As I write this it’s snowing outside. looks nice and fresh which is odd for the city. I’m sure that won’t last long. In just 3 days we will begin packing and pushing off to go to Springfield, (Likely a snowy slow drive)
It’s no fun, It’s a long expensive trip with no guarantees of success. BUT getting there is great. the energy of the set up is like a circus with people trying to manuver their vans inside the exhibit hall. In a days time a dozen layouts get built. Lots of “good to see you” and hand shaking. Everyone wishes each other luck. It’s a pretty amaizing thing and I’m glad we are a part of it.
It always surprises me that after 7 years there are still people who have not seen our kits. That’s a good thing because it means there is still untapped market out there. It’s time once again to go forth to convert the plastic and wood heathans to the light of paper.
I think we get better at it each year. Generally people tell us if we screw up and we haven’t heard much negitivity lately. Oh, there are always the ones who insist that you can’t build with anything but wood, bless their closed minded little harts. They are a hoot. Sometimes you just gotta shake your head and wish them well.
I like introducung the new products. last year it was the “Critters and rolling stock” DVD (in St Louis). It was a surprise when they sold so well. I thought after all the flack we got for Paper structures that paper trains would cause a lynching. But people voted with their wallets and I can say there will be more trains later this year (standard guage this time).
So now we have a new disk and it is the best one ever. Thats not empty hype. We have learned and gotten better at designing these kits. Each time we do this i say never put that much on a disk again but before we know it the collection is packed. It goes like this, Well, if you have that kit and this kit then you need to add a kit like this and woulden’t it be cool to do a whole block. (My brother, the company president, who builds all this stuff, fills a table with them and its a complete act of providance that “wow they sure look good together”. I look through the inventory of kits in the works and sure enough, we have enough kits close to being ready to test build and though we didn’t plan it that way, there’s a whole block of buildings. The “First street, commercial buildings” DVD is the best collection ever. it tempts me to go back and retool some of our early kits but thats just crazy talk. Forward, ever forward.
Get the snowshoes out and head to Springfield, I’ll get the coco on.
Thom
PS. As I’ve said befor the actual disks woun’t be ready but we are preselling and it will only be a couple of weeks till we ship.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011 at 10:36AM 