Hi Robert

I have the little Bemo Mallet tank for AC, in this country, South Africa, it was a expensive item, the equivalent of about $800.00 at the time a few years ago. I must say it is a fantastic little engine, very well built, all the pipe work and other details are there even in the cab and all in metal. All axles are driven the rear engine unit is rigid with the locomotive main frame, like the real mallets while front engine unit slides side ways as per full size through curves. Mine runs absolutely silent with very good slow running ability, it comes fitted with a ESU lokpilot decoder and the slider is under the rear engine unit. This little engine only needs sound.

There is no room in it for a speaker, I might change the decoder to a ESU loksound V4 at a later stage and fit the speaker in a wagon behind the locomotive.

I am very pleased with mine,

Hope they bring it out in the preserved locomotive colors at some stage

You can view a few pictures of mine at

http://www.flickr.com/ph.../sets/72157625913676023/

Regards

Hannes

.

You Sir Hannes of SA make beautiful model train pictures!
Interesting to see you fitted Kaddee couplers!

Just visited http://www.micromacromundo.com/ for Marklin 2011 items.

Amazingly some prices are pretty close to Lokshop's...

I wonder when one of the bigger German dealers will break rank... still waiting for ETS prices.

You're right, they are quite close.





I'd laugh if they called Marklin's bluff. Maybe they might be prepared to take a hit with delivery times to get the volume sales. Of course, this is just me thinking out loud!

Some of ajckids prices are even better!

It is same price as 37573 on lokshop, The 37573 was 2010 new item.

It is also a 2011 New Item, with a RRP of 319.95 EUR

Just gives me an idea to the return of price transparancy on the Internet:

Why don't any of the courageous "rebel" dealers advertised TWO prices on their website?

ONE with 10% RRP for those who wanted quick delivery,
and the other with 20%+ discount with expected delay of ** number of weeks/months vs the above.

I see it, See other topic about warranty. https://www.marklin-user...68#post274468#post274468

You are so right Ray, we really do need more model shops to be able to look,feel, chat, and test. until then....LOKSHOP is the answer.
Joe

Looks like that this "brick & mortar VS online shop" discussion has gone full circle.

My thinking is simple.
The market should dictate how you designed your business model. And business models need to evolve to adapt.

You may want to tell everybody your "best" and "preferred" business model, but if it isn't suitable for the market, you are only prolonging the inevitable; as eventually the market force will crush you.

Maybe you think you can reinvent the market. Many people believes so and failed. Only the very few are successful in reinventing the game; but they certainly play by new rules, not the old rusty rule book.

Now we had discussions here before:

How many of us really think seriously that an MRR brick & mortar shop is a profitable and thriving business?

Do you want to be an official Marklin dealer - especially if you're outside Germany, knowing what you know?

How many *new* items in our inventory are bought online? How many do you buy from a store?

How many of us would not had become a Marklin buyer - had eBay, online dealers, or even more basic; internet connectivity doesn't exist?

Well, me thinks that the market has spoken.

Hi Juhan. BY having a business like Lokshop etc you will make money but it requires investment. Lokshop and others do not just sell model rail but various kits and other items. Much of the profits come from the smaller items like paints etc which are bought in shop.
The reason that the model shops in the UK dont stock Marklin is that there are very few here who want the product as Hornby is the big seller with Roco and Fleischmann taking the HO market.
Gaugemaster has been a good business in the UK for many years as are other shops including many in Scotland. It is a matter of giving the customer what they want and in the UK it is not Marklin.
I can buy Brawa here for the same price I pay in Germany and if Marklin was to provide the same consideration to dealers here then I would buy Marklin in the UK.
Having had many model shops as customers of my Bank over the years all have and continue to make money the few that have closed tend to be the chains with many stores and staff who know nothing about what they are selling. It is essentail now to have the facility to sell on the net and take credit card payments .. this again requires investment.
With Marklin not supllying the ebay sellers and not giving a warranty unless bought through an authorised dealer then this will put the ebay lot out of business (if you send a model to them under warranty they will have to pay for repairs themselves)
Many of the model/toy shops also sell computer games etc and this is the way to go. Model rail on its own is a dying business and I would not consider it as a stand alone profit maker.

dave

Hi all,
From another site:


Dr D

Well, model railways weren't the only kind of entertainment in the 1950's either. I don't really see computer games being at odds with model railroading.

So true, my local shop in Malmoe survived by being the distributor of Tamyia paints and kits and his daily bread came from that business... Unfortunately neither the shop nor the owner are alive anymore...

But it was always nice to go there and look & chat, buy model kits for the son, paints and occasional Märklin items or accessories... Had the principle to always buy something while I was in there, since he sometimes complained about people just coming in and looking at things... He was not a dealer with good Märklin knowledge, but it was always nice to be there and there was always something you "needed" to buy - may it be a Roco wagon, Preisers or such...

I doubt they will get tired of computer games any more than the last generation got tired of TV. But that's fine since the two hobbies are not mutually exclusive.

Who said anything about stopping the sale of Marklin online? Good authorised Marklin dealers can sell both in a shop and online. What I think is to be avoided (and I agree with Marklin on this) is the sale of new items by somebody who has no support infrastructure.

Independent ebay sellers who don't actually own a shop can offer you no guarantees about the origin of the product, no support if something goes wrong, and no support from Marklin either!

Ebay sellers can make plenty of money on second hand models. They should not undercut proper shops by selling new Marklin from dubious sources.

Ray,
I was still writing within the concept of Marklin marketing strategy.

