A year ago it was our intention to take big steps to become an all-round hobby shop.
Although we did not achieve what we wanted, there is still reason to celebrate with a sales increase of almost 50%.
To celebrate this achievement I have selected more than 1000 (!) Items in stock to go on sale on top of the 500 that were already on sale.
Kiro
The 1000 newly selected special offers bring the total number of special offers to over 1500 different items.
This is an ideal opportunity to:
* Get to a higher level of your standard discount (5, 7 or 10%) for future purchases in our online store.
* Make sure to keep your store-wide discount before previous purchases expire: https://minikiwilandshop.co.nz/special-offers
* Just grab a bargain!
Please be aware that:
* This special celebration promotion will end on Monday 11 January at 10pm.
* It is for online website orders only. Picking up online orders in Paraparaumu is possible.
* Payment needs to be done within 7 days.
* While stock last. Some products may go out on sale sooner.
To visit our 'Special Offers' page click here
IMPROVEMENTS
A lot has changed and improved for the Mini-Kiwiland Shop in 2020. Here are some examples:
* Sales Increase + 48%
* Online active customers + 45%
* Stock increase + 48%
* More brands
* Weekly Newsletter
* Website Improvements
* Price reduction American import
* Open Office Days
More Brands
The total number of different brands that we sell almost doubled in 2020: 26 new brands!
The most successful new brands for the Mini-Kiwiland Shop are Italeri, MiniArt, Zvezda, B-T Models, IXO Models, Ricko, Juweela, Wiking and Brekina.
Weekly Newsletter
The first weekly newsletter was mailed to buyers of the Mini-Kiwiland Shop in April 2020.
Website Improvements
The website is created by me from scratch. An huge advantage is the low cost. Another advantage of doing this yourself is flexibility. Much can be adapted quite easily. The users' 'My Account Page' has been improved for instance, more information about postage option has been given, more statistical options for me assess better stock levels etc. etc.
Price reduction American Import
Prices of American (railway) products have fallen because shipments from the USA are shipped from now on by sea freight instead of air freight.
Open Office Days
The first Open Office Days were held in October. This allows customers to visit our office and view a selection from our stock.
DISAPPOINTMENTS:
Not everything went as expected in 2020 unfortunately. Here are some examples:
* No shipments from Germany
* Increase in freight cost
* Less shows and events
* No new location
No Shipments from Germany
Most of our suppliers are located in Germany, but Germany hasn't been able to ship to New Zealand for six months in 2020: April to August and November and December. This obviously had an impact on our sales.
Freight Cost Increase
The prices for shipping products from Europe and the UK to New Zealand have skyrocketed and the end is not yet in sight. This has had some impact on our prices.
Less Shows and Events
Model Railway Shows and Toy Collectors Fairs are a great way to meet current and new customers. It is also a good opportunity for visitors to see products and brands they are not familiar with.
After many successful shows and events in 2019 we could only go to 2 events in 2020. This obviously had an enormous impact on our annual turnover.
This was not directly Covid-19 related however. Some organizers of model railway shows announced (publicly) that thy would no longer support traders or limit traders to 'old school' traditional sellers only. Organizers of Toy Collectors Fairs no longer prefer any newcomers like the Mini-Kiwiland Shop. They prefer to keep the fairs like they were for many, many years.
No New Location
A year ago our intention was to move to a much larger location with a showroom and workshop at the end of 2020. The sales increase of 48% was not enough unfortunately.
2020 turned out to be a bad year for the upcoming Mini-Kiwiland attraction.
Due to the global financial crisis, most of our (potential) investors withdrew their support. It's just not a good time to start an international tourist attraction.
Master Don
To make matters worse, our master modeller Don Thierens (aka Master Don) fell seriously ill during the first lockdown in April. Still struggling with his health, he decided to quit the project and close his workshop permanently. Master Don is a very skilled modeller and an excellent mentor. His contribution and presence will be much missed.
Workshops
Master Don's workshop was one of 3 workplaces we could use for the project. Alan's workshop could not be used at an earlier stage after his son took over.
The third workshop was at our office in Paraparaumu. It can no longer be used as a workshop. It is now used to store all the tools, materials and 25 models we've worked on.
GST Donations
Work on the attraction will be discontinued before 2021. All available time should be devoted to making the Mini-Kiwiland Shop more successful. It is currently the only source of income.
GST donations from in-store purchases will not be possible in 2021. However, all GST donations to the attraction so far will remain reserved until we can continue working on the attraction.
Location, Location, Location
Currently, space is our biggest problem. Moving to a large location is imperative, but at the moment we simply don't have the money. The only way to relocate is to increase sales of the Mini-Kiwiland Shop.
Hopefully we can move to a much larger space by the end of 2021. Unfortunately times are still uncertain, but we will do our best.
Our main goal in 2021 is to grow into an all-round hobby shop and to move to a large showroom/workshop at the end of 2021. To achieve this we will work on the following:
* More brands
* More stock
* Further website improvements
* More shows and events (although unlikely and something we can not control)
My thanks to everyone who supported us in 2020!