Scale Trains pre order extended

[flight2000]

One other side note, I saw ST put a message on their ES44 page that they had some previously sold out road numbers available again after taking back in overstock inventory from dealers.  Don't know the details other than that's what they put up on the website.  Looks like shops have a way out if they guessed wrong on the amount they ordered and have excess inventory sitting on their shelves.

Cheers,
Brian

[flight2000]

The C39-8's are on the water according to the ST delivery page on their website.  Should see them by the end of the month in stores...yeah! 

Cheers,
Brian

[jagged ben]

I think Scale Trains has to do a bit better job of evangelizing their business model and/or competing on price.  Would you pre-order from the manufacturer with any other company? 

People got used to getting a discounted price from e-tailers they pre-ordered from.  But that pre-order system has been deeply disrupted in the past couple years by a number of factors:
1) MBK and some others who don't take pre-orders but compete with near bottom pricing
2) The demise of two of the most competitive pre-order e-tailers (BLW, Feather River)
3) the shenanigans of Scale Trains (and Exactrail) cutting out distributors, which reduces price competition and at least leaves the impression their models are overpriced
4) IM making a mockery of delivery schedules - well, to be fair, China has made it difficult for everyone

These days I can only pre-order if I want something badly enough that I'll take a hit on price to avoid the risk of missing it if I happen to not be paying attention when it ships to the non-preorder sites.  (And I have to find a store that is taking pre-orders, which is not always possible.  But that doesn't apply to Scale Trains.)

Scale Trains can't really have it both ways.  They can't demand customers pre-order while at the same time undermining the system that made pre-ordering trustworthy for both sides.   There's gotta be quite a number of modelers out there who either don't even know about the announcements, or think that they shouldn't pre-order from the manufacturer because someone else will have it cheaper when it ships.   Scale Trains should have some faith and be more open with distribution, for the first group, and reward people who pre-order direct with a better price.

I say this as someone who put in a pre-order for a couple more ST hoppers than I really wanted, just to encourage them.  My budget can't justify more.

[Smike]

If you pre-order via a retailer, that should result in a pre-order with ST (so the means to the end of getting enough pre-orders to produce the model is the same.) The obvious difference is ST shares some profit margin with the retailer if you go that route. (As prices to us are the same between any retailer and ST due to contract agreements if they want to carry ST product)  While not a desirable distribution model for retailers, given the market conditions this is where things are at. Of course not all manufactures want to take on the burden of direct marking/ordering so they will want to stay with retailer distribution model.

It just comes down to who does the consumer want to do business with with ST products.

[CPR9009]

Has ScaleTrains delivered the 4785s in N yet?  They seem to be showing sold out on all except a couple of PC numbers.  I don't see them on any other stores site.

Scott

[jereising]

Has ScaleTrains delivered the 4785s in N yet?  They seem to be showing sold out on all except a couple of PC numbers.  I don't see them on any other stores site. Scott

Their shipping schedule says not.

[unittrain]

The 4785s are February, the C39-8s are on the water.

[jagged ben]

If you pre-order via a retailer, that should result in a pre-order with ST (so the means to the end of getting enough pre-orders to produce the model is the same.) The obvious difference is ST shares some profit margin with the retailer if you go that route. (As prices to us are the same between any retailer and ST due to contract agreements if they want to carry ST product)  While not a desirable distribution model for retailers, given the market conditions this is where things are at. Of course not all manufactures want to take on the burden of direct marking/ordering so they will want to stay with retailer distribution model.

It just comes down to who does the consumer want to do business with with ST products.

Have you actually found retailers who are taking pre-orders for Scale Trains products? If so, who, and how did you find them?  (Or are you just philosophizing?)

[ridinshotgun]

Have you actually found retailers who are taking pre-orders for Scale Trains products? If so, who, and how did you find them?  (Or are you just philosophizing?)

ST themselves have a list of their select retailers right here https://www.scaletrains.com/apps/store-locator/ and ST has said in person that some of those retailers do pre-orders. You would have to comb through it to locate the n scale dealers but for sure they do it since as noted above Shane had a facebook post just in the last week or two about returned HO pre-orders from some retailers on previously sold out models of a locomotive th hat they now had available.

[jagged ben]

ST themselves have a list of their select retailers right here https://www.scaletrains.com/apps/store-locator/ and ST has said in person that some of those retailers do pre-orders. You would have to comb through it to locate the n scale dealers but for sure they do it since as noted above Shane had a facebook post just in the last week or two about returned HO pre-orders from some retailers on previously sold out models of a locomotive th hat they now had available.

Right.  This is basically bolstering my point.  You point me to Scaletrains own website.   We'll if I'm already tuned in to that then I'm going to pre-order through Scale Trains website.  Why would I go through the work of finding a retailer on that page (which doesn't even include the retailers websites!)?  They only reason I would order through a retailer would be if that retailer is the local shop that I'm loyal to, AND that shop publicizes ScaleTrains pre-orders.   This is a very small market segment.  A large portion of customers (like me) don't have any local shops left.

What I'm saying is that Scale Trains has cut out the other sources that could get them the pre-orders they 'need'.  They aren't doing business with N Scale Supply or Fifer Hobby, for example.  Nobody else with a big web presence takes pre-orders, and nobody else who takes pre-orders can be counted on to bring in more than a handful.

I'll say it again.  Scale Trains can't complain about lack of pre-orders and/or cancel product because of low pre-orders, and then at the same time do things that discourage people using the pre-order system.  (Hey IM, same goes for you!)  Atlas and Athearn don't seem to depend on pre-orders.  They make and ship product, and apparently it sells.  Scale Trains should just do the same thing.

[ridinshotgun]

Right.  This is basically bolstering my point.  You point me to Scaletrains own website.   We'll if I'm already tuned in to that then I'm going to pre-order through Scale Trains website.  Why would I go through the work of finding a retailer on that page (which doesn't even include the retailers websites!)?  They only reason I would order through a retailer would be if that retailer is the local shop that I'm loyal to, AND that shop publicizes ScaleTrains pre-orders.   This is a very small market segment.  A large portion of customers (like me) don't have any local shops left.

What I'm saying is that Scale Trains has cut out the other sources that could get them the pre-orders they 'need'.  They aren't doing business with N Scale Supply or Fifer Hobby, for example.  Nobody else with a big web presence takes pre-orders, and nobody else who takes pre-orders can be counted on to bring in more than a handful.

I'll say it again.  Scale Trains can't complain about lack of pre-orders and/or cancel product because of low pre-orders, and then at the same time do things that discourage people using the pre-order system.  (Hey IM, same goes for you!)  Atlas and Athearn don't seem to depend on pre-orders.  They make and ship product, and apparently it sells.  Scale Trains should just do the same thing.

See it only took you three posts to make your point!   

And I agree with you. As I said before in other threads their sales model stinks and seems like they are trying their best at following the same path as Exactrail.  In all likelihood after the hoppers I have on order with them arrive I doubt I'll be ordering any further product.  I am just over buying stuff to show support.  Nice products but the price point of their stuff when paired with an inability to be an out of the box runner due to the crappy coupler design has me calling it a day.

[u18b]

Well.... they complained about low pre-orders on the C39.....

But for the life of me, I don't understand why they didn't do a Conrail/CSX patch job.

I would have bought one.

Surely that would have boosted sales.

[Smike]

I know that as of about a year ago, ST required a minimum of a $5,000 order to be able to carry their product.  That knocks a lot of the smaller retailers out of play (Especially the ones that only carry N Scale)

Not saying I like it, but that is what my understanding is, and would explain why you do not see their product at a lot of smaller retailers.