Hornby to drive Scalextric harder in US

Hornby, best known for its model railways, is planning to increase its assault on the US market by extending the range of iconic American cars it produces for its Scalextric racing car sets.

The group, which makes 10 per cent of its sales in the US, has added a number of Scalextric designs intended to appeal to Americans, such as the Ford Mustang and the Chevrolet Camaro "Muscle cars".

Frank Kane, the chief executive, said: "If we really want to crack America we must give America what it wants: iconic American products. We must be prepared to treat America and the UK as two different markets."

While the nature of the model trains limits sales of its Hornby railways products to the UK, Mr Kane said Scalextric, which contributes 55 per cent of the group's sales, was a far more global product "with no geographical boundaries".

Reporting a strong surge in interim profits, Mr Kane added that the group saw "scope to build a much bigger Hornby [trains] business in the UK" than it had previously thought possible.

He said model train enthusiasts were prepared to spend "rather more" on their hobby than they had in the past. "We are selling more to existing hobbyists and attracting new entrants as well," Mr Kane added.

The group, which two years ago said it could not see an independent future for itself, said pre-tax profits for the six months to end-September rose 108 per cent to £1.7m – well ahead of forecasts. Turnover was up 32 per cent at £14m. Hornby moved its manufacturing facilities from Margate to China two years ago. Its shares, which have nearly doubled in the past year, rose 16p to 482.5p.