Come One, Come All!
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| Crowds flooded through the gates to enter the recent World’s Greatest Hobby Show on Tour event in Pittsburgh, PA. Attendance was over 30,000 model railroad enthusiasts. |
The 2007 World’s Greatest Hobby Shows on Tour, the ultimate extravaganza for model railroad lovers of all ages, drew huge crowds and rave reviews at its first two stops so far in the fourth year for this highly regarded event. Attendance at this year’s first two shows, in Indianapolis and Pittsburgh, was over 30,000, making it a force to be reckoned with among the nation’s top hobby shows.
Atlas is a proud sponsor of the WGH, manning a booth featuring exciting new merchandise in HO, N and O Scales, providing informational literature, and offering desirable items for raffles. Hundreds of families come out to view the show’s 15+ layouts, enjoy the ride-on trains, play with the interactive Thomas the Tank Engine, and view the Walt Disney Railroad exhibit. Thousands more are drawn by the opportunity to meet and speak with top model railroad manufacturers, and enjoy the demonstrations, presentations and entertainment that are causing an increasingly loud buzz on the show circuit.
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| Beginners as well as seasoned model railroading veterans can find items specifically for their tastes, interests and skill levels at Atlas’ World’s Greatest Hobby Show booth. |
“We were extremely busy both days, from start to finish,” said Rob Pisani, HO Product Development, who attended the Pittsburgh show January 20 – 21. “There was significant interest in DCC and many people were asking questions about that. People were especially impressed by our value-priced Trainman® line and there was a lot of interest in the new HO RS-32/36 locomotive.”
His comments were echoed by his booth mate, salesman Bill Swarthout, who said, “The WGH Show went very well. We got many compliments on our track, and there was an especially large interest in our O Scale track. Many were surprised at how nice the Trainman® line is as compared to the Master™ line.”
Credit for the phenomenal success of the WGH Shows goes to Chairman Dave Swanson and his staff. Knowledgeable about the industry and drawing on past experience, Dave carefully selects the five different cities the show travels to each year, then executes a well-planned and intensive advertising campaign in each locale. For the Indianapolis show alone, 275 television commercials aired on five stations, including the major networks. There were eight color newspapers ads, 135 radio commercials, 24,114 direct mail postcards sent, and over 10,000 emails delivered, in addition to traditional advertising in model railroading magazines.
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| The slogan at the Atlas booth says it all, as many visitors to our booth came to praise and learn about world-famous Atlas track products. |
“It has now become obvious that the World’s Greatest Hobby on Tour has established itself as a major player on the national model railroading scene,” said Thomas W. Haedrich, Atlas CEO. “All of the top manufacturers are there, and we are now seeing all levels of modeler. Participating in the WGH allows Atlas to not only reach out to new consumers and young families, but to cultivate our relationships with, and provide valuable in-person information for those who have been in the hobby all their lives. This benefits us, as well as our customers, and helps ensure a promising future for model railroading, truly the World’s Greatest Hobby.”
Don’t miss your chance to see what all the excitement is about! A WGH Show may be coming to a metropolis near you! Admission is $9 for adults, all under 16 FREE! For more information, visit www.wghshow.com.