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Hornby Mystery Bundles


ikcdab
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Has anyone bought any of these..

https://uk.Hornby.com/catalogue/bundles/mystery-boxes?encoded=JczNCsIwEATgt8lFBFOh6GERvAveSwmbH9NizYbdBMzbG_U6881cNkzxjmWBhTjZtq9P9Vi3ElimFyaPhbiZf2Jsm6fM5KsrRqo1DkuIvZ_h1qSDtrvSO4jKGINZPWg9DONZCXHpWzgpDo7Yi8n97IvgePhh0B8

 

I'm intrigued that the steam passenger train bundle says  "You can expect to find a steam engine and at least 6 Brake wagons included in this bundle."

 

doesn't sound much like a passenger set and it's £500..... Really???

 

Ian C

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32 minutes ago, ikcdab said:

Has anyone bought any of these..

https://uk.Hornby.com/catalogue/bundles/mystery-boxes?encoded=JczNCsIwEATgt8lFBFOh6GERvAveSwmbH9NizYbdBMzbG_U6881cNkzxjmWBhTjZtq9P9Vi3ElimFyaPhbiZf2Jsm6fM5KsrRqo1DkuIvZ_h1qSDtrvSO4jKGINZPWg9DONZCXHpWzgpDo7Yi8n97IvgePhh0B8

 

I'm intrigued that the steam passenger train bundle says  "You can expect to find a steam engine and at least 6 Brake wagons included in this bundle."

 

doesn't sound much like a passenger set and it's £500..... Really???

 

Ian C

 

 

If that doesn’t take your fancy you can always opt for the Airfix Mystery Bundle, contains an amazing Corgi Collection.

16D0F335-EBDB-4643-B9E3-6B8CC27B2465.png

Edited by Widnes Model Centre
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Does say At least though. You'll probably get more. But consider that's equivalent to £500 RRP rather than what you can find on discount.

 

If you look at the side it's got a SR Lord Nelson 4-6-0 and Bulleid coach.

 

Pure guess, but LN and 2 x 3 car sets of Bulleids? RRP of those come to about £500. If it's not those then expect something similar value.

 

If not, that's what the Trades Descriptions Act is for. But I don't think you'll have any problems.

 

 

Jason

 

 

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2 minutes ago, ikcdab said:

Well maybe. But it does say "6 Brake wagons"....

 

Ah. But it's people who work on the merchandising for Hornby. I doubt all of them are knowledgeable about railways.

 

I would expect them to have meant Brake Coaches.

 

You'll probably get whatever they are trying to get rid of that week.

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I can't imagine anyone really going for this. Choose your own stream loco for (say) £150 and add on 6 coaches of your choice for (say) £40 and you pay less than £400....

 

Fancy a punt for £500...?

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2 hours ago, Widnes Model Centre said:

 

 

If that doesn’t take your fancy you can always opt for the Airfix Mystery Bundle, contains an amazing Corgi Collection.

16D0F335-EBDB-4643-B9E3-6B8CC27B2465.png


I do hope that this isn’t the barking type of Corgi? :o


Does the Corgi Box contain Airfix kits? ;)
 

Oxford Diecast have also been offering mystery boxes….

 

 

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1 hour ago, Steamport Southport said:

 

Ah. But it's people who work on the merchandising for Hornby. I doubt all of them are knowledgeable about railways.

 

I would expect them to have meant Brake Coaches.

 

You'll probably get whatever they are trying to get rid of that week.

 

We know how brake coaches can be the last to leave the shelves, so.........a steam tender loco with six Mark 1 BSKs in a range of liveries? Don't think I'd risk £500 to find out....... Pass 1.

 

2 hours ago, Widnes Model Centre said:

 

 

If that doesn’t take your fancy you can always opt for the Airfix Mystery Bundle, contains an amazing Corgi Collection.

16D0F335-EBDB-4643-B9E3-6B8CC27B2465.png

 

Don't get me started on the overuse of the 'a'-word - when everything is "amazing", nothing is. Pass 2 (and hire a copywriter with more creativity!)

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Crazy marketing . Just why would you fork out a large amount of money for something unknown ? The only way this works is if there is a substantial discount and you really feel like you are getting value for money .  Terms like a loco and 6 brake wagons don’t really inspire confidence . I’ll wager J15s , K1s and Class 71s that they can’t get rid of will be appearing . 

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This is an Oxford thing. They have for a number of years offered Mystery Bags of Oxford Diecast products at shows they attend.Looks like Lyndon has extended it to all the Hornby ranges except they are boxes not bags. Oxford however are now doing boxes as well.

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I have been interested for a while in the unusual collection of the "signature" series of bundles,  however, while there may be a marginal saving on MSRP,  when one factors in the usual discounting on these items,  they really do not represent value,  particularly when one considers the unusual "pairing" of locomotives and coaches/rolling stock.

 

It is obvious that both the "Signature" series and the "Mystery Bundles" are merely a marketing ploy to alleviate potential firesales which Lynton Davies,  on taking the helm,  declared would not happen again.  Perhaps as an "incentive",  Hornby should list the actual MSRP of the contents so that a potential buyer is able to gauge whether they represent an actual pricing discount,  even if they do not know the actual contents.

