Airfix 2019

[AWFK10]

5 hours ago, occa said:

 

I don't understand the moaning about prices, everything has gone up over the years. It's called index adjustment.

 

My salary hasn't. On the contrary, in real terms, it's gone down for at least the last 8 years. So, for me, kits - not only Airfix ones - are becoming not just absolutely but relatively ever more expensive. On top of that, intricate interior detail isn't an aspect of modelling that appeals to me, I have a large stash of kits accumulated over decades: if I don't already have somebody's 'x' year old rendition of any subject that (a) appeals to me and (b) Airfix (or any other manufacturer) is likely to release in my preferred scale, I can probably get of hold of one for considerably less than the price that will be asked for the 2018 wunderkit. Add those factors together, and I'm not going to be paying in the region of £30 for a Wellington with full interior detail, £25 for a Mitchell or £60 for a Victor.

[VMA131Marine]

6 hours ago, occa said:

The Mitchell cost me 28 € for example, that's not bad for a modern mold two engine AC.

Considerably cheaper than the Hasegawa B-25:

 

https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/HAE16?&currency_id=3

 

[Enzo the Magnificent]

1/35 Cutty Sark.

[VMA131Marine]

11 minutes ago, Enzo Matrix said:

1/35 Cutty Sark.

It'll only be 8 feet long and a little over 1 foot wide.

[Enzo the Magnificent]

17 minutes ago, VMA131Marine said:

It'll only be 8 feet long and a little over 1 foot wide.

Just imagine putting it in the boating lake at the local park.  

[cmatthewbacon]

5 minutes ago, Enzo Matrix said:

Just imagine putting it in the boating lake in the local park.  

Why imagine (though this one is 2.4m long, which makes her around 1/28 scale)?

 

 

best,

M.

Edited June 22, 2018 by cmatthewbacon

[Enzo the Magnificent]

2 minutes ago, cmatthewbacon said:

Why imagine?

Oh my word, that looks good!   

[Whofan]

On 6/20/2018 at 7:49 PM, cmatthewbacon said:

My gut feel is that the only real competitor to Airfix for a reasonably-sized majority of its sales is Revell, which has the product range and distribution outside of specialist model shops. Eduard, AMK, even Hasegawa are only really for people who are in the know

How about Tamiya?

 

 

[Phil Gollin]

.

 

Someone was asking for the relative contributions of the constituents of Hornby.

 

From LAST year's (2017) accounts ;

 

Model rail: .................... £22m ... 48%
Slot car: ......................... £12m ... 26%
Plastic modelling: .. £6m .... 13%
Collectible models: .. £4m .......  9%    (Corgi ?????)
Specialist paints ........ £2m ......  4%

 

Airfix is really dependent upon the success of the Model Railways.

 

( Oh, and these figures are only income  -  there is NO indications as to profitability Airfix may be making a big percentage of profit, or a loss ?????? )

 

(Again, info from the RMWeb thread, supplied by others).

 

.

Edited June 22, 2018 by Phil Gollin

[VMA131Marine]

1 minute ago, Phil Gollin said:

Airfix is really dependent upon the success of the Model Railways.

I think you mean Hornby, as the parent company, is really dependent on the success of model railways. However, these numbers suggest to me that Airfix should have more high priced items in its catalogue; and I'm not talking about 45-year old 1/24th aircraft kits either.

[Enzo the Magnificent]

4 minutes ago, VMA131Marine said:

However, these numbers suggest to me that Airfix should have more high priced items in its catalogue; and I'm not talking about 45-year old 1/24th aircraft kits either.

Which supports my argument for a 1/35 Cutty Sark.

 

 

 

I'll get me coat. 

[shatters]

7 minutes ago, VMA131Marine said:

I think you mean Hornby, as the parent company, is really dependent on the success of model railways. However, these numbers suggest to me that Airfix should have more high priced items in its catalogue; and I'm not talking about 45-year old 1/24th aircraft kits either.

1/72 vc-10 ?

1/72 Airbus voyager?

1/72 C-17 ?

 

Phil

[Enzo the Magnificent]

6 minutes ago, shatters said:

1/72 vc-10 ?

