Two months ago I was told that the new owners were mainly focusing on Young people...even that it will be their main target.
After all Samba Dickie , etc. , is a toy manufacturer...they were always making toys....and now they still want to make toys...with My World range and Hobby range...
...this news didn't make me so happy. I Wonder what'll be happening with "Train Model" ....(the one for people "above 15 years old"..)

Yesterday during lunchbreak i stepped into the Maerklin shop in the centre of Rotterdam as i have done many times before.
This time to see if the new catalogue was there,nope it was not.
Walking around in the shop i became to realize that Maerklin are on the wrong track.
The shop was very deserted,only a couple of elderly men (50 plus) like me walking around.
The salesprices not giving an inch away,all Maerklin recommended prices,sky high that is.
The presentation i found poor,a large number of models packed together in too small glass cupboards.
I overheard a conversation between the senior salesman and a potential buyer saying he could also opt for Roco,no attempt was made to sell the Maerklin brand specifically.

As a general comment i dare to say that the price setting of M is far too ambitious,M really needs to get down to earth again with Roco/Piko style pricing,perhaps giving in on high detailing of models.
I foresee a return of the good old Hobby assortment,trains at a fair price,holding enough detail to satisfy most.
In my humble opinion there is no need to digitalize everything with resultant prices to go with it.
Young people simply are not prepared to pay such money.

On trains in general:in Holland trains are looked at as relics of the past,the general public is not very fond of trains.
Trains are a way to get to work or bring your laundry to your mother over the weekend,that is all,nothing sexy about them.
The Fyra debacle has not helped the public to change to a more positive opinion about trains.
Freight trains are totally invisable for the public,they run at night and how stuff arrives in shops is everybodies guess.
How are M going to sell expensive modeltrains in such a society?

My (two) pennies worth....

Paul.

Edited by user 16 November 2013 14:20:50(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified

I think, as many of the responses given already, that it is necessary for Märklin, actually for the whole industry, to attract new customer groups in younger generations. Otherwise Märklin (and others) will go out of business in the coming 25 to 30 years as the 50+ generations that Paul mentions wandering around in the Rotterdam shop will not be there anymore. I'm 58 myself and since our generation will not be around much more than another 25 to 30 years and there is also a limit to how many versions of the same BR steam, diesel or electric lok I need (or want, even if I don't need it). For that reason I think it is the right strategy to try to fill the gap between "my world" and hobby or exclusive models in order to keep the interest of children when growing past five or six, which I believe is the age at which they may consider "my world" too childish to play with.

I could also make a quote from an earlier post that I made in Mehmet Utkan's excellent reporting from the IMA and Märklin-Tage in Göppingen September 13th - 15th:

"... The only person I knew from before that I met was the owner of Trainshop (URL www.trainshop.se) who introduced me to some people from Märklin and to Mr Michael Sieber, the CEO of the Simba Dickie group and with whom I had the opportunity to have a short talk.

Mr Sieber seemed very dedicated to continue building trademark recognition for Märklin, Trix and LGB by continuing the path started by My World, but he would like to take that further to make the Märklin, Trix and LGB trademarks household names in virtually every child's brain and at the same time not lose track of the older collectors and those who run their model trains on layouts. He mentioned that Lego, with their Duplo trains sold very well and that Lego as a trademark now sell Lego Technic to adults and that Lego to a great deal can thank the trademark recognition that was built up when these adults were children.

So to summarize, I got the impression that Märklin has a new owner who understands the traditional value of Märklin, but also the necessity to put the Märklin group products back in the children's rooms. Furthermore, Mr Sieber also pointed out that he is businessman and that he of course wants to make the Märklin group profitable and to continue to be so in the long run.

.... "

Interesting topic!
Wether we like it or not, Märklin NEEDS to go this way, if they want to stay around.
-And anyway I like it! I have little love for perfect reproductions with expensive electronics and fragile details, if they run poorly on my layout, looses bits and pieces when you touch them, and is generally out of my economic range. -And I suppose many people are in THAT boat too. -And certianly beginners will not want to spend too much money on spitzenmodelle right from the start.

