Butler Henderson Posted January 21, 2016 Share Posted January 21, 2016 Google Earth images can be a good few years old so the situation may be different today - for the better or worse! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
APOLLO Posted January 21, 2016 Share Posted January 21, 2016 That bit of wastleland is the old British Railways Ditton sleeper & PW depot. I wouldn't like to walk through it these days clutching a few yards of Peco nickel silver - the pikeys would spot you a mile off !!!!. Car or mail order for me. Brit15 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bennyboy Posted January 21, 2016 Share Posted January 21, 2016 I've just realised that Hatton's new site is opposite where Alstom are planning on building a new facility, so perhaps they might get a few new customers from there! http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/local-news/alstom-submits-plans-develop-hbc-10501132 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bingley hall Posted January 22, 2016 Share Posted January 22, 2016 Taken in March 2013 Smithdown Road or Widnes? Both are a long way from Adelaide. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 22, 2016 Share Posted January 22, 2016 Speaking as someone who has used Hattons a lot but has never ever actually visited, where they are matters not a bit to me. I'd hazard a guess that the same applies to 99.99% of other customers too. The world is a big place. I do sympathise with those that were able to "pop in" to Smithdown Road but this is the age of mail-order with everyone shopping around for the best deal. We'd better get used to it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Colin_McLeod Posted January 22, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 22, 2016 Best wishes to Hattons in their new shop I remember the first shop which I visited only once (in 1973) and the recent one which again I was only in once. I look forward to seeing this new place. March 2013 Smithdown Road or Widnes? Both are a long way from Adelaide. 8623716430_9de64ef89b_o.jpg However the new shop is slightly closer. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
APOLLO Posted January 22, 2016 Share Posted January 22, 2016 I've been visiting Hattons occasionally for many years. Nearly always on every visit there has been one or two others in the shop buying / browsing. Once or twice several customers in. I hope the shop bit keeps going, I wouldn't like it to become one of those places with just a counter with little / nothing on display. According to Andy it won't, I hope so. On another forum there is talk of re-opening Ditton station along with the re-opening of Halton curve and the re-introduction of Liverpool Lime St to Chester / Wrexham services via Runcorn & Helsby. Not sure how advanced in planning this scheme is. Ditton station http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/d/ditton_junction/ Brit15 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
298 Posted January 22, 2016 Share Posted January 22, 2016 I've been visiting Hattons occasionally for many years. Nearly always on every visit there has been one or two others in the shop buying / browsing. Once or twice several customers in.I hope the shop bit keeps going, I wouldn't like it to become one of those places with just a counter with little / nothing on display. Including one with a Teapot...? As much as I like a good browse in a decent shop (and is a requisite for some suppliers to trade with them), spending modelling time specifically doing so and factoring travelling on top is quite frankly a waste of time for me, sporadic minutes here and there is currently spent doing quick jobs or collating materials for the next time I have the luxury of spending a few hours actually doing something, so what I usually end up doing is spending non-modelling time online ordering consumables that I would otherwise have had to make the effort to go and collect (although Mrs 298 can be quite helpful in popping into a Model Shop in town on one of her many shopping trips). So ignoring the time involved, has anyone factored in the real cost of using public transport, or is it because most users would be getting that for free after 9.30am...? This is where I'm more likely to have empathy for the staff who already have moved to the Hub, although I'm probably looking at that with the view that I wouldn't have minded paying my way through Uni by working part time at Hatton's... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold roundhouse Posted January 22, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 22, 2016 Including one with a Teapot...? As much as I like a good browse in a decent shop (and is a requisite for some suppliers to trade with them), spending modelling time specifically doing so and factoring travelling on top is quite frankly a waste of time for me, sporadic minutes here and there is currently spent doing quick jobs or collating materials for the next time I have the luxury of spending a few hours actually doing something, so what I usually end up doing is spending non-modelling time online ordering consumables that I would otherwise have had to make the effort to go and collect (although Mrs 298 can be quite helpful in popping into a Model Shop in town on one of her many shopping trips). So ignoring the time involved, has anyone factored in the real cost of using public transport, or is it because most users would be getting that for free after 9.30am...? This is where I'm more likely to have empathy for the staff who already have moved to the Hub, although I'm probably looking at that with the view that I wouldn't have minded paying my way through Uni by working part time at Hatton's... I use public transport a lot as quite often we are on a pub crawl and if a model shop is nearby and accessible by bus or train I will often make a visit and after a few pints more likely make an impulse buy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold JohnR Posted January 22, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 22, 2016 I was up at Hatton's this morning