hilarious to say the least.

As best I recall it was pretty much ALL foamers.

I think it's more interesting to compare Lionel's retail approach to Menard's retail approach. I wonder which one sells more trains per sf of store devoted to trains?

Chris Webster wrote:I think it's more interesting to compare Lionel's retail approach to Menard's retail approach. I wonder which one sells more trains per sf of store devoted to trains?

I think that's a great question, but don't forget that Lionel's starter sets are very popular. If my experience at Hobby Express was any indicator, the starter sets are way more popular (and affordable) than your high-end, display case locomotive. In that regard, Menards may sell a lot of cars and track, but they don't have starter sets. In fact, except for a couple of "beta" locomotives, they don't have engines for sale at all in any sort of volume.

George