I would rather see Märklin as a household brand; extensive and well known with a huge pressence in the shops, rather than a marginal creme-de-la-creme product exclusively for the minority.
I grew up with fair-priced Märklin (in the 80´ies). My basement is full of the stuff, and I would like to continue that way.

Anyway... What we want/like doesnt really matter. At the end if will come down to simple market demand. I am sure that Simba-Dickie are in a very strong position to know what the market will demand in the future.

Sorry, my fault. Should have read more carefully.
He's not the CEO there, but as an owner he is presumably in a position to fire any CEO who does not act as intended.

No problem Tom.

I have a question, which perhaps is easier to find information about in Germany.

Background

On the Internet-pages of the SIMBA DICKIE GROUP a large number of toy brands are listed and in the press release section also Märklin is listed otherwise not as far as I can see. In that section only the press release on the takeover of Märklin is to be found. In that press release it is stated " ... Michael Sieber übernimmt mit der von ihm und seinem Sohn Florian gegründeten Sieber & Sohn GmbH & Co. KG den Modelleisenbahnhersteller Märklin. ... " (Michael Sieber takes over the Model railway manufacturer Märklin via the Sieber & Sohn GmbH & Co. KG which was founded by him and his son Florian). Under the "Management" there is also mentioning of (below a photo of the management team): " ... Firmeninhaber Michael Sieber (CEO, Mitte) ... " (Company Owner Michael Sieber (CEO, middle) ).

In Sweden some company information is publicly available from the company registration office and there are also a number of Internet sites where such information can be found free of charge (other require a subscription). If there is a similar situation in Germany (or in Bayern and/or Baden-Würtemberg) could you shed some light on:

The question

Is the ownership relation known of SIMBA DICKIE GROUP, for instance is it also owned by Sieber & Sohn GmbH & Co. KG or directly by Mr Michael Sieber?

An answer may give information on how closely linked the groups are and that may for instance have an impact on marketing and logistics for "my world" and "Märklin start-up" and if it could be done jointly with other SIMBA DICKIE brands for Märklin products to be sold in toy stores.

Hi all,

Great topic ! I also think that it is now right time to try to get younger new generation Märklinist to join into this wonderful hobby. Otherwise Märklin will not survive when older age collectors don't buy anymore expensive models later after around 15-25 years. I'm sure that they will still produce some high-end products for collectors. It is a welcome change if more people will know what Märklin is. I still hope that this new product line will have well detailed models and they don't look like plastic toys. I buy most of my Märklin items from eBay or from our local auction system here in Finland. I'm not a good customer either like Tom to buy 2013 new items except 37567 black Crocodile. I buy mostly 5-15 year old locomotives as "new" second hand.

When I was a kid in start of the 1980's almost all my friends had a Märklin starter set. This kind of future would be great for the sales of Märklin. Prices must be much lower than current ones. But products can not be like MyWorld battery toy trains. It will be very exciting to see what kind of new product line it will be and it's pricing. If Märklin wants to give info of older train models for these new generation Märklinist they can include with starter set some catalog that describes older locomotive models with good pictures and maybe a DVD from their real prototypes and Märklin models?

I have three young Märklinist here (all are boys). Oldest is soon six years old, next is soon three years old and our youngest "new loco" is around two weeks old... My oldest son surely knows much about Crocodiles, Mallets, etc. and from which country every locomotive is from. He also run them, but sounds are more interesting than the great looks of the models. I hope that this new model line will not be full of sounds, lights and video games. The models should be "enough" detailed first.

Best regards,
Janne

This topic keeps me busy.
Think this is a real challenge for the marketing experts.
Just wondering whether M should not focus on the oldtimers rather than the youngsters.
Oldtimers have money to spend on hobbies,especially when they are semi-retired.
Youngsters have not so much money to spend and will probably wish to spend it on concert tickets,going out in the weekend,etc.,etc.
Trains are not a big topic for youngsters,trains are not sexy.
I have a young colleague in his twenties,a seagoing officer,who recently bought some PC games,no trains for him.
Would it not be wise for M to concentrate on people having money to spend?
Once again,if M comes up with "Start Up" sets,these need to reflect the local national scene.
In Holland the most common trains are the electric loco 1700/1800 series with double stock passenger cars,the Koploper multiple units,and the VIRM double stock units.
M sells the first two around the 400 Euro mark,M is not yet selling the VIRM.
For 400 Euro's you can buy a proper laptop,i bought a Lenovo for less recently.
How is this going to appeal to youngsters?
I do recall from my youth that Lima and Jouef were selling cheap trainsets via department stores,the quality was poor,but at least you could buy a train for your pocketmoney.
Here is the dilemma:M cannot afford to attract a cheap image,M is quality,M is a premium brand,right?
Somehow it does not work in my opinion.
Internet is very silent about the news,Stummi included.
Comments appreciated.

