Simon Kohler to retire from Hornby

[Godfrey Glyn]

A great deal of negativity around on here this evening me thinks. I have always been impressed with Montana, she has been at Hornby for eight years, that's a very long time for someone in marketing, especially at her age. To progress in her chosen career you need to move and gain experience in different fields and don't underestimate the amount of recruiting that goes on. There will be loads of firms out there who will have trawled through LinkedIn looking to fill a particular job. I would be very surprised if she hadn't been receiving loads of offers, especially after the television coverage. I am pleased for her, no young professional stays with the same firm for their working life these days, that's why Simon was different . Suggesting that she was pushed will not help her career. Good Luck Montana!

 

all the very best

Godfrey

[woodenhead]

2 hours ago, Godfrey Glyn said:

Suggesting that she was pushed will not help her career. Good Luck Montana!

 

Being encouraged to leave is in no way a reflection of her performance whilst at Hornby, and it certainly won't affect her future career.

 

Everyone I have met who was 'encouraged' to leave went on immediately to better things, it is common practice.

 

It's the fastest way to make savings in management overheads which is what appears to be happening currently at Hornby as they strive to find profitability.

 

To be clear though, I do not know Montana so I cannot be sure she hasn't simply decided to give up her likely well paid job at Hornby whilst contemplating a career change. But if I had resigned from one company to go another, I would be celebrating my new role and looking forward to the challenge on LinkedIn not lamenting my old role.  Basically she is stating loud and clear she is available for new opportunities, bees to the honey for all the recruiters on LinkedIn.

[BachelorBoy]

5 hours ago, ruggedpeak said:

Montana Hoeren has announced her departure from Hornby a few hours ago on LinkedIn

 

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/montana-hoeren-36712ba3_for-the-last-8-years-ive-had-the-honour-activity-7084279634220969985-iOpJ/

 

 

 

Hornby is a tiny company. Time to move to somewhere bigger, probably. 

[Fireline]

9 hours ago, woodenhead said:

....her likely well paid job at Hornby... 

That's an interesting assumption. What do you base it on?

[woodenhead]

2 minutes ago, Fireline said:

That's an interesting assumption. What do you base it on?

That she wasn't working for nothing or do you think it was charity work she was doing for Hornby.

[Fireline]

3 hours ago, woodenhead said:

That she wasn't working for nothing or do you think it was charity work she was doing for Hornby.

I never said she was working for nothing. You said she was in a "likely well paid job". Given that Hornby are based in Thanet, an area of high deprivation where most companies pay the living wage, or just above, I wondered on what you based your assumption that she was WELL paid.

[Pint of Adnams]

It appears from her replies to responses to her announcement on LinkedIn that she is moving into the hospitality sector, more details to follow once she takes up her new position in September.

[ruggedpeak]

What staff at Hornby may or may not be paid is not our issue. Montana has the benefit of clear media exposure of her skills, as well as a broad range of marketing, branding and product development experience. Hornby is an international multi-brand company and remains a household name, and she appears to have done well in that environment. What is not to like, as they say.

 

Whether Simon and Montana leaving Hornby affects the company is a separate issue. Hornby's financial challenges have nothing to do with Montana. Under the two of them model railways and Hornby have seen a massive increase in exposure and publicity. Whether Hornby fully capitalise on that is a separate issue. Ultimately they've got to get more cash in the door and less going out.

 

1 minute ago, Pint of Adnams said:

It appears from her replies to responses to her announcement on LinkedIn that she is moving into the hospitality sector, more details to follow once she takes up her new position in September.

Montana would appear to be well suited to it. Global Brand Director of a major hotel or leisure chain in the not too distant future?

[pete_mcfarlane]

11 hours ago, BachelorBoy said:

 

Hornby is a tiny company. Time to move to somewhere bigger, probably. 

Which is what tends to happen with people in specialist roles in small companies. 

[ruggedpeak]

11 hours ago, BachelorBoy said:

 

Hornby is a tiny company. Time to move to somewhere bigger, probably. 

Tiny in what sense? £50m turnover, multiple international brands and global sales, between 150 and 200 staff?

 

It fits almost exactly the UK and EU definitions of a "medium sized business" under the term SME. Clearly not an Apple or Amazon, but tiny?

 

https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/smes/sme-definition_en

 

 

[Phil Parker]

14 hours ago, woodenhead said:

To be clear though, I do not know Montana so I cannot be sure she hasn't simply decided to give up her likely well paid job at Hornby whilst contemplating a career change.

 

No you don't, and yet you have been creating something that is very likely, based on the information I have, a complete fiction. It's time for you to stop. How would you feel if you read the same speculation about you? Nor is speculating about someone's salary reasonable, especially bearing in mind the number of people who will resent this because it might put the price of their toy trains up.

 

8 minutes ago, pete_mcfarlane said:

Which is what tends to happen with people in specialist roles in small companies. 

 

Especially if they are young and ambitious.

 

[BachelorBoy]

3 hours ago, ruggedpeak said:

Tiny in what sense? £50m turnover, multiple international brands and global sales, between 150 and 200 staff?

 

It fits almost exactly the UK and EU definitions of a "medium sized business" under the term SME. Clearly not an Apple or Amazon, but tiny?

 

https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/smes/sme-definition_en

 

 

Those are fair points, but remember Hornby's market value is tiny.

