THE Cub Report, 08.25.2014, Powered by- Guatemalan Insanity Peppers
One of the most interesting trends that I’ve been hearing more and more about behind the scenes is about kits. You remember them don’t ya? Where you buy a new car, open the box, and all you see is part trees? From what I’ve been hearing there are several manufacturers that would love for them to come back into fashion.
As I’ve said many times before, rc is like anything else, if you wait long enough everything comes back into fashion. Bell-bottoms were huge (no pun intended) in the 1970s, then made a short comeback in the 90’s, and I have no doubt they will once again be all the rage at some point down the road. Therefore I know for a fact that eventually kits will again rule the rc world, it isn’t a matter of “if”, it is a matter of “when”.
There are a whole bunch of upsides to kits ruling the world. In particular, the manufacturers would love for kits to make a comeback. On the business side of things profit margins on kits are greater and it totally eliminates the hundreds of headaches associated with having an RTR assembled. On the consumer side of things, kits create more of a bond with a car owner and ensure they know how to fix their car when it breaks. There is lots of win/win on the kit side of things no doubt.
However… RTRs rule the roost for good reason, especially in the basher world. Most people are either too busy to build a kit or too lazy, so it is simply much more convenient for a “casual” consumer to get into rc via a RTR. So what is it gonna take to flip the rc world upside down? Ya, you already know the answer… marketing. From the rumblings I’ve been hearing throughout the industry, don’t be surprised to start seeing marketing that emphasizes how fun kit building is instead of how convenient RTRs are.
In BSRC news…
While this might sound quite early, I need to start pumping up (read- spamming) the iHobby show. Why so early??? Because iHobby ’14 isn’t gonna be a traditional show for us, it is going to be ground breaking. Of course this is just a tease because I can’t say more, but 100% legit, everyone in the rc world is going to be shocked at what we have in our booth this year. Mark your calenders, put in for vacation time now, and be sure to join us October 2-5 in Schaumburg Illinois. I promise you our booth will not disappoint.
That’s it for this week, support your local hobby shops and bash spots when ya can.
YOUR Cub Reporter
