WNW: how many kits do they have left?

[Dave J]

Our Forum rep in the USA, member Vickers, phoned Andy's to ask about international sales and was told "it's too expensive and too much hassle."

I get annoyed with sellers in the US as this excuse is used way to much... How do they know that its to expensive? If I want something and that is the only means to get it... I will play the shipping price.

As I mentioned in this thread look at Freight Forwarding services that will ship outside the US the goods that you want. 

[Pup7309]

Well good luck if you’re part of the feeding frenzy! Damn, have to wait for them to resurface.

[Pup7309]

Perhaps some changes could of been made, but I doubt that would of saved WNW. There were dark forces at play...


[/quote]

 . Step away from the Palantir Saruman!

I thought maybe WNW could have had a Brown box line that didn’t get sold out and an upmarket line with artwork, resin figs, glossy instructions etc that were limited editions. Maybe that could happen? I will sure miss the high-end research and box presentation but for every kit this was an expensive hobby.

[Vickers]

Apparently, Andy's Hobby HQ has a very small staff and simply doesn't have the time to take dozens of kits to the post office and fill out customs forms. They're not like Hannants and other major warehousers who ship stacks of kits on a weekly basis. They're a rarity in today's hobby landscape- an actual brick and mortar store with staffed by a few people who cater to their regional customers and actually seem to love the hobby. They've gone so far as to refuse reservations for secondary marketers who would hog the lot and list them on eBay for three times their MSRP. Not sure what to make of the situation, but twilight fell abruptly on WNW and this bit in Germany and at Andy's is probably the last gasp. I'm content that a few more hobbyists will get their hands on some of them because I thought they were gone for good when Hannants and Spruebrothers ran out.

[macsporran]

Remember that scene at the end of On The Beach as the US submariners set off back home to die and all the Australians prepare to take their suicide pills - the banner flapping in the wind proclaiming 'There is still Time'?

Well,
'There is still the Gotha UWD'

[Ringleheim]

Apparently, Andy's Hobby HQ has a very small staff and simply doesn't have the time to take dozens of kits to the post office and fill out customs forms. They're not like Hannants and other major warehousers who ship stacks of kits on a weekly basis. They're a rarity in today's hobby landscape- an actual brick and mortar store with staffed by a few people who cater to their regional customers and actually seem to love the hobby. They've gone so far as to refuse reservations for secondary marketers who would hog the lot and list them on eBay for three times their MSRP. Not sure what to make of the situation, but twilight fell abruptly on WNW and this bit in Germany and at Andy's is probably the last gasp. I'm content that a few more hobbyists will get their hands on some of them because I thought they were gone for good when Hannants and Spruebrothers ran out.

Don't confuse Andy's brick and mortar hobby store in a strip plaza in Glendale, Arizona, with his relatively new online mail order operation, which seems to be based in Portland, Oregon.

The 2 are separate operations, though obviously sharing common ownership.

The website/mail order business is small, but it is set up to process orders all day long.

As to why they won't ship internationally, I don't know, but that will probably change if the business grows.

[Jeff K]

Andy's dropped a video. they got some inventory in the brick and mortar store now.

also, there is some going to the online store, which will be made available at 10 am PST on Friday.

in the video, there's some stuff behind him. the rarest thing i saw was Clerget Camels. that said if you're not looking to build one of the schemes in the original boxing, add a Lukgraph Clerget engine to any Camel except the Ship's and you've got your Clerget Camel.

what i didn't see is German single-seaters, though he said there was more stuff behind the visible stack.

[Pup7309]

Andy's dropped a video. they got some inventory in the brick and mortar store now.

also, there is some going to the online store, which will be made available at 10 am PST on Friday.

in the video, there's some stuff behind him. the rarest thing i saw was Clerget Camels. that said if you're not looking to build one of the schemes in the original boxing, add a Lukgraph Clerget engine to any Camel except the Ship's and you've got your Clerget Camel.

what i didn't see is German single-seaters, though he said there was more stuff behind the visible stack.

I remember pre Covid they mentioned more stock of the Clerget’s was coming from HK then when Covid hit they were listed as sold out. So this might be the last of them?

By the way does anyone know if all the HK warehouse stock has now been emptied?

