Preserved Railways at Model Exhibitions

[JohnR]

I've been asked by the preserved railway that I am involved with to look into attending some of the local model railway exhibitions with a display to hopefully increase interest in our railway. We are short on volunteers and members (although I suppose most lines could say that!) so we would be hopeful that such a stand would increase that - although also increasing visitors would be good too.

 

Does anyone here have any experience of such things? Are they worth it? Would a preserved railway be charged for having such a stand?

[RedgateModels]

We would welcome such stands at the Mansfield Show, subject to having space. We wouldn't charge either, although you would have to provide your own food etc.

 

I'd class it in a similar way to organisations like HMRS/RCTS who have/will provide stands at the show.

 

 

[Mike Bellamy]

Regarding charges, it all depends on the type of stand - we have one at Derby who pay full commercial rate but bring a whole range of toys and Thomas stuff that appeals to our younger visitors but they also promote their own railway at the same time. They must sell enough to cover their costs as they come back every year. As Ian says above, an information only stand would not normally be chargeable but sales (if any) would be restricted to exclusive items only available from that society or association. You may find that popular shows have a waiting list of those wishing to attend.

 

Mike

[David Bigcheeseplant]

It really depends on the exhibition manager, personally I would not have a presevation stands at Railex, as in most cases the stands tend to be fund raising with general items for sale not model railway items or if so they tend to be Thomas items aimed at the family market.

 

David

[pointstaken]

Unless you have a large stand, I feel that it would hardly be worth your while. At the exhibitions I've attended, the preservation societies attending seem to have very small stands, which attract little attention. So you need at least an exhibit of some interest to attract and engage the punters attention.

 

Dennis

[PLD]

Similar to Mike at Derby, at Hull we have one preserved line who have attended every time for many years plus another with an intermittent presence. The regular one doesn't do the ‘Thomas toys’ etc, and instead seem to do a good trade in videos/books of the line and other better quality souvenirs plus being a November show good sales of Christmas cards, Calendars etc. as well as of course advertising their Santa specials, dining trains etc

 

For this we charge them a discounted rate roughly 2/3rds of what we charge a ‘normal’ commercial trader. They also regularly purchase advertising space in the show guide.

 

As far as we are concerned, they add to the show by providing a well presented stand that doesn’t clash or compete with any other traders…

[JohnR]

Well, I certainly won't be selling Thomas merchandise! We have too much of it on our railway as it is! I would be there to provide information aboutthe railway, and any sales would be restricted to items only available from us, e.g. back issues of our newsletter and copies of the booklet describing the history of our line etc.

[Stubby47]

If you're exhibiting as a society stand, you might want to think about some large signage to advertise your railway, something that would make your display stand out from the other non-layout/trader stands.

 

I've also seen similar stands with DVD/Videos running, showing the preserved line in action.

 

Stu

[noiseboy72]

My workmate promotes his preserved line at model shows and also brings his HUGE Tomy toy layout as well. He sets it up for the kids to play with, while chatting to the parents about activities on the railway, membership and that sort of thing.

 

They also sell a few interesting bits and bobs they get donated and generaly enjoy the day.

 

I think if the balance is right between a display and stand, it works well. Simply sitting behind a desk with a home made sign and a few photo copied leaflets will do nothing.

[ANT]

Hello John

 

We have Pendon Muesum along with a stand out our Risex show, Below is a pic of there stand from a few years ago. They don't sell any items as such, they just get speak to people at the show about them, and have leaflets to to hand out. I believe that we did not charge them.

 

Pendon Stand at Risex 2007 by Donald Rintoul

 

I would say that you would need some kind of display like this to attract people to the stand, then have available to give out leaflets, timetables and maybe membership forms.

 

Thanks

SEEYA

ANT

[LNERandBR]

This kind of stand is the main type missing from the Boston show. We can't have anymore traditional traders otherwhise the new trader would compete too much with our established traders.

 

As for charge's not sure to be honest would proberbly depend on if they are selling anything or not. Our rate per-table is very low anyway as we're only a small show.

 

One thing is certain though is that we would provide lunch as per the rest of our exhibitiors trade or not.

 

 

[Kenton]

my perspective is not from an expo manager but as a visitor to many shows.

