A sign of the Times

[Mike Griffin]

Hobbico is not a big contributor of Control Line products but this is probably a sign of the future for what is to come.

Just scroll up the screen until you see the Hobbico Video screen and click on it to watch the video.

Thanks
Mike

SORRY GUYS THE LINK DOES NOT SEEM TO BE WORKING ANYMORE...

http://newschannel20.com/news/local/hobbico-says-it-can-not-make-payments-for-its-stock-ownership-program

[Crist Rigotti]

Huh?

[Blaine Buchtel]

Can't access the video. Maybe try again!

[Mark Scarborough]

Hobbico is not paying their promised residuals to employees that payed into the stock plan because of a downturn in the hobby business,,,,

My guess is they invested to much in developing ultra high tech toys and the chinese beat them up

[Blaine Buchtel]

Maybe you could relate the " gist " of the video? Thanks

[david beazley]

No video, but a local newspaper account of their problems
http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2017-01-05/hobbicos-deferral-payout-upsets-confounds-ex-workers.html

[Dan McEntee]

No video, but a local newspaper account of their problems
http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2017-01-05/hobbicos-deferral-payout-upsets-confounds-ex-workers.html

     I can't believe someone would buy into something like that. I guess they never heard of ENRON???

    In God we trust, but all others must pay cash!
    Type at you later,
    Dan McEntee

[Mike Griffin]

I apologize about the video guys.  It was a local station in Springfield, Ill interviewing a woman who owned stock and was not going to receive her residuals and was going to lose a lot of money.

Mike

[dave siegler]

I head this through other channels, Hobico worked with Asian Manufactures to build their products. 
Unlike here is the US, there is no real Intellectual Property protections over there.
The same manufactures stated selling copies of their designs direct at a discounted price.

So Hobico put them in the business, taught them the business and promptly created their own lower cost competition. 
And the competition did not have to support a design team.
Their designs were stolen.


Stuff like counterfeit RC systems RC cars and RTF airplanes. 

So Hobico's top line got killed but this activity. 

[Steve Helmick]

Maybe like Hobby King? On HK's side of the picture, they stock a lot of stuff that Tower/GP/Hobbico doesn't. Or, I should say that they have pictures of stuff Tower doesn't. I've never bought anything from HK, and a lot of what they show on their site is actually out of stock.

That said, "stock options" mean that you're playing the stock market, whether you really wanted to or not. It's worked out well for MS and Boeing employees, but not so well for some others. Funny thing about being in business...I've seen a lot of excellent machinists who opened their own shop and found out they didn't like doing the paperwork and business end of it at all. I've also seen several different shops being taken advantage of by their customers and their salesmen...the latter partly due to lack of oversight and partly due to inadequate pay or incentives. Boeing has put several large 1st tier shops under with their ruthless and unrealistic contract demands. Washington State's business taxes (and now some crazy minimum wage laws) finish off a good share also.  Steve