BRM May + Traction. It's ON-SALE NOW!

[fezza]

Presumably the market research has been done but I think for a £9,99 shelf price it's going to struggle. It puts it at a higher price point that the glossy and more substantial motoring magazines. And then there's the balance of content.  Steam fans won't be interested in the diesel content and a lot of Traction fans aren't really that interested in models - and especially not models of kettles.

 

There might just be a market for a Model railway magazine that focuses on post-68 and has an extensive prototype section relevant to modelling. But it would need to be at a lower price point or be exceptional in content and presentation to stand out on the news stands. Modern Railway Modelling ran for a few years, but that folded over a decade ago and I don't think the very competitive magazine market has got any easier since then.

 

But maybe I'm not the best judge - I buy few modelling magazines nowadays as they all seem to regurgitate similar content with lots of pictures but fewer and fewer substantial articles. How I miss authors like Iain Rice and his old MRJ colleagues...

[F-UnitMad]

On 30/04/2024 at 14:46, micklner said:

The combined price and in a sealed  bag  do not help the decision making.

I dunno - makes it even easier for me.... 😉

[YT-1300]

I never understand the negativity whenever some new or different is tried, its all for the good of the hobby, to keep the hobby going. 

 

Surely its better to have a combined magazine than no magazine at all?

[Wheatley]

19 hours ago, fezza said:

Presumably the market research has been done but I think for a £9,99 shelf price it's going to struggle.

 

Yes I fell for that one too. Don't normally buy BRM but I thought I'd give the combined BRM and Traction a go, didn't quite get the 'two magazines in one' memo, assumed the other things in the bag were Traction and a catalogue of some sort and had to ask the newsagent to check the price at the till ! It was a local independant newsagent too, not a supermarket, so I wasn't expecting the supermarket 'just chuck it in the trolley extra value bagged stuff you didnt want' trick. 

 

I know the price is on the cover (if you look hard for it) so it's my own fault. Lesson learned. 

Edited May 4 by Wheatley

[fezza]

15 hours ago, YT-1300 said:

I never understand the negativity whenever some new or different is tried, its all for the good of the hobby, to keep the hobby going. 

 

Surely its better to have a combined magazine than no magazine at all?

 

If the combined magazine format proves to be at bad idea there may soon be no magazine at all. I wish all railway publishers well, but the market is very competitive and there are more focused offers out there for a lower price. Time will tell...

[micklner]

15 hours ago, YT-1300 said:

I never understand the negativity whenever some new or different is tried, its all for the good of the hobby, to keep the hobby going. 

 

Surely its better to have a combined magazine than no magazine at all?

Totally disagree.

£10!! and hidden in a sealed bag,  is not the way to try and get people to buy anything, especially newcomers to the hobby. There are far too many other modelling magazines in a normal format (no bag) for people to buy.

Are one of the two magazines in the sealed bag in trouble ??  If that is correct this will not help in the slightest, judging from the piles sittiing on Smiffs shelves.

[franciswilliamwebb]

10 minutes ago, micklner said:

Totally disagree.

£10!! and hidden in a sealed bag,

 

I certainly wouldn't pay that, but I got my digital copy for £4.99 as part of the RMWeb sub.  I haven't a clue how much the dead-tree market is worth these days, I reckon it must be 15 years since I was last in a WHS or similar.

[Torper]

I'm a bit confused (not uncommon these days).  You say that the print edition in a bag costs £9.99 in the shops, but in the first post Steve says that the print edition is available mail order for £5.49 including postage which seems pretty good value.  There must be some difference somwhere that I haven't spotted?

[Wheatley]

The print edition in a bag in the shops includes copies of Garden Rail and Narrow Gauge World.

 

Edited May 6 by Wheatley

[Torper]

In that case, and assuming that you buy BRM regularly and have £50 or so going spare, it makes considerable sense to take out a subscription at £4.23 a copy, which is good value and may well be what Warners want people to do. As I have no great interest in either garden or narrow gauge railways I certainly wouldn't pay £9.99 for a bagged copy in the shops.

[Phil Parker]

On 05/05/2024 at 09:53, micklner said:

Totally disagree.

£10!! and hidden in a sealed bag,  is not the way to try and get people to buy anything, especially newcomers to the hobby. There are far too many other modelling magazines in a normal format (no bag) for people to buy.

 

OK, time for the regular reminder that we find bagged copies sell more than unbagged ones on the newsstand. This has been the case for a long while. Either @AY Mod or myself usually posts this, but people have short memories, or maybe don't want to remember.

