Strange Inventory at MBK

[jereising]

Been checking the new stuff as I always do in case something shows up I've gotta have...

There was a large Athearn release including 53' containers, bulkhead flats and several other cars - never once saw any inventory.  And they are still listed in the "coming soon" section...

And they showed BLMA 100 Ton 36" wheels, some humongous number like 750 the first time I looked, then this AM it was at 290, and when I just now looked it was 5.

I guess I can understand the last given the pent up demand, but the Athearn stuff still makes me wonder...did they EVER have inventory?

I can usually get whatever I need just by keeping my eyes peeled, but this is something else....

[sundowner]

The Athearns stuff is a future release, look in the item description for the expected release month.

[cfritschle]

I am guessing MB Klein is "testing" to see how many customers will request an email notifying them when the item is in stock.  Maybe sort of a tentative pre-order system.   

[Spades]

I am guessing MB Klein is "testing" to see how many customers will request an email notifying them when the item is in stock.  Maybe sort of a tentative pre-order system.   

I think that's it.

[thomasjmdavis]

I dunno....
I had an email conversation with their customer service folks when the new online sales system was put in place a year or two ago (with all the upgraded graphics and such).  A feature I had used a lot in years gone by was the "new product notification" (I think that is what it was called). It worked like the "notify me when in stock" feature for out of stock items, but for things that had not yet been released.  I could enter info on any upcoming product and if (or when) it came in, I would get an email letting me know.  In early years, those who had signed up would get the notification a few hours (maybe as many as 24- IIRC) before it was put up on the site.  In the last couple years before the system changed, you would be notified simultaneously to the product going on line.

Anyway, when the new system was installed, there was no "new product notification".  I asked about it during the transition, when I could not find it, and they told me that I wasn't the only one asking.  And they were working on a way to add the feature back in.  It would make sense that the company would want such a feature, if only to be able to judge demand.  It's like the old days, when we would ask the fellow at the hobby shop to give us a call when the stuff in the MR ad finally showed up in his shipment from the distributor. 

So, I think this is partially replacing that system. 

Also noting that a lot of what shows up in the "coming soon" is Athearn stuff, where I imagine even MBK is forced to work through Horizon- which must impact their margins some.  So they would want enough of the product to keep customers happy, but not so much that it would end up sitting on the shelves.

And with all of that, it is the manufacturers who drive pre-orders.  If MBK wants to take pre-orders that is fine with me- easier in fact, since the closest brick and mortar is 65 miles.  As long as they keep up the practice of having substantial additional inventory, so I don't have to pre-order everything. 

[basementcalling]

I've only seen Athearn items listed before being in stock. Its' confusing in the listing unless you click on the product to see the expected arrival date. The problem as is is that there is no way to tell from browsing through the search results which listings are in stock versus which are "arriving soon."

Kinda frustrating to scroll through 2-3 pages of items that are not in stock, especially if you are like me and start clicking on items to "show in new tab" only to see that you cannot actually buy that item right now.

The BLMA trucks are now out of stock. 700+ trucks out the door in less than 24 hours, and without the benefit of bulk pack pricing.

[Mark5]

It is possible that the person adding the inventory had a keying error and entered 750 instead of 75.

Also, I remember the last time these were in stock - I blinked and missed. I learned that a single customer had cleaned them out with a single order.

Mark

[C855B]

... 700+ trucks out the door in less than 24 hours, and without the benefit of bulk pack pricing.

Huh. I didn't think there were even that many N-scalers... at least according to the HO-only companies.   

(Hopefully @Atlas Paul has noted the demand and adjusted the production schedule and quantities for a rerun.)

[CBQ Fan]

Athearn does a pretty good job of meeting their predicted delivery dates, at least on the items I observe. So coming soon would make sense for them, unlike Atlas who announces stuff in droves but delivers in trickles. If MBK is adding pro orders or coming soon I hope they use it on companies who are disciplined enough to reasonably meet their schedule.

[nscalbitz]

Well, piling on mbk site issue,
 not aggravating but a mystery privacy/ malicious fake history one - I havent used it last 3 years and my old account was trashed sometime after I reset my p/w in late 2018 (yes I have my own records proving i did that)...

So had to re-register yesterday in order to assess the 'cost' of postage to the netherworld down here on a couple of MTL items. When I returned later to update my details I found i had a history that did not include the item I proposed to purchase- but several items and manfrs that I had never looked at, nor would, like containers, a BLI loco, and other stuff of erratic nature.

I HAD looked at Bluford, IM, Trainworx and MTL since trolling, sorry trawling is easier than the damn search that comes up with 'Nothing' and puts in suggestions I'm looking for (not)... anyway... weirdness,
d