 

I personally would rather see a preserved railway stand than some of the poor quality and junk traders that you tend to see at some more local/small shows. But then I guess even they pay for their stand at the venue.

 

But it does raise a more wider issue - just how does one find out what is available to volunteer for at the local preservation line. Do they advertise such positions or is it like many railway clubs - a struggle to find out?

Although a keen visitor and should have some idea of what goes on - I haven't.

 

The trouble with a stand at a show is that although you can pull in new visitors as "new day out" if the show is a long way from the railway getting volunteers to travel regularly to the site may well be a problem except for the most dedicated.

[PhilH]

But it does raise a more wider issue - just how does one find out what is available to volunteer for at the local preservation line.

 

As a 21 year veteran I can tell you this (mainly about the loco side):

 

You will get dirty, cold and wet.

 

You will not very often do anything right.

 

You will get dirty, cold and wet.

 

You will get the worst jobs to start with.

 

You will get dirty, cold and wet.

 

You will meet some right numpties (but also some people who will become lifelong friends).

 

You will get dirty, cold and wet.

 

and, in the end, the most important one:

 

You will, despite all of the above, become absolutely, totally addicted to it.

[Kenton]

You will get dirty, cold and wet.

What ? even in the summer ?

Or is that only for the prestigious jobs

[Tom Bayford]

What ? even in the summer ?

Or is that only for the prestigious jobs

 

Engines with open cabs and summer showers so you get dirty and wet at the same time

[Boris]

My personal experience of preservation stands at model railway shows does tend to be rather mixed. I've seen some railways with stands that are scruffy and staffed by people who are quite obviously just there to gain free entry to the show, and others that have had a tidy, well presented stand, staffed by people who are keen, interested and knowledgeable. At the end of the day, before you commit to running a stand at a model show, you need to ask yourself what you want to get out of it, and what the railway wants to get out of it.

 

If you are just there to get free entry to a show, forget it, stay in bed instead. If you want to promote your society, then, yes run the stand by all means. Secondly, the society should not be there to make money, the idea is to promote custom on your railway in two key market areas, families and enthusiasts. It's fine to have odds and ends on sale to cover any costs associated with the stand, some small memorobilia from your society for example (keyrings, badges etc.), or a product your guarantee nobody else will be selling. You can guarantee that Thomas stuff will be on sale elsewhere in the hall and at a cheaper rate.

 

Ideally you want to have information available that enthusiasts are going to want, details of galas, visiting engines, whats going on in workshops etc. is always good. For example I asked an individual from a major preserved railway a question at York a number of years ago (nothing highly technical, just "how was the overhaul of loco X going") and got the answer "I'm buggered if I know mate, I'm just here to run the stand", unhelpful and unlikely to encourage repeat custom. You also need a tidy interesting display for people to look at, that Pendon stand is very good, but they've made a common error, don't put chairs in front of the boards you want people to look at!

 

As far as families go, really, you want every family that goes past to leave with one of your railways timetables, people looking fairly smart in the "crowd" handing out timetables to every family is very good - go to them, don't wait for them to come to you - a small discount voucher tucked inside the timetable is an added sweetener and also allows you to see how successful the exercise has been in the future.

 

Attracting volunteers is the hard bit, if you get someone showing a vague interest and then say "become a volunteer", they'll run a mile as a rule! Placing items in a display that people can actually handle is a good way of getting interest (the more unusual the better), especially with enthusiasts, its also an easy conversation starter - which is what you are looking for, not just jumping in cold and saying "become a volunteer". Once you have their interest and it's clear you might be on to a winner you will need to be a little proactive with recruitment. Don't just hand over a leaflet and invite them to read it and send in back, have a simple contact form to fill in (you do it on their behalf), name, address, phone number, area of interest. Once you have this, you can then contact them in the future to discuss where to go, for example inviting them to an open day or training session. Ideally you should telephone them rather than write to them, make them feel wanted, and it will overcome any apathy if you are taking positive action. Don't expect to get a huge amount of volunteers from model railway shows, or from any public exhibition, if you get 40 phone numbers you've done well, and realistically about 10% of that number will actually become volunteers.

 

If you want any more assistance, let me know, and I'll see what i can do.

