# Caboose Hobbies to Re-open New Metro Denver Store



## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

From Caboose Hobbies' facebook page:










Later,

K


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## Pete Chimney (Jan 12, 2008)

I certainly hope the new location for CH has more parking spaces for vehicles than the recent store. Ideally the store could be located along one of the light rail lines in Denver -- now wouldn't that be neat, ride the trains to buy trains. I vote for that option.


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Just happy someone is giving it a go.


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## Tenwheeler (Mar 5, 2010)

I applaud the new owner for continuing the Caboose Hobbies business and look forward to visiting the new store. It takes a good business plan to reopen a commercial property in Denver these days and I 'm sure the model railroading community will continue to support Caboose Hobbies.


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## Sampug394 (Dec 30, 2010)

Tenwheeler said:


> I applaud the new owner for continuing the Caboose Hobbies business and look forward to visiting the new store. It takes a good business plan to reopen a commercial property in Denver these days and I 'm sure the model railroading community will continue to support Caboose Hobbies.


Hopefully this implies that there is in fact enough regional demand for the hobby for someone to see $$$ in reopening the store.

With a fair amount of mourning over the closing of the old store, people should flock to the new one since to myself and others, this (reopening) comes as a pleasant surprise.

Hopefully it won't be anywhere near cramped, busy South Broadway though.


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## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

Great news! I doubt I would have gotten into the hobby without Caboose Hobbies.


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## rwjenkins (Jan 2, 2008)

Pete Chimney said:


> now wouldn't that be neat, ride the trains to buy trains.


It's definitely nice to see this iconic store will continue on, and as somebody who would be visiting from out of town, the public transit option does sound appealing. However, the idea of dragging around heavy large scale train boxes on public transit might not be so fun!


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## rdamurphy (Jan 3, 2008)

I hope he opens somewhere outside of Denver City Limits so a 10% discount isn't eaten up by the City Tax...

Robert


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## stevedenver (Jan 6, 2008)

Was cabooose really in existence since 1938? (Looking at the ad above, with, a model of the old store.)


I imagine, with commercial space being so expensive currently in denver, the new location will be out of the way. No problem, as i guess it is what i call a destination store, less casual walk in sales. Likely not in a mall or shopping center with the typical triple net lease.

It will be interesting to see the business model. Specialty, broad retail ( like the old , full retail great american train store of the 90,s), general hobby. Wonder too if it will still also be a walthers distributorship.
Good to see the owner is getting on it. Missing x mas would be costly.


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## Lorna (Jun 10, 2008)

It was in downtown before that store (not sure if any other place). I remember going with my dad periodically to downtown Denver back in the late 50s when I was little.


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## stevedenver (Jan 6, 2008)

me too, that isn't 1938 however....


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

The site says opening in the Denver Metro area.


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

The old "Great Train Stores" of the late 80s/90s were not a good business model for a hobby shop. They located in upscale shopping malls (the one I worked for was in DC's Union $tation) and charged list, even list-plus in some cases. Most of what we sold wasn't model trains, but train souvenirs (hats, mugs, etc.) and a ton and a half of Thomas stuff. We stocked HO and N (mostly HO) and some token Lionel and LGB pieces (all ridiculously-priced), but it wasn't our bread and butter by any means. Our clientele wasn't "hobby folks." It was tourists and folks seeing stuff on our shelves and deciding on a whim to get into (or back into) the hobby. We were competitive on some stuff, and had some regular customers for that, but for the most part--even 25 years ago--mail order was where folks who did their research shopped for most hobby items. Our distributor charged us around 60% MSRP on most model railroad products. (I forget who our distributor was. I don't think it was Walthers. Hobbico comes to mind, but I couldn't say.)

I'd compare that business model to the previous hobby shop I worked for, but that one ultimately turned out to be a front for the owner's money-laundering operation.

Yeah, there's a reason I got out of the hobby biz.

Later,

K


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## up9018 (Jan 4, 2008)

The "Great Train Store" in Kansas City was located on the upscale Country Club Plaza area. I remember walking into it once in the late '90s and leaving about 10 minutes later, never to return. Sticker shock was an understatement compared to the other two hobby shops there that got most of my money.

Chris


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## stevedenver (Jan 6, 2008)

up9018 said:


> The "Great Train Store" in Kansas City was located on the upscale Country Club Plaza area. I remember walking into it once in the late '90s and leaving about 10 minutes later, never to return. Sticker shock was an understatement compared to the other two hobby shops there that got most of my money.
> 
> Chris


+1
Took all the fun out of even looking.
Fwiw, back long ago when i was laid off, in denvers dark mid 80s, i worked at caboose for about three months. One thing was the experience and knowledge and skill of staff. All modlers and buffs. Second was the make it right approach. I can recall building a g scale scan kit for some affluent mom who couldnt figure it out. (Scan kits were imho, terribly engineered). I remember adding twenty bucks of plastistruct in order to make the flimsy thing viable and an hour plus building it. That was customer care. Never saw caboose ever act otherwise.


