Last year, Ron Pitcock acquired the Hobby Town franchise rights south of San Antonio to give himself something to do in retirement. Pitcock had earlier built the nation’s third largest cable modem company which had attracted investors such as Bill Gates, Paul Allen and John Chambers. He took High Speed Access Corp. public during the dot com boom and left the business. He and his wife Patti built a South Padre Island home in 2000, but Pittcock admitted he is a Type-A personality and incapable of lounging on the beach.
“Sales and marketing are in my blood,” Pitcock said. “I told Patti I was getting older and not interested in beginning again on the ground floor. Then I walked into a Hobby Town in Denver and I liked it.” He believed the Valley had an unmet need and opened his first Hobby Town franchise in McAllen in Nov. 2014.
“The advantage with a franchise is they’ve got it all nailed down. I could get in the business quickly, and the price was not out of the park,” Pitcock said. “They are not restrictive about what I put in the store. They want to make sure I make money and stay here forever. I’m a big kid. I couldn’t decide which toy to buy, so I bought the whole store.”
Hobby Town caters to all ages and diverse interests. The store’s front one-third holds board games like Warhammer with paintable figurines, wooden trains, science activities from microscopes and chemistry sets to telescopes and rockets, as well as Legos for adults and beginners. The middle of the shop has tools, paints and accessories for hobbyists, while the final third is devoted to radio controlled devices: planes, cars, boats, drones and trains.
“People walk in smiling and walk around smiling, looking for us to help them have fun,” Pitcock said. “It’s been a great experience for all of us. I found great people to work in the store. They see the joy in working in a hobby store. And we’ve made money ever since we opened up. For a startup, that’s pretty good, but I would do this for no money.”
Pitcock and manager Rick Martinez always ask a new customer what their budget is and what they are trying to do. “If I help you have a good experience, you’re going to come back and recommend us. None of our guys are high pressure. If we see people really interested, we teach them as much as we can, how to use it and how to maintain it. Our customers love to teach others, too. We introduce them to local groups.” In fact, Hobby Town hosts meetings of plastic modelers and a train group in the store.
Quads or drones ranging $100-3,500, depending on the capability, are drawing new customers into the store. Drones basically are platforms for sensors such as cameras. Pittcock, who was an Army pilot in Vietnam, pointed out the goggles that are a quad accessory. “It gives a first-person view so it really looks like what a pilot sees.”
To read more of this story by Eileen Mattei, read the July 2015 edition of VBR under the “Current & Past Issues” tab on this website, or pick up a copy on news stands.