Hornby reaches for the sky as Airfix's latest models take off

Collectibles firm Hornby predicted a sales surge for Airfix kits this year as it builds on the success of new models such as the Mosquito fighter bomber.
By The Newsroom
Published 1st Apr 2010, 13:37 BST
Updated 1st Apr 2010, 13:38 BST

The company has so far sold 3,300 kits of the World War II aircraft for 130 each. The model contains 617 parts and has won acclaim as one of Airfix's best ever.

Hornby rescued Airfix and its owner, paints firm Humbrol, in 2006 before relaunching the brand and investing in new products.

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"It is likely that Airfix and Humbrol will show the greatest percentage sales increases of all our brands in the coming year," the company said.

Hornby – which also owns the Scalextric and Corgi brands – finished the trading year with an "excellent performance" in the three months since Christmas.

Shares leapt 13 per cent as the firm added: "We are now seeing a strong recovery – our retail customers are more confident about the future and both serious new enquiries and firm orders are growing."

Hornby's Scalextric business has been boosted by tie-ins to make replica slot-cars featuring Formula One stars Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher, as well as racing sets based on the forthcoming Toy Story 3 movie.

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The company is also licensed to sell official merchandise for the London 2012 Olympics and will begin selling models of the Javelin high-speed trains which will ferry people to the Olympic Park from September.

Hornby's supply chain in China was disrupted by the takeover of its main supplier by Hong Kong toy firm Kader in 2008, but the company has since worked to reduce its exposure to a single firm.

Profits for the year to March 31 will be in line with City hopes while the firm has also reduced debts "significantly".

Numis analyst Andrew Wade said: "The business has experienced an extremely encouraging start to the new year

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and, with an impressive product pipeline to come, we remain positive."

The company's founder was Frank Hornby (1863-1936) who applied for a patent in 1901 to protect an invention he called "Improvements in Toy or Educational Devices for Children and Young People".

Mr Hornby was granted his patent and soon put the invention into production under the name "Mechanics Made Easy". This led to the establishment of Meccano in 1907.

In 1925, the first Hornby electric train was produced.