Tales of Transparency

Tales of Transparency: No Let Up at the Ports

As August unfolds, we thought we’d ask each of our distributors if things are improving as far as imports go. Apparently, not very well. We already reported how one distributor is expecting no less than three monthly Hobby Master shipments all around the same time, meaning lots to go through once the shipments finally do go out the door. Conversely, another distributor has said that one container they have been awaiting has been sitting in the Port of Long Beach for six weeks, mired in red tape and waiting to be placed aboard a freight train before it can reach their warehouse several hundred miles away. The list of imperiled goods goes on and on and right now things are looking much the same as they did in mid-2021, where containers expected for months on end are still languishing at the ports waiting to either be shipped via truck or freight train to their ultimate destinations. So, while the media has reported that consumers have been shifting their discretionary spending away from tangible items and over to experiential activities such as vacations and travel, the slowdown in the logistical network is once again beginning to affect the supply chain both here and abroad. It remains to be seen if both the ports and transport network will be able to get back on track in time for the coming holiday season. We hope so and will continue to monitor this slowdown each and every month from here on out so that we have a clearer understanding of which items will be available for Christmas shopping.

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Tales of Transparency: July Fireworks Start Early

Amazon, eBay, Facebook, WalMart and the Meta Verse. Oh My!

As many of you know by now, our new home construction has been indeterminately delayed. We’re not sure by how many months — it could be a few, in which case we will attempt to relocate our business and belongings before the advent of the holiday season, or it could be as late as November, in which case we will hang around New York until the first of the year so we do not lose out on the holiday business.

Earlier today, we were approved to sell on Walmart’s Marketplace site. This will be our fourth marketplace site (you can already find us on Amazon, eBay and Facebook) that operates alongside our main web site, and I’m sure will bring with it its own set of challenges and rewards. I’ll likely look at how easy or difficult the onboarding process is around the middle of July and start by listing an abbreviated lineup on their site to see how well certain items sell and whether or not the work brings with it the necessary revenue stream that warrants its daily upkeep.

Lastly, we are looking at launching our next marketplace site, The Motor Pool VR, some time in 2023. Unlike our other more traditional retail annexes, our VR site may require the use of Meta’s Oculus Quest 2 headset to navigate the site since everything will be nestled within a virtual reality world. Here again we will likely launch a limited number of products within what we term a boutique setting, which will allow customers to interact with the products, view different forms of dynamic merchandising techniques, and hopefully lead to bigger and better things as we gain traction within the oft-discussed VR world.

That’s about it for now since we have a very large Forces of Valor shipment spread out over three separate deliveries, which will require us to work diligently for the next few days to ensure everything gets out on time and into the hands of our customers. To recap, the latest delivery includes a number of back ordered items, among them a pair of 1:700 scale warships (USS Missouri and USS Enterprise), their inaugural 1:32 scale Tiger I tank, their second issue Sturmtiger assault mortar and the metal tracks everyone has been asking about since they were released earlier this year. Also arriving is their second issue 1:32 scale Tiger I tank, their second M4 Sherman tank and a set of weathered metal tracks that can be attached to either of their M4 Sherman tanks.

That’s about it for now. In the mean time, have a wonderful Fourth of July, spend time with friends and family, and enjoy the summer months. We’re off to see Minions: Rise of Gru!

Panzer Vorwärts!

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Home, Home on the (Kitchen) Range

No these aren’t our cabinets. Ours are likely on a dock, lying amidst a labyrinth of containers, sitting idle in Shanghai, waiting to be placed aboard a cargo ship with 10,000 other fully laden containers. Sigh…

Previously we posted that we planned on moving to Florida sometime this summer after our new home was completed, passed inspection and was fit for occupancy. Well, things have changed and our timeline has had to be reevaluated. The recent lockdown in Shanghai has slowed the delivery of all sorts of manufactured goods, from diecast tanks and planes to, of all things, kitchen cabinets. Without cabinets, we are unable to move into our new residence and presently our building coordinator does not have an accurate idea as to when the cabinets will be completed, on the water, in Florida and hung in our brand new kitchen. This could take place in October or it could be as late as November. If it is November, it appears as if we will have no choice but to delay our move until early 2023, since it will have a dramatic impact on our holiday business. So, for now, assume everything hasn’t changed and we will continue to accept new product as it is made available. Obviously should anything change we will post an update here to let everyone know about our revised plans.