[Jeff K]

probably the last of the Clerget for all practical purposes, yeah. but it's super easy to turn any Camel except the ship's Camel into a Clerget if you don't need the kit decals (i think HGW offer some of the kit markings, but not Barker's if i recall). all you need to do is get a Clerget 9B. if the exquisite Taurus engine is too pricey or too much work for something barely visible, then Lukgraph makes a 3d printed one. cheap as chips.

i'm no warehouse-ologist, but i think Dave J has said (feel free to correct me Dave) that a) MBK and Andy's are business partners, therefore this is one big buy, and b) it's likely HK is pretty much cleaned out by these.

**** pure speculation********

i expect other warehouses to fall soon, and i would also expect the NZ stock to be liquidated directly via the website. this is because i suspect that the NZ stock is housed in space the Weta group will likely keep using for SOMETHING, and because elsewhere??? rent bills come due.

**** end pure speculation ****

for me personally aside from some OAW sprues and LVG C.VI decals i have pretty much everything i wanted. i would yet again like to thank WNW for making my childhood dreams come true. this is the stuff i wished would happen when i was 10 and struggling with Revell's 1/28 stuff.

and i'd also like to thank Copper State especially, but also Roden, Special Hobby, and all the aftermarket folks for keeping the flame burning. i'm not done shopping yet you're next up. (after the engagement ring and wedding savings).

[Pup7309]

Ha ha, yes.
I heard that WNW and Weta got a new warehouse a while back so yes they might need the space for something else?
If they sold through the NZ warehouse I imagine the ordering system would have a bit of a meltdown with the initial buying frenzy.

[Ringleheim]

probably the last of the Clerget for all practical purposes, yeah. but it's super easy to turn any Camel except the ship's Camel into a Clerget if you don't need the kit decals (i think HGW offer some of the kit markings, but not Barker's if i recall). all you need to do is get a Clerget 9B. if the exquisite Taurus engine is too pricey or too much work for something barely visible, then Lukgraph makes a 3d printed one. cheap as chips.

i'm no warehouse-ologist, but i think Dave J has said (feel free to correct me Dave) that a) MBK and Andy's are business partners, therefore this is one big buy, and b) it's likely HK is pretty much cleaned out by these.

**** pure speculation********

i expect other warehouses to fall soon, and i would also expect the NZ stock to be liquidated directly via the website. this is because i suspect that the NZ stock is housed in space the Weta group will likely keep using for SOMETHING, and because elsewhere??? rent bills come due.

**** end pure speculation ****

for me personally aside from some OAW sprues and LVG C.VI decals i have pretty much everything i wanted. i would yet again like to thank WNW for making my childhood dreams come true. this is the stuff i wished would happen when i was 10 and struggling with Revell's 1/28 stuff.

and i'd also like to thank Copper State especially, but also Roden, Special Hobby, and all the aftermarket folks for keeping the flame burning. i'm not done shopping yet you're next up. (after the engagement ring and wedding savings).

I agree that the main warehouse in NZ will be emptied of its kits at some point, probably soon, but I am not sure it will come via direct sales through the website as in the old days.

It would be much easier to move the entire inventory through a few vendors like MBK/AHHQ, Sprue Bros, and HLJ, for example.

Andy has just told he acquired $50,000 of kits with roughly half going to his hobby shop in AZ, and the other half going to the mail order operation.  The $25,000 at the mail order operation will be gone in less than an hour.

It's an easy sell for WNW to ship out everything in 1 or 2 or 3 transactions.

Why they would deal with individuals ordering 1 and 2 kits at a time through the website, I don't know.

I would imagine the powers still running the operation want to wrap up this chapter as quickly and easily as possible.

Notwithstanding the aforementioned, I keep checking the WNW website multiple times per day to see if the site is back "on".

LOL.

[Jeff K]

agree

why id' hire a temp to fulfill orders: higher profit margins. that said if it was me personally i'd sell to HLJ or MBK or Hannants to minimize the hassle. if it was me id' a been done already but i don't care about money so much. or ego.


so we'll see what happens, but i'm going to get what i want done, done asap. because i don't know what happens next...

[RAGIII]

I was hoping to get another Camel from Andy's but alas 4 New Tires had to be purchased for My Car Yesterday 
RAGIII

[smperry]

You got off lucky Rick. I pulled the trigger on an early D.VII from that German outfit and then found out I had to cough up $230 for darlin daughter's Honda alternator. Still feelin the pain and still lookin out for the DHL guy. Any future WnW acquisitions are going to have to fall in my lap I'm afraid.
sp

[Pup7309]

DHL was an expensive option for fast international mail - unless of course it gets stuck in Frankfurt! Lol!