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Future of brick and mortar hobby stores

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  • Member since
    March 2014
Future of brick and mortar hobby stores
Posted by BarrettDuke on Tuesday, March 11, 2014 2:55 PM

OK, so I've been visiting hobby stores around the country and here's my assessment of where things will be when the dust of the internet and the changing culture settles. Except for the rare exception, there will be five kinds of hobby stores left:

Craft stores, like Hobby Lobby and Michaels

Fad stores, dealing in the latest thing, like RC

Game stores, like Games Workshop, but some independents

Enthusiast stores, probably mostly dealing in trains because there is enough money in that to survive

General, franchised stores, like Hobby Town

Most of the mom and pop hobby stores will morph into one of these or disappear. The first 3 will have a models section because they get some customers but the employees will have little knowledge. The enthusiast stores that do scale models like ours will be hard to find. The franchised stores will be best for us, but they will be driven by the need to stock for what sells best not for specialty needs and they will generally not know our trade. We could do worse than Hobby Town, though. I was just in one in Apex, outside of Raleigh, that stocked pretty well for us. And we'll be really grateful for the internet, even though it will kill most of our favorite hobby stores. I'm probably not saying anything new here, but figured I'd put it out there. Your thoughts?

  • Member since
    March 2003
  • From: Western North Carolina
Posted by Tojo72 on Tuesday, March 11, 2014 2:59 PM

Your probably right,the small store can't compete with Internet prices,I have a couple nearby,but I will miss them when they are gone

  • Member since
    May 2009
  • From: Poland
Posted by Pawel on Tuesday, March 11, 2014 4:13 PM

In my town I see the hobby shops dying one by one, with exception of one that is going dual action - real life as well as internet. And that would be an option you didn't include - I see a lot of shops like that in Europe - with an inventory typical of an internet shop, but also gives the customers the opportunity to buy face to face. Other shops in my home town were, sad to say, poorly run. They used to annoy me before the internet, and after the internet arrived I didn't have to put up with that any longer. Examples: one shop I told the owner/operator I can buy a model on the net, but would prefer to buy it from him, as soon as he gets it. I waited three months for it. Other shop wanted to go online, but they decided to make the employee who was dealing at the counter to take all the photos "between the customers" - and so it all took many months to complete and in effect backfired. I miss those shops anyhow, but it's clear to see they didn't operate smooth enough to survive.

Thanks for reading and have a nice day

Paweł

All comments and critique welcomed. Thanks for your honest opinions!

www.vietnam.net.pl

  • Member since
    January 2013
Posted by jibber on Tuesday, March 11, 2014 4:19 PM

In the Detroit area there a just a few left. It's really a shame that a kid won't be able to go to their local hobby shop and see the models on the shelf and dream about these things. Like many other established hobbies, if the kids don't get involved this hobby may dwindle. It's really to bad because personally I think this hobby with all the new techniques, specialty items and really great kits is still just peaking. It's a great time to build models.  

  • Member since
    January 2012
  • From: Barrie, Ontario
Posted by Cdn Colin on Tuesday, March 11, 2014 9:16 PM

Kids are used to surfing the net, anyway.  I'm not sure if they'd appreciate browsing through a shop.  I know I like to surf and poke around on Scalehobbyist.  Lots more selection than my LHS on there, too.

I build 1/48 scale WW2 fighters.

Have fun.

  • Member since
    April 2009
  • From: Longmont, Colorado
Posted by Cadet Chuck on Tuesday, March 11, 2014 10:38 PM

Sadly, the LHS  in this town is only good for paints and tools and supplies these days.  Years ago, there were many LHS where you could get kits and anything else you needed for the hobby.  But that was 30 years ago….

Gimme a pigfoot, and a bottle of beer...

  • Member since
    February 2011
  • From: St louis
Posted by Raualduke on Wednesday, March 12, 2014 10:11 AM

The only edge they have that I can see is the  the social kind. Always fun to talk with other modelers and owners. Still have a few good shops in this area that I try to patronize,but some of the online pricing is too good to pass on

  • Member since
    March 2014
Posted by Mountaineer2012 on Friday, March 21, 2014 11:31 AM

There are 2 locally run shops not too far from me, so I consider myself lucky. One of them mostly focuses on arts & crafts, but they have an OK selection of models and supplies. The other one is much larger, but is more of a general hobby story (trains, games, RC, you name it). There is also a Michaels in the area, and a Hobby Lobby about 40 minutes from here, but I much prefer the local shops, if for no other reason that to support a local business. And oddly enough, the local shops have a better selection of kits and paints than either Michaels or Hobby Lobby.

There used to be a Hobby Town in the area, but I think they pulled out of this state a few years ago.

On the Bench: 1/196 USS Constitution, a cold drink, and a bit of a mess...

  • Member since
    November 2008
  • From: Jefferson City, MO
Posted by iraqiwildman on Friday, March 21, 2014 4:26 PM
I'm 47 and I grew up without a hobby shop around. The closed to me is in St Louis, 75 miles away, and they carry models, RC and trains, they are also on the internet. I had a Hobby Town about 30 miles away, but they closed 4 years ago. So I am stuck with using the internet a lot. I do like Hobby Lobby for paints and supplies, but their kit selection in weak and mostly older kits. I get excited when I travel to find hobby shops to stop at. My wife thinks I am weird. I also like to find tanks and planes on display.

Tim Wilding

  • Member since
    July 2004
  • From: Sonora Desert
Posted by stikpusher on Friday, March 21, 2014 5:20 PM

There are two superb traditional stores within a 30 minute drive from my home. Both are well stocked and staffed by folks intimate with the hobby, and have customer bases that will surely keep them in business for many years. One is smaller and more focused, while the other is larger and  has more diverse stock beyond our hobby to include die cast, trading cards, and various games. Unfortunately these two ( plus a couple others) are all that remains of a once thriving bunch of hobby shops that have dwindled here. But I do not see these two folding anytime soon. And I do what I can to help keep them afloat.

 

F is for FIRE, That burns down the whole town!

U is for URANIUM... BOMBS!

N is for NO SURVIVORS...

       - Plankton

LSM

 

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