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Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Dear Richard,

talking about personal preferences one should bear in mind, that it's preferences of a person behind these lines, not a collective Strelets' voting results.

Which is your favourite set you have produced?

Medieval Britain
Roman Legion I
Which is your least favourite set you made?

Original issues of M21 & M22 Dacians and Dismounted mongols
Which has been your most successful set or theme?

1st one, i.e. French Army Camp - that was a single most sold set
Which theme/era has not been as successful as you may have hoped?

Russo-Turkish war
Do you have a favourite set by any other manufacturer and if so, why is it your favourite?

Yes, due to a combination of technical excellency and natural choice of poses.
Do you ever paint your sets once they are produced?

No, except one occasion, when elder son was doing Hastings as his school presentation project.

Please, be guided accordingly.

Best regards,

Strelets

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Great insight in the world of Strelets & some surprising answers i would have thought that their biggest seller would have been a more recent set due to the new sets being more mainstream than before.
I would be interested in seeing a top twenty or even a top thirty best sellers list of Strelets sets i realise it might not be possible or prudent to publish this list but it would make interesting reading i think.
Thanks for all the great photos you are posting Mr Strelets they are a little ray of sunshine in these trying times.:hugging_face:

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Napoleonic camp set. Yes, a great set. Dynamic poses, interesting set pieces. Original

I kno W you did not ask this, and it would be unwise if people started moaning, so I will only add, my favourites are the command sets. The ACW mounted sets have been very useful, along with my Napoleonic versions (would love mounted Allied commanders please...) and the Crimea generals and personalities are brilliant

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Dear Steve,

i would have thought that their biggest seller would have been a more recent set

No, all recent sets are sold in numbers far less, than the first ones. Market saturation point was achieved long ago. People don't buy everything these days, they choose depending on their preferences, hence drop in sales for each individual set.
top twenty or even a top thirty best sellers

Pretty useless stats per se, since the production run is determined before sales start, and runs are same for all sets, except Big Boxes. All recent sets are sold within the limits of the initial production run only. Just very few are ever re-released, hence the correlation between popularity and production run is almost (with the exception of re-releases) non-existent.

Best regards,

Strelets

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

That's a very interesting insight. Thank you Mr Strelets for being so open.

I remember seeing the French Army Camp set in a model shop on the south coast of England many years ago, and being intrigued. No-one else had produced a set like that, with many poses and showing soldiers and others away from the action and in their camp. And it was the first time that I had come across Strelets as a producer of figures.

Many years on now, I wonder if a similar success might be had with an '18th Century Army camp/wagon set' or sets? With all these great WoSS sets appearing and a considerable interest also in the wars of the middle part of the 18th century (War of the Austrian Succession and the Seven Years War), a generic set might sell really well.

Just for starters, how about a set with a large 4-wheeled wagon, 4x draught horses, an individual leading the team, a couple of passengers for the wagon + some baggage; and also a couple of camp followers, some off-duty soldiers, a pedlar/sutler (perhaps with a hand-cart or a pack horse). If this set proves successful a second set building on the contents of the first might be possible, perhaps along the same lines as the original Army Camp set - but obviously now with the superior Strelets sculpting and production?

Baggage trains of the era were generally substantial and an important part of any army of the period.

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

I loved the medieval Britain set, I'm not into Napoleonics so the French camp set wasn't for me but I also loved the Norman camp set, the 1066 series of big boxes and the transport sets including the Roman ones (were they produced via Linear B?) with all the useful pack animals and figures that could be adapted to later periods.

I noticed that Strelets said why they had a favourite set from another manufacturer but didn't actually say which set this was. Was this an oversight?

I've always loved Strelets even when their sculpting and casting didn't match the best producers, I liked their diversity of sets, commitment to properly covering a period, character of some of their figures, speed of design and production and responsiveness to customer enquiries. On top of this they've really got the quality of their figures to match the best in the business now. Very glad to have been along for the ride with my first purchase being Vikings v Franks.

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Dear Graham,

Strelets said why they had a favourite set from another manufacturer but didn't actually say which set this was


The question was whether we had a favourite set from other manufacturers, not which one.
We tend to respond to direct questions, not implied ones:slightly_smiling_face: .

Best regards,

Strelets

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Strelets
The question was whether we had a favourite set from other manufacturers, not which one.
We tend to respond to direct questions, not implied ones:slightly_smiling_face: .
O.K. I'll bite. Which One?

The French Army Camp was innovative, imaginative, a bit out of the ordinary and fun. the kind of set that everyone wanted one of. I think it kept it's appeal well after the early days, there was someone on one of the forums looking for one for sale just a week or two ago. Interesting that it has sold more than the sets that everyone buys 50 boxes of though (tongue firmly in cheek here), I think it shows there's a real place for sets that explore outside the envelope.

I agree with the previous comment on the transport sets. Those mules and their generic canvas loads are fabulous and so versatile.

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Dear Minuteman,

success of the French Camp set has nothing to do with its merits per se.
Back then the market was empty - ESCI had died, Revell had quitted, HaT was only starting, hence every set had chances for commercial success.
Since then situation has changed drastically and, irrespective how perfect will be a set you release, it won't sell in numbers, achievable in early 2000s.

Best regards,

Strelets

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Thanks for answering our questions Mr Strelets its good see it from from your point of view and its nice to hear little bits on how Strelets is run.

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Gosh,I loved the Russo-Turkish stuff.A conflict with which I had only a passing familiarity.
Along with the sets for the Crimean period I was intrigued by the mixture of the last vestiges of napoleonic grandeur of the uniforms and the beginning of industrialised warfare.
The other period produced by Strelets that caught my fancy was the Russian civil war.Again colourful and somewhat exotic uniforms yet still beginning to exhibit the influences of lessons learned on the eastern front.

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

I agree, Celtic Warrior. I've always had a soft spot for the Russo-Turkish War (no idea why) but I did secure some fantastic old books on the topic. Many years ago I had boxes of FFL put aside for Russians in Summer Uniform and boxes of Zouaves to serve as Turks. I was able to move those on once the Strelets figures came out. I have large numbers painted (just need to get around to basing them up for gaming.

I suspect the Strelets Turks sold a lot better than the Russians, as they could be used for the Crimean War as well, and many would have been dragooned into service as Egyptians in the Sudan campaigns.

Regards,
Andrew

PS. A few of those FFL were painted up as Russians in Summer Uniform :wink:

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

i would have thought one of the re ran sets was the top seller.

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Cool thread, I have never know a manufacturer to be so interactive with its customers as Strelets. I will continue to support this hobby regardless of whether I ever get to see the sets I would like if ever.

Top Stuff!

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Thanks for replying Strelets. Interesting insight provided. It was remiss of me to not ask WHICH is your favourite set by another manufacturer...Which is your favourite set ever produced by another manufacturer? Thanks again!

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Richard,
that will be Revell's
30 Years war Artillery and
WWII German Artillery
Regards,

Strelets

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Good choices. The British Napoleonic set was similarly interesting, but 30YW was just such a radical set

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

if i had to name a favorite set from another company imperial artillery would be at the top.

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Thanks for your reply again Strelets! The 30 Y/W artillery was the first set I ever purchased and still one of my absolute favourites! A bench mark for every other producer to aim for I think.

Re: Top Sellers and flops...

Strelets
Richard,
that will be Revell's
30 Years war Artillery and
WWII German Artillery
Regards,

Strelets
Yes the Revell WW2 horse drawn German artillery has always been a favourite of mine. One of the few sets available showing the reality of the German army that was well behind in mechanisation of its forces. compare and contrast to the Airfix RHA set which was a real turkey!