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

The "great train stores" in Los Angeles and Orange county in California were not souvenir shops... they had tons of stuff, mostly HO and N ... They were in older malls and locations because they had been there for years, and would draw the customers to them.

The "crappy train stores" had the souvenirs and hats, and were in upscale shopping malls. 

Greg


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## Tenwheeler (Mar 5, 2010)

Does anyone know the status of the Caboose Hobbies relocation? I am putting together my Christmas wish list and would like to provide Caboose as a source. I sure hope they can put the business together in time. It's a huge undertaking for sure!


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

I would suggest going to their web site for the latest news and official information, not hearsay.

If you went there now, you would see the new location address.

The diagonal corner, southwest from the Post Office

Greg


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

10800 W. Alameda, essentially just south of the Federal Center (near 6th and Kipling). Still reachable on my lunch break!!!

Opening date TBD. Not sure they'll still hold claim to "world's largest..." anymore, but--hey--it's a brick-and-mortar store. We won't complain. 

Later,

K


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## Sampug394 (Dec 30, 2010)

East Broad Top said:


> 10800 W. Alameda, essentially just south of the Federal Center (near 6th and Kipling).


And from the looks of street view, the place might actually have gobs of parking. That in itself will already be an upgrade from the cramped zone on South Broadway.

Good to hear Caboose is coming back. I wondered if there was enough of a market for that to be possible. Guess so!


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## Ted Doskaris (Oct 7, 2008)

I wonder if the owner/s of the "new" store retained any goods or parts from inventory that may have been left over from the closed store?

-Ted


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## rdamurphy (Jan 3, 2008)

Ted Doskaris said:


> I wonder if the owner/s of the "new" store retained any goods or parts from inventory that may have been left over from the closed store?
> 
> -Ted


I walked through the store the day before they closed. There WERE no goods or parts from inventory. The place was nearly stripped bare. No HO at all. Very little N scale. Little O or S, and no large scale, other than a few scattered bits and pieces. The Details aisle was 90% gone, DCC was pretty much wiped out.

About the only section that wasn't decimated was the books section. 

Frankly, I'm hopeful that there's a new store coming to Denver, but it won't be Caboose. They only thing they bought was the name. Not the shop, not the inventory, and definitely not the reputation. Everyone is gone, none of the employees will be coming back, the management/owners are retired.

Basically, what we're looking at is a new hobby shop...

Robert


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## stevedenver (Jan 6, 2008)

rdamurphy said:


> I walked through the store the day before they closed. There WERE no goods or parts from inventory. The place was nearly stripped bare. No HO at all. Very little N scale. Little O or S, and no large scale, other than a few scattered bits and pieces. The Details aisle was 90% gone, DCC was pretty much wiped out.
> 
> About the only section that wasn't decimated was the books section.
> 
> ...


Well, i was there several times during the closure sale. While I don't know for certain, the detail aisle and other areas were gone very early in the sale days. To me, it seems highly improbable that there was a run on ALL items. Especially the many detail items. Especially at the early modest discount rates, as opposed to the later larger discounts. This seems, therefore, to have been a bulk sale of some sort. To the new owner? Maybe.


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

???

Robert says he was there the day before they closed and it was nearly stripped bare..

Steve, you say you were there BEFORE that, and you speculate that it was improbably that there was a run on ALL items?

Are you saying that people there AFTER you are incorrect in their assessment of what was left?

I am not sure I get what you are trying to say... you don't believe Robert? That there were items that were out of sight so Robert's inspection was flawed?

Actually trying to understand what you are trying to communicate, is it just hope that some of the old inventory has survived? Even if that is true, it is miniscule compared to the inventory the store carried originally, don't you think?

Greg


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## stevedenver (Jan 6, 2008)

what I wasn't clear about, apparently, is that I was in caboose on several days in the lead up to the closure, so we may have a misunderstanding as to the time line.


WHEN the sale started -give a day or two, since I believe I came in on day three-the place was already largely gone. many aisles had bare shelf, which only increased as the percentage of discount during the sale increased. For example, N scale kits and cars, hundreds easily, detail and accessories, clean as the floor. Ditto much of O and HO.

I recall the store started at 10 or 15% , then 25%, then ...??? like about 40-50% .