 

Handily, it also stops this:

 

 

Spotted in a Smiths, the "gentleman" has stuck the mag on a rack, and is enjoying a jolly good read. For well over 10 minutes. I'm sure he then bought the issue...

 

There is also a requirement from supermarkets and Smiths that we carry out some promotions during the year. The only way to avoid this, is to take the mags off the shelves. If you reckon you could re-negotiate this, something no magazine has ever managed to do, then please get in touch.

 

On 05/05/2024 at 09:53, micklner said:

Are one of the two magazines in the sealed bag in trouble ??  If that is correct this will not help in the slightest, judging from the piles sittiing on Smiffs shelves.

 

At last, some news you will enjoy! Yes, while Garden Rail is doing very nicely thank you, the issue of Engineering in Miniature is the final one, the mag is closing. With three mags all chasing the shrinking model engineering market, Warners took the decision to wind it down. There is a little crossover between GR and EiM so we are doing something with that.

 

And the piles - well the issue has only just come out, and we tend to send out plenty so people can buy them over the next four weeks. I was in Tesco the other day, and they had piles of baked beans on the shelf, does that mean they don't sell?

 

Anyway, this pretty much repeats stuff we end up saying every single time a bagged issue goes out. FWIW, thanks to recent promotions since Warley, and a radical redesign, BRM sales are on the up, so maybe we are doing something right?

[Torper]

I'm still a bit confused.  Am I right in thinking that if you want to buy BRM in the high street or at a supermarket, you'll get BRM and a couple of other magazines (and maybe a DVD?) bagged together for £9.99.  If you only want BRM (incorporating Traction) but don't want the extras that come in the bag then you can only get it by mail order for £5.49, or by taking out a subscription.  (Incidentally, I'm not at all against the bag per se - it's good to get a pristine copy that hasn't been thumbed through by other shoppers).

[fezza]

The combined BRM Traction (one magazine) was £9,99 in my WHSmith. Some places have it bagged with other magazines too.

 

Personally I don't buy bagged. It suggests the publisher isn't confident in the product. Surely the internal content should sell the product? I also object to unnecessary plastic bags. Perhaps publishers/retailers should be forced to charge an extra 30p carrier bag environmental fee - that might stop this nonsense. At least we can reuse a normal plastic carrier bag - plastic wraps around magazines are useless and purely wasteful.

Edited May 7 by fezza

[AY Mod]

3 minutes ago, fezza said:

It suggests the publisher isn't confident in the product.

 

A strange assumption; maybe we're confident that readers may find something of interest in the bundled mags to make them more likely to buy one of those in the future?

[micklner]

16 hours ago, Phil Parker said:

 

OK, time for the regular reminder that we find bagged copies sell more than unbagged ones on the newsstand. This has been the case for a long while. Either @AY Mod or myself usually posts this, but people have short memories, or maybe don't want to remember.

 

Handily, it also stops this:

 

 

Spotted in a Smiths, the "gentleman" has stuck the mag on a rack, and is enjoying a jolly good read. For well over 10 minutes. I'm sure he then bought the issue...

 

There is also a requirement from supermarkets and Smiths that we carry out some promotions during the year. The only way to avoid this, is to take the mags off the shelves. If you reckon you could re-negotiate this, something no magazine has ever managed to do, then please get in touch.

 

 

At last, some news you will enjoy! Yes, while Garden Rail is doing very nicely thank you, the issue of Engineering in Miniature is the final one, the mag is closing. With three mags all chasing the shrinking model engineering market, Warners took the decision to wind it down. There is a little crossover between GR and EiM so we are doing something with that.

 

And the piles - well the issue has only just come out, and we tend to send out plenty so people can buy them over the next four weeks. I was in Tesco the other day, and they had piles of baked beans on the shelf, does that mean they don't sell?

 

Anyway, this pretty much repeats stuff we end up saying every single time a bagged issue goes out. FWIW, thanks to recent promotions since Warley, and a radical redesign, BRM sales are on the up, so maybe we are doing something right?

Wow !! I better keep a look over my shoulder next time I am in Smiffs looking at Mags !!  😂

 

Where do Warners/BRM display/list their sales figures ?? The only ones on a search were Bauer listing Model Rail at just under 17000. Steam Railway also by them managed better sales at 18000 plus.

Edited May 7 by micklner

[spamcan61]

6 minutes ago, micklner said:

Wow !! I better keep a look over my shoulder next time I am in Smiffs looking at Mags !!  😂

 

Where do Warners/BRM display their sales figues ?? The only ones on a search were Bauer listing Model Rail at just under 17000. Steam Railway also by them managed better 18000 plus !!

