British Railway Modelling

"Wolf

LOL

IMHO the three major mags are inevitably fairly predictable with BRM the worst of the lot. But then the layout that most sticks in my mind was an N thing from australia (iirc) - in BRM.

Ken

If by market forces you mean people like me boycotting outlets such as W.H Smith rather than have to fight our way through a crowd of FREELOADERS in order to pick up a magazine then it is indeed odd that more publishers have not picked-up on this obvious selling advantage.

(kim)

I don't sneek into the cinema without paying, stand at the front and block everybody else's view of the screen.

(kim)

Once you've broken the seal on a DVD it becomes practically worthless, you'd be lucky get a couple of quid for it on eBay. Also the markup on DVDs and CDs is miniscule compared to railway models so you'd have to sell an extra

(kim)

Mark

If your comments were true then *each issue* of BRM would be wrapped in plastic and not just those with "extras" in them. I can understand why the extras are bagged in plastic. *But* why FFS does it have to be an extra and not part of the magazine? Once the bag is opened the "extras" all too easily become separated. I prefer the whole lot to be stapled in one hit. Any one else agree?

Add me to the list of those who rarely buy BRM because I can't see what's in it. Usually when I have purchased one based on the text on the cover, I have been sadly disappointed. BRM is not generally a magazine favoured by me. However Nick Nicholson almost invarably writes meaningful articles, probably because he is a professional railway who loves his subject - signalling.

"kim" wrote

I was talking about railway DVDs and the ones we sell do not have seals.

John.

I'm sure a lot of people agree. But binding the extras into the magazine is *hugely* more expensive and complicated than adding them loose and then wrapping the entire package. It would make the magazine uneconomic to produce and sell without a significant increase in price.

The other option is to put the extras into a sealed package and stick it to the outside of the magazine with soft glue. That's what a lot of music or games magazines do with cover disks, and it has the benefit that the magazine as a whole is still browseable as well as being cheaper than wrapping. But the big problem with that approach is that they tend to fall off if the glue is too weak, but are impossible to remove without damaging the magazine if it's too strong. It can also encourage surreptitious theft, as people remove the extras and leave the magazine in the rack.

(In case anyone is wondering about my credentials for making these comments, I have worked in the past as the manager of a bookshop which also sold magazines, and more recently for a magazine publisher. So I'm speaking from inside knowledge here).

Mark

Not true again. I don't want it as an extra at all. I want to see instead of say an 80 page magazine with a 20 page supplement, an expanded issue of 100 pages with 20 of those devoted to the particular subject that the supplement was about. Also the pages would be numbered in their proper sequence. All the additional work required is forethought of what is going to be in a particular issue. I don't see it as any different because the editorial team already know which issue the supplemental stuff is going in.

You forgot to reply to my comments regarding why BRM does not bag *all* issues if the object is to protect the pages on the shelves ;-)

The closest newsagent to me is no more because the new owner tried to change the "system" to her way, i.e. no putting aside magazines because people don't come back for them, I'm not having that type of magazine in my shop :-) (I don't buy them either, but she was under the impression that customers would buy the men's magazines elsewhere, but continue to buy other ones from her). The market of course does not work that way and she had the various licences taken off her for magazines and newspapers. Anyone want to buy a cheap newsagency ;-) . Of course the licences have gone forever, as her area has been divided up.

Australia by the way does not have any chains like W.H. Smith, but there are buying groups who are fiercely independent.

It depends on the format of the supplemental stuff. Some people prefer a "pull out and keep" supplement if it's different to the normal monthly content in a way that makes it more worth keeping. If the supplement is on different paper, or a different size paper, or with a different type of binding to the main content then it's likely that doing it separately is a lot cheaper as well. Even if the paper and binding are the same, it's not uncommon for the production of supplements to be contracted out to a different printer to the main mag, especially if the standard contract is for a mag of a set number of pages. Sometimes the supplement, despite giving the impression of being part of the main editorial, is actually written separately and is a paid-for insertion with the producers selling any advertising it contains separately to the advertising in the main mag. Since I haven't seen the magazine in question, I can't say for certain what the reason would be in this case.

You could, of course, always write to them and ask what their reason is! It's the sort of letter that does tend to get printed in the letters column, especially if it's a thin month for interesting correspondance, so you might strike lucky and see your question and the answer in print.

That's just one reason. The original comment didn't mention extra items, it was just about having the magazine bagged per se. Retailer pressure is a reason for magazines being bagged in certain markets, but publishers will also choose to bag them if necessary to contain loose supplements.

Mark

In message , Mark Goodge writes

The October Model Rail includes a supplement which is on different-sized paper and bound in with the main magazine. If they can do it, why can't other publishers?

That's the kind of thing I would only watch once so you might do better renting them. A friend recorded 'Monsoon Railway' for me off BBC4 but it's nowhere near retail quality (not that it exists on retail).

(kim)

No, most of the so-called "extras" are just advertising junk which most people throw away.

I agree, the teasers on the cover of BRM are often extremely misleading but if people only bought issues thta were oof special interest to them, the magazine would go broke. That's why they much prefer annual subscriptions over shop sales.

For the record, the last issue I bought was only because it came with a free bits & peices box which is now full up. (hint, hint).

(kim)

They can do it. But it's usually cheaper not to. It's primarily a financial decision.

Mark

"Steve W" wrote

LOL - I remember in my student days having to read a book entitled 'The Normal Child' which commenced with a statement suggesting there was no such thing! Amazing how something from almost 40 years ago registered and stuck in my mind - the same febble mind which fails abysmally to remember birthdays and (even worse) wedding anniversaries!!!

John.

Men don't remember birthdays and wedding anniversaries for the simple reason they're not important. That's normal.

(kim)

There is an easy way to remember your wedding anniversay forever........

Forget it once.......

"estarriol" wrote

Never worked for me, I've forgotten it 35 times now, but she always remembers and shrugs when I don't!

John.

That may not be "put off" directly, but not wanting to appear to be looking at those mags IYSWIM.

There have been mags that I have not bought, despite them having something of interest because of the "glamour" content. Partially because when I get it home, there would potentially be debate on my real reason for buying.

P.

I forgot my twin sister's birthday once - think about it - and she's not the forgiving type.

(kim)