to see the last day of the Smithdown Road shop and the massive job of relocating with a look behind the scenes at the Hub for you. The shop was still presentable and servicing call-in customers today at the same time as display cases started the move in a fleet of vans to-ing and fro-ing between the shop and the Hub at Montague Road. SmithdownRd3.jpg SmithdownRd1.jpg SmithdownRd2.jpg An empty stock room! SmithdownRd4.jpg Moving over to Montague Road now, outside the Hub there's plenty of parking for customers, something which was always a bit fraught in the proximity of Smithdown Road. Hub1.jpg The temporary shop described in the first post will be just right of the entrance doors, it was still a conference room this morning but it'll look somewhat different tomorrow morning. Hub2.jpg The permanent shop will be set up across the front of the warehouse building which is where deliveries are currently received. Hub3.jpg A view over the main warehouse shows goods inwards to the left, stock through most of the floorspace with fast turnover items grouped together in one area for ease of picking. Bubble wrap arrives periodically by the container load! Hub4.jpg Hub5.jpg Orders are picked and prepared for despatch. Hub6.jpg All labelled up and ready to be collected for delivery. Hub7.jpg The test bench and DCC fitting facilities. Hub8.jpg The photo studio where every product is photographed for the website. Hub9.jpg Upstairs are the offices and Customer Contact Centre which has been operating from the Hub since September where all the calls and communications are handled. Hub11.jpg The working conditions for all of the staff are significantly improved when you compare the facilities old and new with a spacious canteen which can handle the lunchtime rush from the warehouse. Hub10.jpg So what we see is a significant business within the hobby investing in its future and employees and looking more like a successful 21st century business than retailing on the edge of a town or city. Hatton's celebrate 70 years trading this year and it certainly looks ready to move forward well beyond that. Andy - I dont know if you know, but the Liverpool Echo seem to have used these photos of yours without crediting you (and presumably without paying you!). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Y Posted January 22, 2016 Author Share Posted January 22, 2016 Andy - I dont know if you know, but the Liverpool Echo seem to have used these photos of yours without crediting you (and presumably without paying you!). I did receive a request via Hatton's for them to use them which I was quite happy for them to do so but they were supposed to credit accordingly. Thanks for flagging it up though. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
tulyardave15 Posted January 22, 2016 Share Posted January 22, 2016 Sign of the times,to far for me to visit.ill carry on online ordering.Best of luck Hattons. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Richard E Posted January 22, 2016 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 22, 2016 Still recall my first purchase from Hattons - A Hornby Dublo breakdown crane bought by mail order. Probably still got it in some dark corner. Far too many years ago, I think they were still in 180 then! That new facility is, for me, jaw dropping. It makes one realise that there must be an awful lot of solo modellers who do not belong to a club (I'll plead guilty now) and emphasises that our hobby is not in as parlous a state as one or two folk seem to think. And the value of stock there albeit much on goodness knows how long payment terms .... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 22, 2016 Share Posted January 22, 2016 That new facility is, for me, jaw dropping. It makes one realise that there must be an awful lot of solo modellers who do not belong to a club (I'll plead guilty now) and emphasises that our hobby is not in as parlous a state as one or two folk seem to think. And the value of stock there albeit much on goodness knows how long payment terms .... Totally agree. The "imminent death of railway modelling as we know it" crops up on RMWeb from time to time and has always been good for a giggle. I think the hobby is in a fine state of health. As more and more folk shop around online for the best deal (guilty), local shops may be in a perilous state, but not the hobby itself. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hroth Posted January 22, 2016 Share Posted January 22, 2016 Knowing the area well Apollo, this has been talked about for a long time. Freight still passes through, even if the station was re-opened and I for one hope it is. Ditton railway station would still be on the wrong side of the expressway. It would still be a long walk across the field referred to earlier on. The expressway is a "no pedestrians road" as busy as many a motorway. There is no safe pedestrian access. My reckoning is that Hough Green Railway station is the nearest option and then a taxi. One of the original Cheshire Lines stations it could be seen to be worth a visit in itself. Just a snippet of gossip, the nearest model shop declined an offer to sell their business. Overheard conversation. Owners declined to answer the question. Looked like a "rep" asking the question. https://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://s0.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/03/36/98/3369833_dd821e27.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3369833&h=481&w=640&tbnid=qIci2LYb0j3veM:&tbnh=160&tbnw=212&docid=AeYt4gXqyXThmM&itg=1&usg=__Mts9A8Cc5YZhGr1AQt0d3Fx3R6w= Edited as cannot seem to load a photo of Hough Green Station. Thats the Metcalfe "Country Station" PO237 ( http://www.metcalfemodels.com/00-h0-country-station), isn't it! Given the context, I should have used this link... http://www.ehattons.com/31834/Metcalfe_PO237_Country_station_Card_Kit_/StockDetail.aspx Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChesterModelCentre Posted January 22, 2016 Share Posted January 22, 2016 Wow thats news indeed no Hattons in Smithdown Road . From a personal view point its good news as the site of the new 'hub' it is a very easy place to get too, having said that it will be once the new Mersey Gateway has been completed. I have called into the shop a couple of times before Christmas and very impressed with the changes that had been made and very helpful staff . Hi Martin, we will still look after you here at Chester Model Centre. Hop to see you soon. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium cessna152towser Posted January 24, 2016 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 24, 2016 I remember visiting Hattons old shop several times in 1974 when the Glasgow-Preston electrification first went live and there was a promotional £3 day return ticket from Glasgow to Liverpool. I would come back with a big box load of Hornby-Dublo every time. Most of it sold on over the years and wishing now that I had kept more of it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgeconna Posted January 24, 2016 Share Posted January 24, 2016 Fliiping Heck that test bench set up looks like Ice Station Zebra. Would not like a posting to That section! Shame about this as I never got there at all. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RANGERS Posted January 24, 2016 Share Posted January 24, 2016 The saddest part of all is that our cities are becoming barren lands filled with coffee shops, chain stores and trendy bars, destroying local identity and pushing the rents up in the process. It's not a new trend, it's been moving in that direction for years leaving bespoke and specialist retailing, regardless of whether it's furniture, clothing or model railways is becoming the sole preserve of the internet I'm afraid. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 24, 2016 Share Posted January 24, 2016 ...becoming the sole preserve of the internet I'm afraid. I get nostalgic for when if you wanted to buy something, you went to a shop. If you wanted to contact someone, you phoned or wrote a letter. My daughter (12) can't imagine life without the internet and social media, YouTube etc. A couple of weeks ago, I turned off the broadband router for half a day to make a point. Her world collapsed. Mind you, I missed RMWeb... I don't know exactly when out-of-town retail parks came into being but it was certainly way before the internet. Combine deserted high streets with everyone shopping online and something's gotta give. Shame, really. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TangerineWizards Posted January 24, 2016 Share Posted January 24, 2016 Has anyone visited the new store yet? Is it worth visiting yet or better to wait for the completion 'Hub' in April? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter749 Posted January 25, 2016 Share Posted January 25, 2016 Including one with a Teapot...? As much as I like a good browse in a decent shop (and is a requisite for some suppliers to trade with them), spending modelling time specifically doing so and factoring travelling on top is quite frankly a waste of time for me, sporadic minutes here and there is currently spent doing quick jobs or collating materials for the next time I have the luxury of spending a few hours actually doing something, so what I usually end up doing is spending non-modelling time online ordering consumables that I would otherwise have had to make the effort to go and collect (although Mrs 298 can be quite helpful in popping into a Model Shop in town on one of her many shopping trips). So ignoring the time involved, has anyone factored in the real cost of using public transport, or is it because most users would be getting that for free after 9.30am...? This is where I'm more likely to have empathy for the staff who already have moved to the Hub, although I'm probably looking at that with the view that I wouldn't have minded paying my way through Uni by working part time at Hatton's... Not everyone who models and visited Hattons was a pensioner and entitle to free bus travel. Speaking as someone who has used Hattons a lot but has never ever actually visited, where they are matters not a bit to me. I'd hazard a guess that the same applies to 99.99% of other customers too. The world is a big place. I do sympathise with those that were able to "pop in" to Smithdown Road but this is the age of mail-order with everyone shopping around for the best deal. We'd better get used to it. The mail order idea is OK if you wish to purchase something sight unseen but I prefer to visit a shop to view what I am purchasing so as I don't own a car Hattons is now off limits unfortunatly. I will stick with the Ian Allan Bookshop near Piccadilly Station as they have a good range of stuff and I can view it before making a purchase - also their prices are very similar to Hattons Peter Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Colin_McLeod Posted January 25, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 25, 2016 If nobody bought things unseen then there would be no on line shopping at all. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CUTLER2579 Posted January 29, 2016 Share Posted January 29, 2016 I have many fond memories of visiting both shops in Smithdown Road on many occasions over the years and remember dear Norman with great fondness with his Brown Duster coat. He always remembered me by name and yet they had hundreds of customers even in those days. It might have been my "Cockney" accent somewhat out of place in Liverpool that reminded him of who I was. Good Luck to Hattons who have served me well for about 50 years. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
antrobuscp Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 Has anyone actually been to the temporary shop as yet? I'm thinking of taking a trip there over the next week or two. I note the roadworks in the post above - it sounds like the Runcorn Bridge will be a place to avoid. I don't know the detail of the area or the plans related to the new bridge, but is this likely to improve access to Hattons in the long run? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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