fhs.jpgThe last few weeks have seen a sharp decline in RR efforts as life’s usual trappings (work, family, house) have needed some attention. That being said, my track and turnouts did arrive from Fifer Hobby Supply and I want to take an opportunity to laud Mike and Robin Fifer on their business.

I knew nothing of FHS until I became a member of the nscale.net community and read endlessly positive comments about their business. Based on these recommendations I decided to give FHS a try.

There was nothing unique about my order ‘ some C55 atlas track and switches. Despite the recommendations I thought I would do some online price shopping and see how things compared. In the end I found only one store that had the same offerings for a marginally lower price ‘ but as they did not ship to Canada the point was moot (not to mention I had never read a single positive review about them).

The FHS online store indicated that one item was out of stock. I contacted Mike and Robin who took my order in full via email and assured me the stock would arrive shortly. The refused to let me pay for any of the order until it was ready to ship. Shortly thereafter I got an email noting all the items were in stock, and they sent me the final tally including shipping ‘ a very good price!

When my order arrived, it was immaculately packed and undamaged. Based on the size of the package and the distance it travelled I was convinced that that shipping costs were very fair (if not low), and it was evident that FHS hadn’t tried to hide some handling costs to increase revenue. The only added expense was the GST and PST ‘ duty did not apply.

In the end my order cost me about 45% less then it would have had I shopped at ANY of my local hobby shops. Typically I would support local businesses, however the price difference was too great, and upon reflection I grow increasingly aggravated with my LHS as I question why their prices seem so out of line with others. On one hand I’m sympathetic to the inherent costs of having goods shipped internationally and paying rent, but our recent (and sustained) dollar parity hasn’t been reflected in local prices which makes me rather suspect of my LHS prices. If you aren’t going to attempt to pass along your savings to me then I will shop elsewhere.

In closing, Fifer Hobby Supply is a friendly, competitively priced, easy to use online store staffed by genuinely nice people who take pride in their business, value customers, and understand the benefit of good communication. I wish you continued prosperity and look forward to placing my next order.