GundamUK Store - What's it about?
Since I started out in the hobby a few years back, I have always had my mind set up setting up a shop, and over those years I have discovered the problems with selling Gunpla in particular in the UK. In a nutshell, selling Gunpla is prohibitively expensive and un-profitable, because the wholesale cost of Gunpla paired and the outrageous costs of importing (which will with hope, improve post-brexit). That's not to say of course it can not be done, because a few retailers have managed it at the unfortunate cost of high pricing. One thing to understand is, the reason why Gunpla is expensive when bought from the UK is not down to greed, it's down to economics you are likely unaware of. Folks need to make a living. With that all said, I decided that if I was going to start a store I am going to start small, selling a few bits that are essential to any serious modeller, and are fairly tricky to find and expensive to purchase here in the UK, that are priced fairly enough so I can reinvest and improve the range and availability of stock I have. This is going to be the GundamUK store for the foreseeable future, and if things pan out I can start to look at ways and means of selling Gunpla and mecha kits that are not more expensive than buying it abroad. There will be however, now and then, a few kits appearing from my own collection, of from where I have made a substantial saving that I can pass it on to the customer. To be honest, I won't be making any money out of this venture, for quite some time, in fact, quite the opposite, but with time and dedication I aim to turn that around. I was thoroughly inspired of late in a recent GunplaTalk by Adam's story from USAgundamstore.com, who with dedication has turned his passion for his hobby into a full time job, and in turn provided the US with an excellent store. Scott from SMS in Australia too is another great success story along with the Mokanaman making strides with his Salt Mine project.
The GundamUK store is run entirely by me, and I am crazy about Gunpla modelling. I have also run a few business' in my time, and have a background in marketing, so I know what it means to not only give great prices, but provide a good service. If there is anything you are particularly after in terms of mecha or scale modelling supplies, let me know. I am constantly lurking around social media to find what people in general are after and it's my hope to get these things to you at a reasonable price.
Right now, the store is looking a little sparse, but I have several deliveries coming and deals 'in the works' so stay tuned to my social channels for all the latest updates.
Finally, I want to thank all the folks who have supported, and bought from the gundamuk website so far, you guys have been invaluable in testing that everything works like a well oiled machine. When I get new stuff in, i'll be showing it off on the GundamUK youtube channel, IG and FB.
Laters fam.