Hornby Magazine almost bang on 20,000:-

https://www.abc.org.uk/product/16906

 

Railway Modeller around 27,000

https://www.abc.org.uk/product/2953

I've never seen figures for BRM, or Continental Modeller for that matter, in the public domain, that's presumably the publisher's business decision.

Edited May 7 by spamcan61

[Legend]

I thought I’d give BRM a go, aware that it now includes Traction, but that was fine as the May edition included an article on Stirling station . However the WHS  had the combined magazine bundled with Garden Rail and another mag for £9.99 . Now while it’s not big in the overall scheme of things I didn’t want to shell out an extra £4 on things I really didn’t want . I did try Tesco and a local newsagent as I thought the bag might just be WHS but to no avail. Every copy I found was bagged and £9.99.  So I gave up.

 

I think there is an issue here as to me these are two quite separate subject matters . I suspect that those interested in (modern) Traction won’t really be into steam layouts or articles featured in BRM and vice versa , those interested in model railways might not be interested in these diesels that killed off their beloved steam . But then to compound things by adding Garden Rail and Narrow Gauge World  charging £10 really meant it was not for me 

Edited May 7 by Legend

[AY Mod]

3 minutes ago, Legend said:

So I gave up.

 

I'm sure I'd responded that individual current and back copies are available here https://www.world-of-railways.co.uk/Store/Back-Issues/british-railway-modelling  including posting it out to you. Obviously that now contains Traction.

 

We do need to make the right choices for the business; as Phil's explained we do have to run added value promotions to not just retain a place on the shelf but if they see an increase in sales the supermarkets in particular buy more copies and distribute them to more of the stores; something which has been happening for us over the last year.

 

[grahame]

The plastic bags do tend to keep the magazines clean, free from grubby finger prints, dog eared corners and people coughing and sneezing germs on them.  ;-)

 

[Phil Parker]

25 minutes ago, Legend said:

those interested in model railways might not be interested in these diesels that killed off their beloved steam

 

Because railway modellers are only interested in steam? You need to get out more, the fashionable area is now blue diesel, and there are lot more layouts representing this era.

[Legend]

22 minutes ago, AY Mod said:

 

I'm sure I'd responded that individual current and back copies are available here https://www.world-of-railways.co.uk/Store/Back-Issues/british-railway-modelling  including posting it out to you. Obviously that now contains Traction.

 

We do need to make the right choices for the business; as Phil's explained we do have to run added value promotions to not just retain a place on the shelf but if they see an increase in sales the supermarkets in particular buy more copies and distribute them to more of the stores; something which has been happening for us over the last year.

 

Thanks Andy . It was just a discretionary purchase . Don’t want to create an account to get it . But thanks for the info 

[Torper]

I think what I shall do in future is to see what Steve says about the magazine when it comes out and, if I find anything in it of particular attraction, send £5.49 off to Warners for a single print copy.  It's a pity because I used to like buying it or a competitor at the station before going off on a railway journey and sadly the bagged £9.99 deal does not appeal and the competitor will probably benefit.

Edited May 7 by Torper

[fezza]

11 hours ago, AY Mod said:

 

A strange assumption; maybe we're confident that readers may find something of interest in the bundled mags to make them more likely to buy one of those in the future?

 

Personally, I want to see what I am buying. Even the best mags seem to vary in quality month by month. Plastic bags can conceal mediocrity and lots of "filler stories".  When mags were less than a fiver I was often willing to risk it, but when they reached a tenner...

 

For me, it is also about the quality of the writing. Is it rich with new insights, approaches or ideas? Some mags are still really good.  Some are full of platitudinous articles that read like they were written by AI.  Others are little more than a series of pictures.  Worse still, there are the reviews that seem to be thinly veiled manufacturer press releases. It's not surprising that you often see the sealed plastic bag surreptitiously opened on the newstands so the content can be inspected before purchase... and then abandoned when it is seen as not fit for purpose.

[AY Mod]

4 minutes ago, fezza said:

Personally

 

But you extrapolated that to whether a magazine was healthy or not.

 

5 minutes ago, fezza said:

Worse still, there are the reviews that seem to be thinly veiled manufacturer press releases

 

Now I know you don't read some of them.

[phil_sutters]

12 hours ago, grahame said:

The plastic bags do tend to keep the magazines clean, free from grubby finger prints, dog eared corners and people coughing and sneezing germs on them.  ;-)

 

Are those problems a major issue in Byfleet? I can't say I have noticed them in Harry's, our local newsagent, or the WHS just across the road from him.