Hobby Town Unlimited, Inc.
HobbyTown, HobbyTown USA
TypePrivate
IndustryRetail
FoundedSeptember 24, 1985 (1985-09-24) in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States
Headquarters
Lincoln, Nebraska, United States
Number of locations
125 (2019)
Areas served
Stores in North America,
Sales Online Worldwide
Key people
Thom Walla (Founder),
Bob Wilke (President)
Websitewww.hobbytown.com

HobbyTown or HobbyTown USA is an American retail hobby, collectibles, and toy store chain headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska. There are more than 100 HobbyTown franchise stores located in 39 states in U.S.[1]

Beginning with the purchase of a local business by Merlin Hayes, Mary Hayes, and Thom Walla, HobbyTown was founded in 1980,[2] incorporated in 1985,[3] and began franchising in 1986.[4] Most stores offer a full line of radio control hobbies, scale models, games, toys, educational items, paints, tools and model railroad items. The stores also carry seasonal items such as rockets, pinewood derby cars, educational toys, and kites. The website for HobbyTown provides E-commerce for customers worldwide.[5]

History

Chick Bartlett's Hobby Town

Charles "Chick" Bartlett (died 2012) opened Lincoln Hobby Supply on 23 February 1946, later advertised as the "first full-time hobby shop in Nebraska".[6] His hobby business took the name Hobby Town in 1958.[7] The store was located in the Stuart Building in downtown Lincoln.[6]

Great Race and Hobby Place

Ron Justvig opened Great Race and Hobby Place in 1978, in Lincoln's Bethany neighborhood.[8] It was later acquired by Merlin Hayes, Mary Hayes, and Thom Walla. A second Great Race store opened in south Lincoln in the early 1980s.

Hobby Town

When Chick Bartlett retired in 1980,[7] the Great Race owners bought his Hobby Town store and the brand name. The new owners began offering franchises in 1986. As of January 2022, Hobby Town had 111 units, all in the US.[9]

References

  1. ↑ "About Us". HobbyTown Franchise. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  2. ↑ "Start a HobbyTown Franchise in 2022".
  3. ↑ "Nebraska Secretary of State - Corporation and Business Entity Searches".
  4. ↑ "About Us".
  5. ↑ "International Shipping - HobbyTown".
  6. 1 2 "16th anniversary sale". 21 February 1962. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  7. 1 2 "Hobby Town founder dies". Lincoln Journal Star. 10 January 2012. Archived from the original on 2012-01-13. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  8. ↑ Jim, Williams (12 April 1978). "Local merchant revives enthusiasm for slot car races". The Daily Nebraskan. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  9. ↑ "265. Hobby Town". Franchise Times. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
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