eBay

In operation for over 50 years, Rails of Sheffield has grown to become one of Europe's largest award winning model railway retailers and an industry leader. The business dispatches to customers worldwide via its immensely popular second hand eBay store.

Despite five decades of growth and its transformation into an award-winning national and international retailer, Rails has seen rapid expansion in recent years.

In 2022, to meet the increasing demand of the ever-growing model railway industry, Rails moved into larger warehouse and office spaces in Dronfield, Derbyshire.

Their partnership with the National Railway Museum, Railway Icons and various manufacturers continues to flourish, with multiple exclusive locomotives and rolling stock being designed and developed throughout the year.

Now, as we step into 2025, Rails remains the leading name in the model railway industry, with exciting plans for further expansion and continued dedication to serving model railway enthusiasts and hobbyists from South Yorkshire and beyond!

A BRIEF HISTORY RAILS ORIGINS 1970^S - EARLY 1980^S

Founded by Hedley Barber in December 1970, Rails' early trade was in buying and selling second-hand model railways, something that remains at the heart of the business to this very day.

Working from the back of Hedley's shop on Holmesdale Road, Dronfield on the southern outskirts of Sheffield, interest grew steadily throughout the decade and by the early-1980s, Rails was a fixture at toy fairs and swap meets such as the regular Buxton Pavilion Fair. Between then and 2000, the team regularly attended thousands of events across the UK - building a loyal customer base.

LAUNCHING THE STORE 1980^S - EARLY 1990^S

With a growing legion of regular customers building up, a 'proper' shop was required, and Rails moved to Chesterfield Road in Heeley Bottom, a few doors away from the current shop. From here, Rails also expanded its mail order operation and its advertisements became a familiar sight in publications..

In the early-1990s

Rails moved to another shop on Chesterfield Road and established the first part of its permanent base. In 1996, the neighbouring shop unit was acquired and a period of rapid expansion followed.

By the late-1990s

Rails then launched its first website and was pioneering online model railway retail for both new and second hand items. The late-1990s also saw the growth of the 'limited edition' business - with many exclusive liveries commissioned from major manufacturers.

Rapid Expansion - 2000^s

The ability to promote and sell rare collectable model trains all over the world transform the second-hand business, a process accelerated with the advent of eBay in the early 2000s. Today Rails is the largest model railway eBay shop in the UK and one of the biggest in the world. To feed this expanding business, the Barber family scoured the country (and sometimes further afield) acquiring model railway collections.

As the business grew, so did the shop, purchased in the 2000s and then a series of nearby buildings and offices added to house the blossoming eBay business, storage, sorting and packing department offices were added.

A New Era - 2010^s to 2020^s

Sadly, Hedley Barber passed away on August 11th 2015, leaving his son John and grandsons Adam and Oliver and John's wife Tracy to manage the company he founded, with support of other family members and long serving staff. Remaining a family operated business, Rails continued to thrive in the late 2010s.

A major milestone was the opening of the impressive show room in 2018, which features beautiful displays of popular locomotives and rolling stock frames amongst real Sheffield steel, stone walling and natural material. This was the catalyst for the refurbishment of the entire 'front of house' shop now occupying five formerly separate units.

Rails also branched out into the new areas such as commissioning its own exclusive model product under the new 'Rails Limited' brand, bringing new model to the public such as the Stroudley 'Terrier' steam locomotive with Dapol and North Eastern Railway Electric Autocrat with Heljan.

In 2021, Rails opened it all new purpose-built warehouse and offices in Dronfield. The multi-million pound development enable Rails to move all warehousing and administration to this new site to streamline the business and continue to provide customers with the top-tier service they had become accustomed to.

In January 2024, Rails acquired Hatton's Model Railways following its unfortunate closure after many years. Committed to preserving the Hatton's legacy, Rails is integrating customers with the beloved Hatton's Directory & product database. Later in 2024, Rails launched the Vintage Toy Shop, showcasing a treasure trove of rare collectables in Sheffield.

Rails of Sheffield

Rails remains deeply connected to the South Yorkshire community it was established to serve.

...And if you've ever wondered about the origin of the Rails name, it's all down to Hedley's proper Yorkshire attitude to spending money. The original shop on Chesterfield Road had previously been 'The Sheffield Photographic Centre'; rather than buying a new sign, he simply recycled five of the red plastic letters from the old shop front and rearranged them into the name - 'RAILS'!