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Tales of Transparency: Supply and Demand 2022

If you thought last year was a bear to get through, then you may want to fast forward to 2023. Even as the logjam that has affected our ports for the past year seems to be waning, signs are already pointing to another troubling year for the upcoming holiday season. That’s because China is experiencing a new wave of COVID-related cases, which is particularly bad in the port city of Shanghai. Currently, 25,000,000 people, or roughly three times the city of New York, are in complete lock down, unable to mill about on the streets, go to work or even obtain groceries at their local markets. The government claims it is doing its best to control the virus but thus far things do not seem to be improving with cases on the rise and its inhabitants literally on the verge of revolt. Keep in mind that Shanghai is one of China’s principal export centers, so when their vast manufacturing sector and trans-oceanic ships end up sitting idle, this has a dramatic effect on the rest of the world, all desperate to get goods and other finished products for the holidays. Stories are already being written about how this is all coming at an inopportune time, as the rest of the world struggles in the wake of their own pandemic relapses. While goods seem to be flowing again for the first half of this year, we expect that the tap will be turned off for the latter half of 2022, with many items likely slipping into early 2023 or later. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but unless COVID isn’t struck down soon, its going to be another tough year for retail, as inflation continues to push up the consumer price index and the pandemic, now in its third year, will slow the rate at which products make it into the global market place.

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Tales of Transparency: Free Shipping on Our Marketplace Sites

We’ve had great success with our free shipping business model on Amazon and have therefore decided to adopt a similar model for eBay, at least in the short term. Beginning on February 21st, 2021, all of our eBay listings now offer free domestic shipping. Thus far we’ve only adjusted the prices on a handful of lower-priced items to at least partially cover the cost of shipping around the nation. Frankly, there’s probably enough margin in some of the higher-priced items to cover the cost of ground shipping so its the lower priced items that we need to watch carefully and, in some instances, may need to adjust their prices since the dollar margin isn’t all that great.

We will soon be offering FedEx for both domestic as well as international shipments likely beginning in early March, so please don’t be a bit surprised if your next shipment is brought to you by the folks “that positively have to get it to you” by any and all means necessary. Again, we’ll be keeping a careful eye on this facet of our operation, particularly for larger packages that need to travel across several shipping zones.

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Tales of Transparency: February Odds and Ends

Based upon some preliminary discussions, it appears as if we will be adding FedEx to our list of outbound carrier options. According to our sales person, FedEx is looking to get more aggressive within the e-commerce space, particularly since it has grown exponentially in the wake of the pandemic. An official Zoom presentation is scheduled for this coming Tuesday, so if we like what we hear and the terms are amenable, we will enable the FedEx API on our web site so that our customers can now compare shipping rates across all three major carriers. Keep in mind that we will still be the final arbiter when deciding upon which carrier to use based upon shipping costs, the value of the package and other mitigating factors.

FedEx is also looking to garner more international shipments, although it remains to be seen if they are indeed competitive with the USPS and can provide viable last-mile delivery confirmation to ensure that a parcel arrives at its ultimate destination to everyone’s satisfaction.

In the past, February has typically been a retrenching month for us as well as the industry at-large, where the manufacturer’s show off many of their new products for the coming year. Since the customary toy fairs have been dispensed with in 2021, much of this information is being passed along through the Internet, so some of this new product information is a bit spotty at best, in some instances devoid of any imagery. We will update new product introductions as soon as imagery is provided.