VIRM trains at Rotterdam Central Station,VIRMs are the backbone of long distance traffic in The Netherlands,they come in 4 unit and 6 unit versions,very comfortable trains.
Would M be able to sell them around the 200 Euro mark?



Paul.

Märklin product lines come, and they go.
Horaz must have known Märklin: "The mountain will be in labour and bring forth a mouse."
We'll see the anti-climax in January anyway, nothing we can do about it now.

The oldtimers have the money, the oldtimers will buy 100+ locos.
But Märklin has to bring their toys back to the children to breed new generations of oldtimers that come back to the hobby when they have children or grandchildren of their own.
The average age of the hardcore Märklin collector is 60+ years - in 40 years it'll be 100+ years if they don't recruit new hardcore Märklin collectors.

Alpha, Circus Mondolino, 4Mfor, Primex, Minex, Sprint, Metall, Maxi, Spy Tec, ...
Märklin product lines come, and they go.

To bring back Märklin to children's rooms was the intention behind Alpha, Circus Mondolino, Spy Tec, Primex. It's the idea behind my world and Clicks and Wigs.

What's the news?
We've heard the ideas before, it's just a new speaker this time. Now we need to know details (that will come by end of January).

That's HUGE goal..

When I was a youngster (6-11) was was nuts about trains, but when I was a teenager I was not.. Even in the 70s there were other interesting things to do as a teenager and then came girls and cars - Life was very busy in those days.. So model railroading stayed out of my live until many decades later when Miss 3 (at the time) took an interest and reignited the passion for model railways.. Even now as a semi-retired person I don't have nearly as much time as I would like to spend on our modest layout..

So I think that the marketing target of teenagers as a model railroading consumer is a huge ask.. Perhaps teenagers in Germany are interested in different things than teenagers in Australia? I suspect not..

The new entry-level line aims at children from 5 through 14. I guess that most teenagers will lose interest at some stage between 12 and 16, so it's important to plant the seed before that point (OK, at 12 they are not even teenagers yet ...).
Maybe the interest will last a bit longer when a smartphone or PC is involved.

The innovation of 2013 was cab control for CS2.
Maybe the innovation 2014 will be a starter set controller with WiFi support for smartphones. Could also catch some adults ...
Or a cheap USB interface that goes with the MS2.

Come to think of it,the socalled Start Up line is already partly included in the Maerklin My World brochure as it is.
The 2013 brochure starts with the battery operated toy trains for little children and when you turn a couple of pages you find a number of more detailed items from the former Hobby line.
The Br74 holds remarkable detail and i would even say that loco is of a higher level,it would be a waste to distruct it by careless playing.
Together with the Br24,these loco's are great value for money and in my opinion the way Maerklin should go.
I sincerely hope that M will also bring back the almost indistructable tinplate coaches in the Start Up line.

As such,i expect two separate product presentations,a line with battery operated trains and a line with the more detailed trains.
Either way it is going to be old wine in new casks,new colors,new boxes,old products.
A devilish dilemma for marketeers if you ask me.

Or,as we say in Holland: "Een kat in het nauw maakt rare sprongen"/A trapped cat can make funny jumps.

Paul.

Oh good grief.. Clearly, we were much tougher children that our offspring! Miss 3 (at the time) did not have any trouble with the 40 year old stuff and she still has all of her fingers too!

"
Safety Notes
....
* IMPORTANT! The m83 has sharp edges and points due to its function.
"

Hi,

Maybe they should only include this warning:

"Not for children of any age or idiots who don't have brains!"