 

In the past,  purchasing a train pack was a surefire way to get new items at a discounted price rather than the full MSRP of the included items.  These days though it seems that the items are no longer discounted,  so that the packs no longer represent value and like the Signature series and mystery bundles are merely a convenient method to shift slow moving wharehouse stock at almost full retail.

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50 minutes ago, Bilbo said:

This is an Oxford thing. They have for a number of years offered Mystery Bags of Oxford Diecast products at shows they attend.Looks like Lyndon has extended it to all the Hornby ranges except they are boxes not bags. Oxford however are now doing boxes as well.

More a matter of Hornby using whatever ideas they can come up with to get shot of stuff that has been crowding the warehouse pallets for a long while and apart from not earning sales revenue is costing real money for storage with an outside party.  Thus we saw the cleverly put together 'big boxes' during lockdown helping to, hopefully, shift Class 71s and J15s among other things and this is just the latest example of trying to shift unsold stock.  And don't overlook the basic fact that it is hardly likely to be aimed at the more experienced railway modeller, especially those who shop around, but is more targetted towards Hornby's other market areas where it might indeed be seen as a bargain or worth going for.

 

As long as Hornby have unsold stock and continue their policy of avoiding fire sales to retailers then they will be offering various forms of bargain, or otherwise marketed, bundles such as perhaps 'Santa's Special Sleigh Loads' or the 'Easter Bunny's Bonus Boxes'.  Provided schemes like this deliver revenue and reduce costs by getting rid of otherwise unsold stock then there's no need to knock the idea although some of the titles they use might provide  amusement for some people - normally in places where such comments won't be seen by the target market.

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16 hours ago, Steamport Southport said:

 

If not, that's what the Trades Descriptions Act is for. But I don't think you'll have any problems.

 

 

Jason

 

 

 

But would it? The description is vague enough - and identifying the packages as "mystery" means they could get away with a Smokey Joe and 6 Railroad 20T brake vans. Not saying they would, but I doubt you'd have a case. 

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13 hours ago, Legend said:

Crazy marketing . Just why would you fork out a large amount of money for something unknown ? The only way this works is if there is a substantial discount and you really feel like you are getting value for money .  Terms like a loco and 6 brake wagons don’t really inspire confidence . I’ll wager J15s , K1s and Class 71s that they can’t get rid of will be appearing . 

Seems to be a 'cunning plan' to shift excess stock without (further) cheesing off the retail network by directly undercutting them.

Edited by spamcan61
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6 minutes ago, spamcan61 said:

Seems to be a 'cunning plan' to shift excess stock without (further) cheesing off the retail network by directly undercutting them.


As cunning a cunning plan that only Baldrick could come up with 

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2 hours ago, JohnR said:

 

But would it? The description is vague enough - and identifying the packages as "mystery" means they could get away with a Smokey Joe and 6 Railroad 20T brake vans. Not saying they would, but I doubt you'd have a case. 

 

Yes. If you get less than what they are describing, which you probably won't.

 

I would use this as evidence.

 

2021-09-16.png.3d36feeaecfe67325229caed1beb6632.png

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6 hours ago, Bilbo said:

This is an Oxford thing. They have for a number of years offered Mystery Bags of Oxford Diecast products at shows they attend.Looks like Lyndon has extended it to all the Hornby ranges except they are boxes not bags. Oxford however are now doing boxes as well.

I should have said in my original post that it was the perception that Oxford Diecast got rid of slow selling stock using this method. In the days when Corgi was made here in Swansea it was possible to buy a bundle of stuff from the factory if you knew someone working there. These were often slow sellers and sometimes seconds which were working. As Lyndon worked there then perhaps he got the idea and carried it on.  

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When I was into fantasy figures I used to get the "bundles" from Games Workshop.

 

You got a hell of a lot more than their value. A big box full of whitemetal figures and usually had one of the dragons or similar in it. All for something like £20 in 1980s prices. True value was usually well over £100.

 

There seems to be a perception they are trying to rip people off. They aren't. 

 

 

 

Jason

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On the Modelling Forums, the Airfix bundles have been shown by the purchasers. They are great value and a lot more is included than you could reasonably expect for your money. The usual response on those forums sounds like others reaching for their wallets and buying similar bundles. A lot of them sold out very quickly.

 

Preferring back to the Hornby hampers from a while back. Yes it was slow moving stock but full to the brim and marketed as Family Fun pack, contents worth £x for only £y. 

 

I am am hoping that someone from Hornby picks up on this thread and has a look at the way these mystery packs are being marketed.

Edited by Widnes Model Centre
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19 hours ago, Neil Phillips said:

We know how brake coaches can be the last to leave the shelves, so.........a steam tender loco with six Mark 1 BSKs in a range of liveries? Don't think I'd risk £500 to find out....... Pass 1.

OTOH a Bulleid pacific w 6 BCKs might pass for a short Winter Atlantic Coast Express.....

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