Looking back, 2020 was our strongest year to date, and we anticipate much the same spike in business for the balance of 2021. Its difficult to say if this trend will continue well into the outer years but all signs thus far are pointing to a robust recovery, which should propel our own business trajectory for at least the foreseeable future. That’s it for now. We’ll be taking a few days off towards the end of this month largely to scout out a new location in Florida for both our business and home. Wish us luck.

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Delays on Top of Delays

As a wordsmith of sorts, I’ve been asked by several entities to explain why a number of lines and highly sought after items still haven’t arrived. In a word, COVID.

The Corona virus has had a huge impact on virtually every aspect of the supply channel, from manufacturing to logistics and everything in between. Obviously, if there are far few workers making each item then it takes quite a bit longer to deliver each model to market. Now, add to that the fact that workers in China have already begun their annual migration from the factories to their native homes ahead of the upcoming Chinese New Year, some with the expressed desire of not returning to the factories, for whatever reason, and you have a situation that can turn the most resolute planner into a Mad Hatter.

Second, a great deal of manufacturers have re-located from the Chinese mainland to other countries in the hopes that they can continue producing low cost goods with some degree of regularity and at affordable prices. The problem, as some have begun to realize, is that COVID has had a direct impact on shipping, causing many ships to take far longer to reach their ultimate destination here in North America than what was originally forecast. One distributor we work with claims that in several instances it has taken over two months for a container ship to leave Bangladesh to reach one of our west coast ports. One ship, that left Bangladesh in November, is still moored in Kobe, Japan. Naturally, this has led to congestion at these very same ports, which again creates a bit of a logjam in the system as they are then forced to wait for the next available truck or train to take them to the distributor. Add a few nasty weather fronts to the mix, delays with all of the major carriers coming out of the holiday season, and you have the recipe for a perfect storm that produces endless delays from start to finish, as well as a ludicrous way to make any reliable forecasts.

Having said all that, it truly does not help to send us an endless stream of messages asking about the whereabouts of your order when we update our web site on a daily basis as soon as we have learned new information from each of the manufacturers and distributors we deal with. Moreover, we send out regular newsletters which shows, in handy graphical form, the latest arrivals along with those items expected in the not-too-distant future. We also have gone to great lengths to explain everything we do on our First Time User Information page in an effort to be as transparent as possible amidst this pandemic. If, at the end of the day, you still do not understand that COVID has caused a great upheaval in the market, we would prefer that you do not place your order with us since we simply do not have the time to explain this over and over again ad nauseum. I know its probably not what you want to hear at the end of the day but I’d prefer to give you the bare facts than blow smoke your way with false promises and heady illusions. That said, stay healthy, stay safe, and above all else, hug and kiss your loved ones in lieu of mindlessly staring at an empty space on your bookshelf as you await the next collectible to arrive. Trust me, you’ll thank me for it.

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Tales of Transparency: Odds and Ends for December

Thus far, the 2020 holiday season has been exceptionally busy. So much so that we haven’t had the opportunity to publish a newsletter in over three weeks. Obviously it means that we haven’t been able to stay in touch with our customers on a regular basis and have instead had to rely upon short blog posts and web updates to keep everyone informed as best as possible. Part of the problem has been the pandemic, which has led to more people purchasing online from vendors they know and trust. It also means that we have sold through a good portion of our top end merchandise, and have had to re-purchase some stock from our suppliers at a time we would rather it draw down a bit to prepare for year end inventory. Be that as it may, it means a lot more unforeseen work which has taken us away from some of the chores such as creating newsletters.

In other news, we’ve learned that our distributor just received their December shipment of Hobby Master products, which brings them up-to-date on what they were expecting to receive for the calendar year of 2020. It also means that a great many highly desirable models are en route to us, including their latest 1:48 scale Messerschmitt Bf-109 fighter and their eagerly awaited inaugural F-105G Wild Weasel. Many of the newest models are still employing line art sketches in lieu of actual product photos to convey their appearance, something we hope to address shortly once actual imagery have been posted online.

