Recently the oldest model shop in Brazil closed doors after some 50 years selling models, people cried, tried to open again but obviously when faced with the real things that prevented that > build models and fly them < they just quit in silence.
I've personally seen hobby shops close over the past 40 years. I remember when the hobby sales stores at Hickham Air Base and Pearl Harbor Sub Base closed back in the mid 1970's. The military members then were saving money by then buying by mail order (the precursor to on-line buying in the 1990's). Mail order stores like America's Hobby Center, Hobby Shack, Polk's Hobbies, Indy R/C, etc. were in fierce competition with each other with lower cost than the hobby sales could ever do.
Back in the early 1980's, I saw Pete's Model Hobbycraft with main store at Ala Moana Shopping Center in Waikiki close.
Out here, I saw one of the oldest hobby stores in Amarillo, Texas close 8 or 9 years ago. Wish I bought more Perfect fuel tanks from him because he still had them at 1980's prices. Store in Lubbock, Texas closed shortly after the Amarillo's. Those were mainly aircraft R/C stores, although they sold other aircraft venues such as C/L and free flight.
Now, the on-line aircraft hobby stores are closing one by one. Regarding this pattern, it is not just US and Brazil, but other places, too, UK, France, Canada and etc.
Bring new kids to the game is not an answer too, good friend of mine actually teaches model building and flying on school kids for 20 years on a daily basis and after all this time not even 2% became modellers.
We are the problem, we do not have enough size to make such big companies in the game. we that loves and knows how to "play" with model airplanes. The other generations have zero interest and thatīs not their fault. probably in our generation older people thought the same of us "pity they donīt care for this or that"
unfortunately all we are left to do is to build and fly as much as we can and watch this hobby vanish. letīs focus on what we can do and not on what "someone would have done".
There's been a change in worldwide cultures. What fueled aircraft interests were the invention and expansion of the technical side of aviation. Charles A. Lindberg's landing solo in France with the Spirit of Saint Louis in 1927 was equivalent to placing a man on the moon in 1969. Aviation then was a new frontier, many a child dreamed of piloting an aircraft.
The war developments saw greater expansion of aviation with all sorts of newer and wonderful aircraft. I remember in the 1960's, some 20 years later that WW2 aircraft of all nations was still very popular. There was still much interest in WW1 aircraft as well, both static and flying models.
Today, aviation doesn't have the specter about it that it had 100 years ago.
Topic: Sig Auction (Read 11770 times)
