Arrma Stock Shortage in Australia

Update 07/02/2019

We would like to give the Arrma fans a final update! Hobbies Direct now has about 90% of Arrma parts (that's listed on our website) in stock - that's already better than a decent amount of other brands. We're now confident in Arrma's parts supply and hopefully, you are too. Arrma and the new Australian distributor's (OMP) 1st priorities was to get Arrma's parts-supply flowing as it should and their secondary priory is to get Arrma's current models (cars) stock supply up to a healthy level too (which is currently in progress).

Thanks to all our patient Arrma fans!

If you have any questions regarding this topic or anything else, please contact us.

Update 06/12/2018

We have just received the Arrma shipment! Quantities are looking pretty good so far, we are currently processing the order so if you have signed up to be notified when a specific part comes available you should get an email soon.

Update 28/11/2018

OMP have received the order yesterday and are working hard to process, pick and pack/send our order this week in hope to receive the order in Hobbies Direct's warehouse sometime next week (early December). We would like to thank everyone for their patience.

Update 05/11/2018

We're updating this blog as soon as we get more information. Unfortunately, the latest ETA is yet another 2 weeks. Yes, that's correct we're now expecting this shipment late mid-late November. We are really sorry for the on-going delays, we know how much you'd want to get your Arrma truck back up and running - we're just sharing what we're hearing.

Update 22/10/2018

OMP have told us that the fill-rate on the first order wasn't great and they are expecting another order in a few days or so. Things are a bit messy at the moment but we should have the majority of our ordered parts in the next week or two.

Update 08/10/2018

We've just been in contact with OMP and they are now saying another 10-14 days before our order will be ready for dispatch (I know, this is rather frustrating).

Update 25/09/2018

OMP are expecting their first Arrma parts shipment tomorrow (26/09/2018) but have advised us it will take some time to enter all the new SKUs (products) into their system. We are expecting them to be in stock and ready for sale as of 08/10/2018.

Update 17/09/2018

OMP are expecting their first Arrma shipment (parts only, no cars/models) sometime this week. Hobbies Direct should receive most of the Arrma parts that we're currently out-of-stock of sometime next week! If you're looking for a new model or a model we're out-of-stock of you may be waiting until Christmas time as OMP is putting their priority on supporting the Arrma cars out there with parts.

Update 09/07/2018

We have now been informed that Arrma has changed their Australian distributor from SMS (Southern Model Supplies) to OMP (O'Reilly Model Products).
SMS are expecting a parts order mid-late July* which should hopefully help most customers waiting for parts.

However, OMP hasn't confirmed any dates of when their first Arrma shipment should arrive.

* ETAs are not confirmed and should only be used as a rough guide.

ARRMA Australia RC Models, Parts & Accessories Stock Shortage

Arrma Products Shortage

Hobbies Direct™ is currently experiencing a shortage of ARRMA products. This is not just affecting us though, it's a nationwide shortage. Read below to find out why and what to expect for the future

Why?

Well, if you haven’t already heard about the announcement of Horizon’s takeover/buy out of Hobbico but in March 2018 a Bankruptcy judge approved the Horizons bid of $18.8 million. Hobbico has a number RC brands, but the proposal was only for Great Planes, Axial racing and ARRMA! Along with Tower Hobbies.

Since the two companies shook hands on the deal, there has been a lot of “behind the scenes” work going on, starting with Hobbico’s around 300 employees and who are all having to reapply for their positions online with the new owners Horizon. Reorganising your garage is enough of a headache, let alone merging two huge multimillion dollar business with multiple warehouses, RC brands, manufacturers, websites, etc. as you’d imagine this has caused stock delays.

The current Australian distributor of ARRMA RC products (SMS) has been unable to get their regular shipments of ARRMA RC cars, spare parts & accessories.

Although the Australian distributor has been working hard to maintain a healthy stock level of ARRMA products they seem to be running out of specific product lines such as the ARRMA Kraton V3, Typhon V3, Outcast V3, Granite 4x4, Senton 4x4 and some specific spare parts. They’re currently unable to give an ETA for any restocking shipments they have currently placed with ARRMA.

We’re hopeful this isn’t a repeat of what happened to HPI back in 2016 as we’re only now (two years on) starting to see regular stock come in.

So, what from here?

Well, Hobbies Direct met with the Australian ARRMA RC distributor early June and spoke at length regarding ARRMA stock shipments. They are focused on trying to supply spare parts as soon as possible to continue supporting customers who already own ARRMA products.

At this point, we are waiting on SMS to receive a reply from ARRMA to try an attain an ETA for a restocking shipment.

The big unknown!

One of the current unknows is whether Horizon (The new owners of ARRMA) will try and restructure the distribution chain of ARRMA products here in Australia, as Horizon currently already have a distributor here for their other brands. If this was to happen, we could expect an extended delay on any restocking shipments from ARRMA.

What does this mean for all us ARRMA RC enthusiasts?

Don’t panic, ARRMA will return to their former glory!

We need to give them some time to sort things out with their product distribution.

We believe, the U.S will get priority shipments over us here in the land down under, so when looking for parts, you may have to order from the U.S (trust us, we dislike waiting for RC parts just as much as you). But for those common parts, we’re sold out of, this will probably be your best option.

Try looking for aftermarket parts, due to ARRMA’s popularity; there are several aftermarket companies such as RPM, GPM, HOT Racing, T-Bone Racing, Pro-Line, Hobbywing, etc. which produce hop up parts and accessories.

I do hope this information has helped answer some of your questions and concerns surrounding ARRMA. We will keep this blog up to date as we hear things come down the grapevine. Until then, keep bashing!