 

Companies are usually consider "small cap" in the UK if their stock market capitalisation is between £50m and £230m.

 

Hornby's market cap is about £33m.

 

 

[CUCKOO LINE]

52 minutes ago, BachelorBoy said:

Those are fair points, but remember Hornby's market value is tiny.

 

Companies are usually consider "small cap" in the UK if their stock market capitalisation is between £50m and £230m.

 

Hornby's market cap is about £33m.

 

 

But if you make a good impression at a company thevsize of Hornby and have some good achievements to add to your cv then opportunities will open up. GoodbwishesvMontana and all you,ve done at Hornby, maybe we,ll see you back in a more senior role someday.

[The Stationmaster]

1 hour ago, BachelorBoy said:

Those are fair points, but remember Hornby's market value is tiny.

 

Companies are usually consider "small cap" in the UK if their stock market capitalisation is between £50m and £230m.

 

Hornby's market cap is about £33m.

 

 

Their market cap is currently £30.57 million

[Flying Pig]

 

3 hours ago, BachelorBoy said:

Hornby's market cap is about £33m

 

1 hour ago, The Stationmaster said:

Their market cap is currently £30.57 million

 

Sounds like they'll be on ebay by tomorrow evening at that rate.  Anyone interested?

[The Stationmaster]

29 minutes ago, Flying Pig said:

 

 

 

Sounds like they'll be on ebay by tomorrow evening at that rate.  Anyone interested?

That was a few says ago when the share price was descending towards 16p and a decimal point.

[tomparryharry]

I can never, ever understand peoples' fascination with the intimate gritty details of Hornby. Little wonder that other companies keep information sewn up tight until it's ready.

 

Mr. Kohler has had a glittering tenure at Hornby, and in time, I'll even forget the mess-up with the 42-72xx tanks...

 

Miss Hoern  leaving? Well, it's Thanet, really. It does that to people. The all-embracing aroma of cabbage & cauliflower... I doubt very much that Ms Hoern will be changing Hornby to Tescos at Westwood. 3-4 positions over an 8-year period will always look good on a CV, so good for her, I say. 

 

It's crude to mention salary figures on a public forum such as this; I'd be bloody annoyed as well.  One less customer for the rock & sweetshop down along the seafront....

[Tim Dubya]

Re: Montana

 

She's famous and has most likely been on some hiring manager's hit list for some time, having already been 'interviewed' countless times by her appearances on the tele.

 

 

[adb968008]

Hmm, I can think one one hotel company with very nice hotels and a railway connection.

 

 

[rob D2]

Unless you actually know her, you won’t know why she’s going ( I don’t ) . It’s human nature to be nosy about these things of course - my sister is a director of marketing in a different field and she’s been through a truckload of jobs , looking for the best deal for her family and the most interesting work . Happens all the time.

 

If I was to think about it , I wonder how closely it’s aligned to SK leaving - they seemed quite tight and I wonder if she felt vulnerable to predatory management without him there. But I’m just guessing , it doesn’t matter either way, it’s her personal choice 

[Ha_Charade_UR]

I'm late to this discussion (ironically due to my own employment issues) but my meagre contribution is that I became aware of Montana through 'Hornby: A Model World' and found her and Simon to be two of the two most engaging people on there.  I wish them both well but from a selfish perspective I will miss their presence on the show (assuming there's another series in the offing); given that the television coverage kicked me up the backside to re-engage with a dormant hobby, I hope that this change doesn't dent the company's prospects.  I know it's a big machine but each cog has its value (that's as technical as I get...).  

[jjb1970]

People do change jobs. When I entered the work place there was still a lingering nostalgia for the idea of a 'job for life'. Not only was that a myth by that time (1989), how many people want a job for life? They may want to be in employment and avoid being unemployed for the time they are of working age, but that's completely different to wanting a job for life. Not only among employees, but employers expect people to move and develop. Especially in more senior positions it's normal that company's will either ask you to rotate after 3 - 4 years in a role or start dropping hints. So Montana moving on is hardly anything out of the ordinary or particularly comment worthy. 

[Chris M]

The question for me is who will the replacements be? They need to bring in someone who is good at marketing and also understands the model railway marketplace. There aren't many of them around. As has been shown in the past marketing experts who don't understand the world of model railways don't tend to do very well for themselves or the company that employs them. 

[john new]

My tuppence worth from personal experience is you move for two reasons (1) advancement/personal needs (be that for pay or things like changed family circumstances) or (2) you feel your post is threatened where you are. Either could apply for senior Hornby staff and does it matter?

 

I think I had eight moves made for choice plus some enforced over and above due to reorganisations; of those eight - two were down to threats to the post (Units merging with staff to be shed), one moving area with my parents rather than staying on where I was in a rented flat and the others from my choice in seeking better pay/career advancement. 

 

Edited August 15, 2023 by john new
Typo spotted on re-reading the thread.

[adb968008]

42 minutes ago, Chris M said:

The question for me is who will the replacements be? They need to bring in someone who is good at marketing and also understands the model railway marketplace. There aren't many of them around. As has been shown in the past marketing experts who don't understand the world of model railways don't tend to do very well for themselves or the company that employs them. 

i wonder if DJ is looking for a job….

 

I’m diving for cover in a nuclear bunker before the responses hit me.

Edited August 14, 2023 by adb968008