This whole topic is about price fixing of 10% discount. Since online trading works on the basis of price transparancy, this strategy would harm the market, particularly those most affected are the official dealers themselves - who are bound by contract to Marklin.
So far I can't see that it would harm the grey dealers who has no contract to Marklin anyways - it may even create better growth environment for more of them clogging up eBay. Meaning: less competition offering >10% discount since the official dealers are now gagged. I guess we'll know in few months...

One can only assume that the policy is aimed toward leveling out the playing field between "traditional" vs modern dealers like Lokshop and ETS that can offer bigger discounts online.

As for the rest of your comment in regards to irresponsible "grey" dealers - I would agree that there are many that won't be able to offer the same level of support as a proper dealer would. The worst ones are probably buying factory rejects and selling them for a quick cash at "buyer's risk".
But this is the same with every other electronic or consumer goods that you can buy anywhere today - whether you're buying online or at a physical store.

Problem is, on the Internet, everyone can see the grey dealers' e-Bay shops. If they're operating a side street vendor, they won't be discussed here..

But sellers aren't necessarily "bad" just because they don't own a physical shop.

There are lots of accountable online retailers these days that don't even possess a shop, just a small or large warehouse.
This doesn't mean that they didn't bought from the proper channels,
they won't have the support system in place or can't provide for warranty claims.
They're really just carving themselves a niche out of today's modern retail industry -
and MRR is not immune to this development.

So I believe that customer should always have the choice.

I'll throw in another question:
Would Marklin accepts if a genuine person applies to become an official dealer if he intends to open an online-only dealership?

Would they be accepting if this turns out to be the future of official MRR dealership?

Edited by user 22 February 2011 13:12:02(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified

Just for the record, I buy mainly from an authorized dealer in Germany who owns a shop and who also sells a lot through e-bay. The two other dealers I've bought from on e-bay are authorized dealers with shops. I've bought from them because they have offered great prices. Often on stuff that Märklin has "poured out" on to the market. Lokshop seems to be popular in this forum. And they have given 20% discount. Have they undercut proper shops?
Are there really that many dubious sellers on e-bay selling new stuff? Who are these dubious sources supplying them?

And please explain to me someone, how are the MOBA-business going to be able to "feed" all these small shops? How many locos does a small shop have to sell just to break even? Märklin must find a cheaper way of supplying their customers in the long run. There simply isn't enough money left in the MOBA-business to sustain hundreds of small shops anymore. And through internet you can reach everyone and you can reach them cheaply. Service? Märklin already uses several "service-partners" so that can't be a problem.

As I've said before, I have nothing against "proper shops". But they have to make a living on their own merits. I'm not prepared to pay 10% extra so that Willie Schmidt in Kleinstadt can struggle along yet another year before the inevitable catches up with him. Yes I feel sorry for him, but that's how it is in the world of business. It's the survival of the fittest. Competition is what has created the prosperity we have today. It surely isn't without faults, but as Churchill said about democracy "it is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried".

I think it's a bad move by Märklin to try to interfere with competition by telling their dealers what prices to use (what does UVP stand for anyone?). And regardless if Märklin are dictating the prices or if the dealers have agreed to use the same prices. It's illegal. And for a good reason too!

/Torbjörn

Hi all,

It is not so much a matter of being not good; price fixing in any way shape or form is simply not allowed within EU. For those of you who read German, see this link:
German Kartel Blog
In short, it is a recent (2009) report on 3 companies involved in price fixing using almost exactly the same methods and arguments M is using. As a result they were fined by the Bundes Kartell Amt. Such fines would definitely kill a just remerging company like Märklin... I am still hoping M gets to read this before the Bundes Kartell Amt does...

Robert

Interesting, and no doubt correct.

I very much doubt if Märklin are even hinting at price fixing, they are simply warning their customers that sourcing their product from "unrecognised" dealers may be fraught with difficulties (for the customer).

I do read into all this that Märklin are attempting to "limit" their distribution to "recognised" dealers, and I don't think there is anything illegal about that. My experience on eBay.de is that some major sellers are usually selling off "remainder" items, like SOMO cars, and stuff that a hobby shop, or maybe even Märklin themselves, found to be dead stock, and can pass on to some eBayer at a discount. Probably a necessary part of the remainder and disposal market.

For example, it is not illegal in Australia for manufacturers/distributors to pick and choose through whom they sell, in fact, plainly discriminate. Not illegal at all! And if they find a seller bringing disrepute on their product or brand (discounting the price, poor service), they can easily think up a legal excuse as to why their supply line has been terminated. On the other hand, they can simply state at any stage that a particular product line, will ONLY be sold via such-and-such a shop or chain of stores, thus effectively limiting or stifling competition. Not illegal!

regards
Kimball

To each their own,
but it may pay to wait out rather than pre-ordering stuff for 2011 new items.

The market doesn't usually react very well to a sudden 12.5% to 15% jump in prices, especially in non-essential items like MRR - so the behavior of buyers and sellers this year will remain to be seen.
We've talked about buying second hands, Roco, Brawas, HAG , etc as alternatives - doesn't really matter. Every penny not spent on new Marklin doesn't go to Goppingen - period -

Stability of the Eurozone still somewhat a question mark (have they really averted disaster?),
Oil prices are pushing US$100, while food commodity is again also on track for record inflation rate this year..
IMO the wise and all-knowing Marklin management can't choose any better year to play out their huge gamble.

For us the lowly Marklin end buyers, this is a good time to catch up with items from previous years' releases.
AFAIK the 10% minimum discount policy only applies to 2011 items.
So take a good look at items from previous years - and stock up on what you can.
Chances are, they may not come any cheaper than that ever again.

(Hey, they may even appreciate to match new prices... just speculation of course)

Hi, Dave!

So can I.
But does the dealer advertise the big discounts?
In the search engines I only find offers for 2011 new items up to 10 % below RRP.