Not doubting that these companies do market research. I’d be surprised if they didn’t. What I’m less clear on is what “current data from the Chinese market” actually means here, or what sales figures any of us are truly privy to. You’ve also mentioned elsewhere that there may only be a very small number of serious collectors in this niche (circa 100? ), and that WWII collecting is apparently in decline... If that’s the case, I’m not sure how broad or conclusive this data can really be.
WP, for example, still has quite a few various tanks sitting available. So market research clearly doesn’t turn every release into a bullseye. There is also a section of the collecting community that tends to buy from particular companies because of style, sculpting, painting and finish. So wether one company has, or has not, released a subject doesn’t necessarily prove total market demand either way.
The Opel Blitz is the obvious (dogballs in a salad) softskin subject because it is iconic, widely used, and previous examples from FL and WP appear to have sold through strongly. But even putting the Opel aside, there are other German truck subjects that would be sought and interesting. The Büssing-NAG 4500, for example, was a heavy German truck used for troop transport, supply and general logistics across several fronts. It has size, presence and variety, which makes it a strong display vehicle for Eastern Front, Normandy, Italy or late-war convoy scenes.
Ford V3000 is another strong candidate. German-built Ford trucks were widely used by the Wehrmacht and appeared in many theatres, including the EF.
My understanding of Chinese market research is that it often works less like Western-style surveys and more like watching the market, listening to chatter, studying demand signals and seeing what gains traction. So who knows perhaps someone from one of these companies is already reading this forum.
Anyway, I look forward to seeing what items are next.
