@Jerry Rubin posted:Excellent answer, however all the factors I pointed out still stand. Yes there is a group of younger people interested in the product, however that group is very small. As you point out the after market is loaded, I sell new AF passenger cars for 1/3 the price that Lionel sell their Chinese product. Yes, I do think $3000 for a Toy Train is a lot of money. Lionel can only exist on the higher end merchandise and since their market is going away, management will have to come up with a quick and in my opinion impossible solution. Why did Mike bail out? Are there any buyers for MTH out there? In my opinion Menards has the only viable platform to sell O Gauge Trains. Their quality is not bad, they have the retail outlets and their prices are affordable.
The entry level sets and licensed products are Lionel's bread and butter, not the high end stuff. That is info straight from Lionel btw. They know their market well and cater to it. Also, fantasy schemes sell like hotcakes, they have also admitted this. There is also a healthy market for very high end items and sets. You make what sells. This catalog very obviously reflects what lionel has indicated are their best selling types of items. Also, from what I've seen, o-scale has gained a lot of popularity in recent years and especially with the 20-40 year old crowd. Things aren't as bleak as you think.