Dunno about 1/72, but if they did a 1/144 multi-version kit to current standards, I'd be up for at least half a dozen.

[VMA131Marine]

2 minutes ago, shatters said:

1/72 vc-10 ?

1/72 Airbus voyager?

1/72 C-17 ?

 

Phil

Kinetic has announced a 1/72 for future release and the molds are at an advanced stage so I would say Airfix missed the boat on that one. But the VC-10 might sell if it could be tooled to give military tanker and commercial airline versions.

I wouldn't say no to a 1/72 P-8A Poseidon

What about a 1/24th F-35B?

 

I think Airfix could also increase their revenue per kit by adding to what's in the box of some of their existing kits: canopy and wheel masks, self-adhesive colour photoetch instrument panel, cockpit placards and seat belts, resin wheels/tyres

2 minutes ago, Enzo Matrix said:

Dunno about 1/72, but if they did a 1/144 multi-version kit to current standards, I'd be up for at least half a dozen.

How many Roden SVC10 kits have you bought?

[PhantomBigStu]

I wouldn’t say no to a 1/144 voyager....

[Enzo the Magnificent]

2 minutes ago, VMA131Marine said:

How many Roden SVC10 kits have you bought?

I have one in The Stash.  Nice enough kit but I'd much prefer an Airfix version.  

[cmatthewbacon]

2 hours ago, Whofan said:

How about Tamiya?

Find me a WH Smiths or The Works or Wilkos that sells Tamiya and I'll agree. Hobbycraft sells Tamiya, but BOY are they expensive compared to the  Airfix and Revell gift sets just next door on the shelf, or the Italeri kits on Clearance..?

best,

M.

[Asmodai]

21 hours ago, VMA131Marine said:

Model kits are not groceries or televisions, where typically you're looking to get the best price on something offered by many brands. If I want a 1/48 Walrus, or a 1/72 Victor, or even an accurate 1/48 Spitfire Vb then Tamiya is not an option. Comparing on price is therefore fairly pointless.

Too bad that is actually NOT the case. When Airfix newly tools a 1/72 P-51, Zero, Me-262, etc., etc., etc., that are competing with dozens of other examples of the same on the shelf, there needs to be a reason to choose Airfix over any of the many alternatives when the price is similar. Shopping for model kits is exactly the same as shopping for anything else. If there is only one choice out there, you have to buy that, or nothing, ie 1/48 Walrus. When we come to a 1/72 Zero, is there not a veritable 'supermarket' of them available?  Why should I pick up the Airfix one then? If blind brand faith is enough for you, great. Unfortunately, I doubt there are enough of you left to keep Airfix viable long term.

 

[VMA131Marine]

1 hour ago, Asmodai said:

Too bad that is actually NOT the case. When Airfix newly tools a 1/72 P-51, Zero, Me-262, etc., etc., etc., that are competing with dozens of other examples of the same on the shelf, there needs to be a reason to choose Airfix over any of the many alternatives when the price is similar. Shopping for model kits is exactly the same as shopping for anything else. If there is only one choice out there, you have to buy that, or nothing, ie 1/48 Walrus. When we come to a 1/72 Zero, is there not a veritable 'supermarket' of them available?  Why should I pick up the Airfix one then? If blind brand faith is enough for you, great. Unfortunately, I doubt there are enough of you left to keep Airfix viable long term.

 

It's true that there are some staple kits that all the big manufacturers have in their line-up. These are actually quite few in number; the only ones you didn't mention are the Bf 109, Fw 190, Spitfire, and maybe the F-16. These are the commodity kits, if you will, but even so there is a lot of variation in quality and, across markets, in price as well. The Tamiya 1/72 P-51D is cheap in Japan, but considerably more expensive than the Airfix kit in the UK. The Airfix kit is more accurate: point Airfix. But, my point about the market is that you generally can't readily substitute easily. If I want a 1/48 Walrus, a 1/72 F-15 is not going to be an acceptable substitute nor is anything else but another 1/48 Walrus. A company survives and makes its reputation on the products that distinguish it from it's competitors.