Because I assume that this huge amount of stock couldn't have disappeared within a day or so, like walls of ho and o and s scale detail parts, ( I mean odd stuff, like fire cracker antenna, Carter bros brake wheels, etc)

*I AM GUESSING (and only THAT) that some of the stock assets were sold in lots, aside from sales to the general public, presumably to the new owner along with the good will and name, possibly the walthers rights, if any. This is the most plausible thing I can think of, but it is not the only possibility.* I shop on line a lot, so , perhaps I am a different consumer than most. The early days of very low sale discount %s were not that enticing , at least to me.

Perhaps the low sale percentage did entice throngs. Perhaps that first day, a low percentage discount brought folks from all over?????

I don't challenge Robert. I agree. His post indicates wiped clean the day of closure, as I read things. Im talking about several non consecutive visits I made over three weeks or so. *It was stripped from nearly day one.* SO, I guessed, the bulk of mainstream, easier to sell, general hobbiest desirable stock might be sold at a discount to the new owner.

What I am trying to say is _that in the weeks leading up to the final day of closure_, no, the first few days, the place had been pretty well stripped of a lot of stock, EARLY ON. For example, all the lanterns and railroadania, many books, scenery (including imho esoteric german scenery items) Marklin Z scale (not a really popular item generally speaking) and other items THAT I WOULD NOT have expected to fire sale at the initial 10-15% discount. Brass, High end Accucraft G, and O scale, hundreds of boxes of Presier figures, digital control systems, items that are sufficiently expensive that, simply IMHO, 15% wouldn't have swayed me to jump on it. All gone, not just selected stuff. you know, not just Preiser engineers and railway personal gone, but ballet dancers, and clowns aplenty, etc., in the case....nadda. all zip, bupkis. LOL . That's not how trains dudes buy. 

And, from day three, all but one of the superb, in house layouts were gone, one built-in beauty, gutted and its gorgeous craftsman HO buildings sold like junk items. One O scale swamp layout remained for sale. Thankfully, as it's .....epic. I digress. Its not like the public is going to come in and buy and 3-7K layout because its on sale for 15% off. Perhaps Dwayne the owner knew takers in advance?

The discount percentage grew about every week, and the last day or two it was ....50% or more-I had a bigger than expected 50% discount at the time I checked out on the day before closure with a bunch of G scale oddities and some consignment items that were not and then WERE included in the sale. They just wanted the stuff gone. Perhaps too they know me too, over the forty plus years I have shopped there and sweetened my check out????. 

Thus, since it was pretty picked over so very early for *items which I would not have suspected to go at 10%, or 15% or even 25% I suspect stock was sold either in lots to other stores*, or, to the new buyer???? Caboose has had 15% off sales on some selected items at least weekly, and in the past bi-weekly with and added managers special. So the fact that all the detail parts, many many books, kits etc (things I think are not high turnover items) were suddenly gone, lock stock and barrel, when the close out sale was at 10-15% is what gives rise to my speculation, as this level of discount never prompted the feeding frenzy and empty shelves I observed.

Remember too, Caboose was a Walthers distributorship. They have had as much in the basement as they did on the floor, sometimes more. (but I hadn't been down there in years ). Overall the floor stock had been leaner, FOR CABOOSE, in the past year or so.

In fact, one day The Mineral Belt vol 1 , consignment, wasn't included in the sale, the next day, it was 50% off!!! Point is, that the really early run on and shift in stock didn't make sense to me in terms of every railroad nut having x mas in October for a 15% discount. Caboose is a ten minute drive for me, and I can afford to indulge , and at first, the meager stock and meager discount didn't entice me. perhaps if I driven from Cheyenne, I might feel differently. I don think the average consumer would have wiped out the store with ONLY the early 10-15% discount as it was. 

There were several consignment items, such as ancient ancient hoarded LGB parts and accessories for close to or at full retail which weren't included in the sale, and , not surprisingly, did not sell. Packaging I hadn't seen in decades. On the next to the last day, there they sat. Likely the property of one of the repair guys who now doesn't have the opportunity to sell them in the course of in house LGB repairs.

I suppose, perhaps, there was some day when the store offered a super sale of which I am not aware?? Perhaps I am simply wrong and the first weeks 10- 15% was enough. (would seem if this boosted sales to this extent, they could have increased sales volume 1000%. By the time the percentage was 40% or higher, one had to be pretty targeted in ones needs, as there was little . 

I think, a large part of the stock was sold to the new owner, or other shops, because , im my experience, modest 10-15% percent sales don't typically result in the place being wiped out in a day or three.


Don't get too excited, as im merely speculating. I have known to have been wrong at times.


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