Chimpion

Exactly. If you already have a version A of a plane, to work out if it's worth making a version B you need to know how many will buy both, or will buy the B but wouldn't buy the A. People who would rather have the B, but would buy the A anyway and don't want two types of this plane don't help the business case for type B at all.

You may well be right, but what I don't understand is why the owners of the company (the employees) would choose a course of action which will wipe them out financially and allow someone else to profit from the ashes. Or is the ESOP just a minority of the total voting share capital? Are ESOP shares non-voting?

It could also potentially get messy regarding assets and liabilities in the different companies. It's possible in theory to move all the assets to one jurisdiction while leaving the liabilities in the one filing for bankruptcy. If done obviously this is usually pretty close to fraud, but it could be very blurred and result in potential liabilities in the surviving part of the company that take years to resolve. I have no idea whether this might be relevant to Revell and don't intend to imply any wrongdoing on the part of anyone associated with this company.

I believe Toys R Us in the US filed for chapter 11 recently - maybe Hobbico have been burnt by them not having to pay their bills. Clearly there was trouble before, but this might have been the last straw.

Marketing isn't just about the box-art. Even non-modeller marketing managers will be more concerned about questions like how much of the new range should be aimed at kids and how much at specialist modellers. This isn't just about the relative pricing and margins, it also affects their chances of being stocked on the high street.

It's a remarkable coincidence that alien spacecraft design closely follows the fashion trends of Hollywood sci-fi films.

Beautiful build - very impressive. Could you check how you post the photos though? On my Android phone the aspect ratio is distorted and changes depending on the orientation of the phone - not a problem I normally have.

There are currently two of them on eBay - one on auction in Korea and a buy it now in the US. The postage isn't cheap though. Andy

They give average gross margins of 36%. This should be enough to be profitable after overheads and tax. The problem seems to be that the overhead structure is set up for a much higher turnover than they currently have. They need to grow sales to get economies of scale, but their market is limited in the amount of growth that is available. Getting kids to buy more kits and trains is the answer - can they achieve it?

Agreed. Just taking Airfix, I think they have four types of potential customers : 1. Existing modellers who already build Airfix kits. These customers will not be lost by withdrawing from the high street - they'll still find and buy Airfix online or at shows. 2. Existing modellers who rarely or never build Airfix. Here good exposure in model shops (online and B&M) is important, as well as a good presence at shows. 3. Children. This includes relatives buying presents for children. Here high street exposure is critical, as are online toy and department stores, Amazon, etc. 4. Adults not active in the hobby (especially the gift market). Here the key would seem to be iconic subjects, good quality, right price range (£30-£100), and exposure in gift shops and department stores (Debenhams, John Lewis and the like). I suspect group 4 is the least price sensitive and potentially the most profitable, with the possibility of establishing new customers for the future. Withdrawing from such stores would seem to me to be a dangerous strategy, but I have to assume Hornby know what they are doing.

But writing iconic would have been much less enigmatic.

It was a while ago now, but if I remember correctly for the spaced L O T U S letters on the boot I cut around the whole area, and the transparent layer just pulled off once they were attached. I certainly didn't have any issues with this transparent film.

I've used the Tamiya chrome decals on their Lotus Europa. They look really good and go on easily - too easily, in fact! Once the glue makes contact with the plastic/paint they're stuck forever. Make sure you line them up perfectly! This is easier said than done.

I've seen this and similar comments several times in this thread, and it's not really true. Market research can give them a pretty good idea, and this it about much more than just asking modellers what they want. They will probably have data on which periods and scales are growing in popularity and which are declining, for example. Also it's not the number of sales that matters, but the return on investment, and right now the cash flow forecast. A struggling company needs to invest in the products most likely to succeed quickly and build the brand image going forward.

I followed a beaten up one at painfully slow speed this morning - I think it was an old couple out for a leisurely drive. To be precise, I followed a Mk1 Opel Corsa, but it's the same car.

Yes, you're right. I wasn't aware of the Sebring version with Frogeye rear and Midget-like front, and only saw your earlier comment after I'd posted.

Looks more like an A.C. Ace to me.

Yesterday in Newmarket, an Alfa Romeo Guillietta Spider from around 1960 in beautiful condition. I think it was a Guillietta, but it clearly had a 1600 badge and Wikipedia claims that model only came with a 1300cc engine....

Seahawk is right - there's a huge amount of politics behind this.

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-40492668 Finally the BBC have caught up with the story.

I wonder if it's connected with this : http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-40444354 By offering 3rd party hosting they're making themselves potentially liable. Germany may be just the first of many.

Definitely go to the sister museum in Sinsheim while you're there! These two museums are a real must see for all fans of any form of transport. The one in Speyer is particularly good if SWMBO is in tow as they have another building that might interest her (I forget what was in it - it wasn't transport related).

After a truly terrible 24 hours Interailing to Rijeka around 1990 (including discovering possibly the worst campsite in Europe and being stoned in a park by local kids), I was reluctant to ever go back. After 10 years living only 3 hours drive from Croatia, and hearing nothing but praise for the place from my colleagues, I went with the family to Rovinj last Easter. Now I realise what they meant. It's beautiful, cheap, and has great weather. We went back to Istria for another week in September. If you do go, try to get to the Plitvice lakes - truly out of this world. Apparently there's an abandoned airbase buried in a mountain near the Bosnian border, but I think it's still mined... Oh, and welcome Zagor!

On the A10 Autobahn in Austria a Volvo Amazon towing period caravan. As is the case with 90% of caravans on this route, it had Dutch plates. Obviously still running well as it was almost 1000 miles from home ( and heading back).

And last week it seems I missed out on a supercar meet. A colleague went and showed me a picture of a shiny new Lamborghini complete with roof box!!!! The box almost doubled the cars height, and probably its fuel consumption too.