Another supplier has indicated that the first shipment of 1:43 scale military vehicles under our proprietary Armored Fighting Vehicles of World War II line are expected to make landfall in late December, as is the first shipment of 1:72 scale Warbirds of World War II. The same distributor also reports that the follow-on shipment of FOV’s MH-47 Chinook is en route to them as is FOV’s initial pairing of Royal Australian CH-47 helicopters. This, combined with some other restocks means we are going to be very busy throughout the holiday season as well as the post holiday time frame in the run up to New Year and beyond.

Beyond that, we aren’t anticipating any other major shipments until January, which will likely include lots of Panzerkampf, PMA, Corgi and other lines that are deeply in need of additional reinforcements. Lastly, Corgi has announced the cancellation of CC60216, the second Panther tank in the series. No reason was given apart from “problems with the tooling.” We’ve cancelled any pre-orders for this item and are still awaiting the other vehicles in this series due out some time this winter.

Anyway, that’s it for now as we return to our everyday job of getting merchandise out the door as quickly and expeditiously as possible. As always, we wish everyone a happy holiday and a joyous New Year and hope we have done out utmost to bring a little piece of diecast heaven to your doorstep in a year many of us would prefer to soon forget. Enjoy!

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Tales of Transparency: Lightning Strikes Twice

For anyone that has been following this blog, you’ll probably remember that way back in 2017 my son-in-law, Dr. Samir Pandya, along with the assistance of Dr. Whitney McBride and a good portion of the esteemed surgical staff at Maria Ferrari Childrens Hospital in Westchester, New York, successfully separated conjoined twins who were connected at their spine and shared several internal organs. A minute long commercial ran at the conclusion to the 2017 Super Bowl, congratulating the parents and pointing towards the complexities of performing such a procedure. I’ve posted both before and after photos of the twins, who are now fully ambulatory and are destined to lead long and fruitful lives, just as it was intended, thanks to their 20 plus hour long operation.

On a recent trip to Dallas, I mentioned that I had received a photo of the twins from their mother, who are now five-years old, and looking perfectly healthy. His response, rather curiously, was “which set of twins were in the photograph?” I looked at him, unsure of what he meant by that flippant remark, not putting two and two together until he filled me in further. Turns out that just a few weeks ago he, along with the eminent staff of the Childrens Hospital of Dallas, successfully separated a second set of conjoined babies, this time around connected at the liver. Unfortunately, I don’t have any photos to share with you but suffice it to say that he has entered a rather select worldwide fraternity of medical professionals who have now separated multiple sets of conjoined twins. Needless to say, they look forward to helping other young families in their quest towards leading normal lives, all with the help of modern medicine and the patience and fortitude of doctors such as Samir.

I’ll get off of my soapbox now. Oh, and if you aren’t already doing so, wear a mask. If he can wear it for over 20 hours, you can do it for just a few scant minutes every day. Thanks and Happy Thanksgiving….

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Tales of Transparency: Odds and Ends for October

The pandemic, as many experts have predicted, has had a major impact on our business over the last few months. Sales have grown exponentially on all of our sales venues, which has accelerated in recent weeks. As a result, we are genuinely concerned that we may run out of certain key items ahead of the start to the traditional holiday shopping season. While we are working closely with all of our suppliers to ensure a steady flow of merchandise to back fill our shelves, the fact remains that many hot-selling items will likely be in short supply going forward. We therefore strongly recommend you peruse our site and place your orders as early as possible. Keep in mind that the major carriers are expecting a record shipping season during the fourth quarter and have already gone on record to indicate that orders need to be shipped out as early as possible to guarantee their arrival before the holidays. With that said, we wish you a happy and healthy holiday and look forward to servicing your needs for the remainder of the year.

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