[Whofan]

9 hours ago, cmatthewbacon said:

Find me a WH Smiths or The Works or Wilkos that sells Tamiya and I'll agree. Hobbycraft sells Tamiya, but BOY are they expensive compared to the  Airfix and Revell gift sets just next door on the shelf, or the Italeri kits on Clearance..?

best,

M.

Fair point, I just thought that Tamiya fitted the point you made about Revell being the only reasonable competitor to Airfix.

 

Surely it's one of the biggest names not just for dedicated modellers, but casual modellers too?

Edited June 23, 2018 by Whofan
Clarify a point

[Plasto]

A company survives by generally being profitable or at least breaking even. How it makes that profit  or generates the revenue is the tricky part. 

 

So having for example a highly accurate 1/48 Walrus or a 1/35  Curry Sark is nice but you have to sell them. The problem Hornby seem to be facing is the fact they are not selling anywhere near enough stuff.  The company states it is refocusing more towards the collectors market rather than the general toy market. Probably because they realise that the products they have in the modern toy market are increasingly a fringe purchase and only work at a mass retail level when heavily discounted. 

 

The reality is the company has burnt through millions in capital in the past few years and now sits making a loss and with its current round of finance from a less than conventional source. While telling investors it needs to invest in new tooling et al.  A conventional investor might ask what they did with the cash they raised?  However Hornby’s investor base is not conventional in nature... Which is why it continues to suck in finance and perform the way it does.... The conundrum is how long can that sort of performance last even with the most supportive of investor bases...

 

 

[Albeback52]

10 hours ago, VMA131Marine said:

10 hours ago, VMA131Marine said:

 

I wouldn't say no to a 1/72 P-8A Poseidon

What about a 1/24th F-35B?

 

I think Airfix could also increase their revenue per kit by adding to what's in the box of some of their existing kits: canopy and wheel masks, self-adhesive colour photoetch instrument panel, cockpit placards and seat belts, resin wheels/tyres

 

 

I wouldn't say no either (if reasonably priced) but I certainly wouldn't thank them for an F-35 in any scale!  F86 or, F-84 perhaps.

 

The point about increasing revenue by adding accessories has some merit but, I would support such a move only if modellers were given a choice between a "standard" and, "de luxe"edition (with all the added bits you mention). Not all modellers bother with aftermarket accessories and, they may not  like or even want such expensive accessories adding to the price of what may already be an expensive kit.

From my own perspective, if these hypothetical kits were offered only in the "de luxe" version then Airfix would have lost another customer because I won't spend money on items that I would simply bin the minute I got the box opened. My choice of course. Others may welcome such a move. Interesting idea.

 

Allan

Edited June 23, 2018 by Albeback52

[The Tomohawk Kid]

23 hours ago, tempestfan said:

 the Airfix Collectors' Club mag Constant Scale had some interesting market research from ca. 1979. A Series 2 pocket money kit, IIRC a Cromwell, was calculated to require well over thirty years to recoup the investment

 

If that was the case, no wonder Airfix went belly up in the early '80s.

 

Thomo.

[Ratch]

Well for a start, Airfix never made a Cromwell until 2011 and no company would envisage a 30 year payback period. All costings look for Capital outlay to be recouped in 3 years usually and 5 in exceptional circumstances.

[Dave Fleming]

18 hours ago, Phil Gollin said:

.

 

Someone was asking for the relative contributions of the constituents of Hornby.

 

From LAST year's (2017) accounts ;

 

Model rail: .................... £22m ... 48%
Slot car: ......................... £12m ... 26%
Plastic modelling: .. £6m .... 13%
Collectible models: .. £4m .......  9%    (Corgi ?????)
Specialist paints ........ £2m ......  4%

 

Airfix is really dependent upon the success of the Model Railways.

 

( Oh, and these figures are only income  -  there is NO indications as to profitability Airfix may be making a big percentage of profit, or a loss ?????? )

 

 

 

.

 

 

Precisely - a business I worked in had one division whose gross income was much higher than ours, but we actually made more cash profit than they did. Railways have a much higher income, but they will have a higher cost as well. It's curious that slot cars sell so many