[DLPG]

I've been asked by the preserved railway that I am involved with to look into attending some of the local model railway exhibitions with a display to hopefully increase interest in our railway. We are short on volunteers and members (although I suppose most lines could say that!) so we would be hopeful that such a stand would increase that - although also increasing visitors would be good too.

 

Does anyone here have any experience of such things? Are they worth it? Would a preserved railway be charged for having such a stand?

 

 

John,

 

Our group have been attending exhibitions around the North East for years. We have gone down the avenue of investing in a large amount of model railway stock. Well worth it and we have raised a lot of valuable funds. We have also gained a few new volunteers as a result of our attendance at shows. Most exhibitions do not charge fundraising groups or charge a small fee. Our group members have a number of exhibition layouts so we tend to take a free layout for a free trade stand. Where are you based? Let everyone know, you might get some invites from here!

 

I would also recommend open days at workshops. free entry, some layouts and trade stands and people will come. Our group have two a year at the workshops that the groups locomotive is currently under restoration. People find out more about your project and see that you are moving forward. At our last open day we gained new volunteers and some good donations. So well worth a thought.

 

Hope this helps and good luck!

[298]

From my experiences of trying to make money for preservation societies, it is often better to stay at home and donate your petrol and lunch money, rather than try to secondhand magazines, recovered scrap, or general tat. If you're just after a bit of flag waving, the easiest way would be to drop a load of leaflets off on the usual table at a show, and let the visitors do the rest.

 

Another idea (that i'm sure i've seen done) is to make a good model of one of the stations on the line, as currently preserved. Any exhibition manager would be daft to turn down such an unusual approach, and as long as you only had leaflets out, they'll pay your expenses.

[Crossing Keeper]

I think a stand at a model railway show is more likely to attract visitors to a preserved railway than it is to sign up new members/volunteers on the spot.

 

As such the question the arises, how far do you think people will travel to see your railway? If you're in a tourist area (seaside/national park etc.) there's a better chance they might visit while on holiday but if you're not (such as East Lancs, GCR or Middleton Railways to name but three) the chances are that you potential audience is within an hour or so's drive.

 

So, how far is the exhibition from your railway or, to put it another way, how far are you asking people to come to see you?

 

As for pitch charging, a preservation railway stand could claim charitable status and if providing a display such as playing video tapes of the line it is an entertainment asset. Larger shows with a finely tuned balance between venue expenses and exhibition income will probably regard preservation societies as commercial stands but medium to small sized shows with less critical accountancy would be more likely to treat them as an attraction than a trade stand.

 

Forgive me if I've missed it elsewhere in the thread, but which preserved line do you represent please? I know of an exhibition in the North Midlands which might be able to provide a spot.

[bike2steam]

I've been asked by the preserved railway that I am involved with to look into attending some of the local model railway exhibitions with a display to hopefully increase interest in our railway. We are short on volunteers and members (although I suppose most lines could say that!) so we would be hopeful that such a stand would increase that - although also increasing visitors would be good too.

 

Does anyone here have any experience of such things? Are they worth it? Would a preserved railway be charged for having such a stand?

 

Yes, preservation societies of most types, be it railways, buses, planes,ships, are generally welcome to model railway shows as most people have 'other' interests, plus it can be beneficial bringing in good causes, and can work both ways.

No, as a volunteer organisation they are not charged for stands, only purely money making concerns such as traders are.

Personally I tend to agree with kenton.

Which railway are you involved with ? If it's not Swanage Railway, S&DJR Trust, S&DJR Heritage Trust, or Shillingstone Station, as they are already coming, and you dont need a stand frontage of more than 10 feet,you would be most welcome to come to our show in Blandford in October.

[JohnR]

Thank you both for the kind offers of a show - however, I will be representing the Caledonian Railway (Brechin), so even the north midlands will be a long trek!

[bike2steam]

Thank you both for the kind offers of a show - however, I will be representing the Caledonian Railway (Brechin), so even the north midlands will be a long trek!

 

Oooopps, yes, not quite local, or cost effective . But good luck, I'm sure some shows up that way would accomodate you, but as I said, don't just look for railway orientated shows, as any coverage is better than none.

[DLPG]

Thank you both for the kind offers of a show - however, I will be representing the Caledonian Railway (Brechin), so even the north midlands will be a long trek!

 

 

Your welcome down to County Durham if you don't mind the drive!