Cheers,
Janne

This is an interesting topic, and I would disagree that there is no interest in model trains from todays children, during my recent trip to Europe I visited three MRR venues, and I can definitely say that each one of these was busting at the seams with excited children running around, and I cannot believe that if they had a model railway at home, they would not play with it.

In is my opinion, that we live in a society where people expect to be entertained, and do not see the need to have to put any effort it, they want instant gratification without any effort. The games console has resulted in almost instant gratification linked to a CGI generated world that is almost real means children can come home and almost instantaneously enter a world of entertainment, with no effort.

When I was younger, I played with model cars, scaletrix, action man, I made models, read books, played board games, went into the woods and build a secret base in the bushes and trees, sometimes even played charades, how many children do you see today doing any of these things? There are some but they are few. Todays children have almost given up on imagination for substitute electronic games. For the most part the next generation of kids will not be able to build anything, because they have never built anything.

Sadly MRR requires time and commitment to build a layout and you cannot simply play with it out of the box (carpetbahns excluded). Yet if you take the children to a completed purpose built layout , the kids are almost as excited as they are with the electronic games.

Furthermore, when I was growing up, I enjoyed a lot of father and son time, we built our model railway together, we build models together, we played scaletrix together, etc, but I observe that of my sons current friends, not a lot of parents seem to do the things we do together, and a lot of kids are simply left to their own devices or to their games consoles.

Finally, in the UK, I believe a lot of modern homes are not hobby friendly, and lack the space to enjoy a reasonable hobby like MRR or scaletrix, and this dissuades a lot of people from even making a start.

I agree with Kweekalot in that after a while the kids become bored with the electronic games, and will be interested in other things, if there is a genuine interest shown in spending time with them and introducing them to something else. There is no reason why electronic games and MRR cannot be shred hobbies by children of today, I know my son does. I can say then the interest level without a layout was low, even during the building phase of our current layout the interest level was not exciting, but now it has finished and he has a few trains of his own, he now comes and asks if we can go and play on the layout, and so I now know it is not me influencing him, he has put away his Xbox and made an effort to ask, because he wants to, and I am sure there are other children the same who would be interested.

As an observation Marklin may not have to do much, because I am unsure where the modern electronic games are going, they have games for everything now, and CGI is already 'life like' in HD, so it might be that in a few years time, people are again looking for alternatives to electronic games, and a well developed digital product like Marklin with it's history and backward compatibility might not be such a bad option. It is true that some of the modern stuff is expensive, but you can still go to a show like Eurospoor and children can still buy older coaches and freight stock with their pocket money. And they are certainly a lot cheaper than the new games.

I hope that Marklin just do not abandon their core support which is the serious modeller, I would also note that all these gamer children will one day grow up, and not all of them will continue to play games, some will look for other more challenging pursuits, I think we should not underestimate the 'I did that' or the 'I built that' factor, which exists in a lot of people, but they just do not always have to opportunity to develop it, if their parents are not interested.

I do not mind what Marklin do with the My World range, but I believe embracing the digital world and all it has to offer to make the locos more realistic with wide ranging control options, in cab video so you can see the train running along the tracks, this will offer a real alternative to the electronic game world. Something you can build, and have pride in, but still sufficient electronic to offer ready-made simple entertainment.

BR

Glenn


PS: To Danlake I would observe on his observation that the UK MRR scene survives on cheaper offerings from Hornby and Bachmann, in my opinion has done more to harm the scene in the UK than it has to engender a future, and I think the UK market misses a quality product like Marklin. I have a number of friends who were interested in MRR when younger but gave up because Hornby et al., were so cheap and did not stay on the tracks, and when they see my Marklin steam locos running, with sound and smoke effect they are genuinely interested and many comment, I wish they had this kind of quality when I was interested.

Glenn,

I also agree. I find with my kids they are very excited about running trains...but with the layout, it's hard for the young ones to have the patience. Sometimes they like to help me build it, but they need to have tangible results and limited sessions. They can not work on it 3 hours straight like I may. Likewise, they don't like to work at something with no observable progress. Right now, it's "still wiring?"...it's just not that interesting. However, if we can paint something or do some plaster work, connect some track, etc...they can see where we started and finished, it is more rewarding for them. Another thing is purpose. While the youngest ones like watching the trains go around, the older one likes to have jobs to do...take this train to the station, drop off a car, go shunt a train in this order, take it here...etc. I think many children in general get satisfaction from achieving something, seeing what is possible to do with their very own hands.

