🚀 go-pugleaf

Jane Sullivan <jane@yddraiggoch.demon.co.uk> writes:

>Is there any reason why Eureka models will not appoint a UK agent? I'm 
>certainly interested in the Beyer-Garratt model (with DCC and sound) but 
>I don't really want to go through all the hassle of paying import duty 
>to the Post Office before they'll deliver a package from Australia. It's 
>much easier for us in the UK to buy overseas models from a UK supplier.

I can't answer for James on Ron since I don't have any connection to Ron's
'Eureka Models' venture, but this issue gets raised constantly because we
already have one very major (from the Australian model railway market's
perspective) producer of Australian prototype locomotives which will not
distribute any other way than by direct mail order.

It's a bit of a dicotomy because I run a small business myself and
understand the complexities that come with marketting/distribution. So
adding distribution of products via other parties into the business model
comes with a massive increase in expenses, both in terms of time (esp. if a
sole-trader), and money.

The other factor working against these Australian model railway businesses
going through agents/distributors is the way smaller market and interest
base for Australian prototype products compared to the US and European
prototypes. Whereas an Australian business may have 10000 models of a
particular prototype locomotive produced by a factory in China, a US
business could have 100000, or more, models made. That reduces per-unit
cost, gives better and higher-priority access to manufacturing facilities,
and gives much better leeway to absorbing distribution costs.

Certain people have been very dirty on me for talking about this issue, but
it's always going to exist for our local producers purely because of the
difference in size of the market and potential interest base by at least a
factor of 10 between local prototypes and overseas prototypes.

The problem is finding a point where the benefits of each approach can be
balanced and still make any venture into producing models viable. For the
local businesses who distribute only via direct mail-order channels, they've
obviously worked out that they couldn't go the way of having
distributors/agents and continue doing what they do in terms of developing
and producing high-quality models without a massive increase in per-model
price and/or production/sales volume.

One of the businesses here has been very successful in terms of volume of
sales (and has re-run one model about 3 times so far), but for the local
Australian prototype market, that seems to be very much the exception rather
than the rule. Producing RTR locos is also a very a different proposition
from producing kits or detail parts.

I'd like to see businesses who opt to only do mail-order distribution of
Australian-prototype model locomotives try other ways but it's up the
business owner to see if changing the business model will still make it
viable later on down the track.

All that side, having an agent in another country could be a good thing but
it still means a lot of extra administrivia which either has to be done by
the same person or small group of people developing the models, or
additional staff have to be hired to take care of it.

Regards,

Craig.
-- 
Craig Dewick - Professional Train Manager (RailCorp) + HO Scale Rail Modeller
http://www.railzone.org -- Check out the RailZone Online Forums! Send email to
craigd@lios.apana.org.au -- RailCorp Train Crew Council: http://www.rctcc.org
Oz Rail Safety List: http://lios.apana.org.au/mailman/listinfo/aus_rail_safety