As a slight diversion off topic, I am thinking of some very small layout ideas...I would like to build it with them when they get just a bit older. The trick, I think, is for it not to be too ambitious that it takes years to achieve...perhaps a simple layout that can be done to completion in months. Maybe even Marklin can take some of their small layouts that come in the new books with the starter sets or C track expansion sets and help guide young ones in how to, within reason, build it to completion. Perhaps not a ultra detailed layout, but something passable and fun, like in the old M track planning books.

I do hope they expand the entry range selection...as others have said, locos like BR74 and BR24 are great value for money and well detailed enough for plenty of imagination. I will note however, my kids like trains that are fast. Prototypical speed digital loks sometimes aren't as good as a 3085 that just speeds around the track :)

-Brandon

When I was a teenager I used to dream of nice trains running on layouts with complicated track arrangements. Children don't need expensive, highly detailed trains. They need locos and wagons they can save their pocket money up for, and lots of track they can set up in different track plans every day.

I believe Marklin have the right idea to follow on from the kiddies train sets. They need to offer reasonable looking realistic trains at affordable prices. More of the same standard as the Br74 and Br24 would be good, but also more diesels and electrics based on current prototypes that youngsters can relate to. The Traxx electrics and hercules diesels were excellent value for money, and they need to continue in that vein. Hobby versions of the Br101, 152, 189, etc at around 100 to 150 euro would have more universal appeal than the same locos with all bells and whistles for 300 euros.

Piko have very successfully done this with their hobby and expert ranges, without compromising their classic range. Hornby have their equivalent in the Railroad range. Don't knock what works!

Hi Paul but it would brake with the sought of handling most kids would give it! On a nice note my little girl gets her first Marklin this Xmas age 9 and it was her wish not mine! And she is as girly as her friends! Cheers Dan

Dan,

I understand the new productline is intended for the somewhat older kids,who have grown out of My World but are not having the money to buy 400 Euro plus locomotives.
Hornby seem to be very successful in this segment with their complete trainsets.
Years ago,Maerklin issued the Harry Potter trainset for 3 rail AC.
Well,this was just a converted Hornby DC set.
I have two Hornby locomotives myself,the lightblue Mallard holds great detail and is good value for money,but the hood is plastic and the whole "feel" is rather fragile if you are used to Maerklin.
I have been tempted myself to buy a Hornby set just to play with,who knows.

Is your girl getting a My World ICE?

Cheers,
Paul.

Ray,

The Hornby Mallard feels like a collectors item,i have the special edition with the gold plated driverods.
As you say,some small parts are included you can fit as an option.
If i compare the Hornby Mallard with the Maerklin 3089 red streamlined 03 i prefer very much the latter,but i am a Maerklin addict by nature.
Still,plastic bodies could help to bring the price down.
I envisage three different productgroups for Maerklin H0:
My World plastic battery operated,Start Up plastic more detailed stuff,Professional/Collectors with metal bodies and full detail.

Cheers,
Paul.

Dan,

The brandname of the little bear is STEIFF.
We have a couple upstairs.
These German made bears are rather famous,on auctions people pay a lot of money for socalled collectors items.
Some go back to the early twenties.
The STEIFF trademark is the metal button in one ear (in German: Knopf im Ohr).

Good pick!

Paul.

Are they multiplying???

Paul Stieff do come at a lot less cost than you think! The pictures I have put up are from a Dutch shop www.two4toys.nl you can see there are Cheaper bears on there. My little girl got her first stieff from a UK shop and was far less to buy than a bear shop in the Uk called build a bear, which are more than twice as much and have sold bears to all her frends. Personnally I think her teddy is nicer to look at and softer, plus made in Germany by a proper toy maker! Not in a sweat
shop in India!!

There's a saying in the uk- You pay peanuts you get monkeys! Hornby were in China now there in India !
My daughters bear was made in Germany it says and has had alot of hugs!!