bigdrag1 Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 Happy retirement Don & Carol, I wish you well and Thanks for the Great service you have giving our hobby. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1930fordpickup Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 You are right Bill in everything you have said. Time to go through the stash of old ebay buys and make an order. I wonder if they are going to make it to the show this saturday in Sylvania ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dimaxion Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 Maybe Don will be able to finish some of his LTWIP's . I Pray for a Happy , Healthy and Long Lasting Retirement as yon deserve . Keep active .. Thank you for all of your hard work . I always appreciated you both and what you've bought to this Hobby . As we say in the Hoosier ; "You're good people . May you always **** in High Corn ." Thanx .. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danno Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 FYI ~ All you Modelhaus fans in the West and Southwest: Modelhaus will be represented at Desert Scale Classic with a large inventory of parts and components plus some kits! Check out details of the event at www.CactusCarModelers.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 Pretty sure someone will buy/take over the business. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramfins59 Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 Pretty sure someone will buy/take over the business. Whoever may wind up doing that should hopefully be prepared to lay out some fairly hefty cash and be ready to be kept very busy. Modelhaus has a LARGE catalog of items both large and small. New owners should also want to be sure to keep the product quality and service up to the level that everyone has come to enjoy and expect. If I had a nice chunk of cash laying around I'd consider investing some of it to help back someone who was ready and willing to work hard at carrying on the business. It would obviously take a several person team to run it as efficiently as the Holthaus family has done. Only time will tell. In the meantime. I'm sure that Don, Carol and son will be inundated with orders over the next 2 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie8575 Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 I have some stuff I need to order, so I'll get that done. I have a few things I'd like, I'll try to get those in. I REALLY hope someone buys the business. It will not be a cheap proposition, and Heaven knows I'd buy if I had the money. Two very nice people, and two of the people we really do have to thank for the great aftermarket we now have. Charlie Larkin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie8575 Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 From what I understand, they've been working an average of about 60 hours a week at their business (Don, Carol and their son) and after years of doing that I'm sure they need a break. None of us are getting any younger, them included, and I'm sure they'd like some time to sit back and enjoy life in their "golden years" without dealing with resin chemicals and stuff and the pressures of running their business. I, among many others, have bought many of their excellent, top-notch castings, and will also have to place a "stock up" order within the 2 year time frame. I wish the Holthaus family the very best of health and a long life to enjoy the fruits of their labors in their retirement years. I also thank them profusely for their excellent products and service over all these years. Everything here. Charlie Larkin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misterNNL Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 As Spock would say "may they live long and prosper" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Kren Posted March 14, 2015 Share Posted March 14, 2015 Wishing Don and Carol the best also THANK YOU for all the great years, service and resin parts and bodys that you have given us modelers through the years ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roncla Posted March 15, 2015 Share Posted March 15, 2015 Wishing Don and Carol the best also THANK YOU for all the great years, service and resin parts and bodys that you have given us modelers through the years ! X2. They have always set the standard to which others are judged Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1930fordpickup Posted March 16, 2015 Share Posted March 16, 2015 I stopped in Saturday at the Sylvania show and said Congrats. Don said it ain't happened yet! LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kustom Steve Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 I saw them at the Toledo Show as well. Mrs Holthaus has changed a bit since I last saw her in the late '90's and Don just shaved his 'stauche off. But what I did notice was their fatigue, both physically and especially mentally. I have done for my job five day trade shows where there is up to or exceeding 50,000 attendees and I am a bit younger then they are and I am beat after the show. It's not worth beating themselves up, especially since I was so shocked as to how small the Toledo show has gotten. I heard some people talk about a possible retirement when I was there but I was more focused on my shopping list of tires... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernard Kron Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Good on the Holthauses for choosing to wind it all up. Hopefully their invaluable contributions to our hobby will have been well rewarded. It's especially laudable that they have announced it with such a long lead time. I'm certain they will be inundated with large orders between now and then. In the meantime it reminds me that many of the hobby's greatest aftermarket contributors are getting on in years and among them are businesses with very large, very sophisticated, catalogs that would be impossible to replace from scratch. It's time for a succession plan! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Geiger Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 (edited) I remember that when I'd talk to Ray Parsons of R&R about his NNL East spots or when I'd see him at other shows, he'd say, "This is my last year, I'm retiring." Then he'd sign up for the next year's show. That went on for several years. I'd actually kid him asking if he was retiring again this year. Then he found the Mighty Mouse folks to sell his kits on eBay. It turned out that the tough part for him was the travel and working the shows. He showed up at NNL East as a spectator the next year and gave us a few of his kits for door prizes. He was smiling ear to ear, which was very unlike Ray when he was working a show. Happy as could be to be at the show. He said that he enjoyed the casting part, and with the sales handled, he'd carry on as long as he could. And two years later we lost him! So Ray never did get to retire. Edited March 22, 2015 by Tom Geiger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Moparman Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 In my limited experience with Modelhaus, (I bought a correct interior and grille for a '70 Charger) I found that they are some of the best resin casters one can find. I will defiantly be placing an order for some small stuff and a full '70 Charger kit. I hate to do it, beings how they want to avoid a flood of orders, but I want the parts before you can't find them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveM Posted March 23, 2015 Share Posted March 23, 2015 Same here. I don't want to ride off into the sunset without a '61 Starliner in the stash. Monte Carlo Red... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Hall Posted March 23, 2015 Share Posted March 23, 2015 I've bought a ton of restoration parts from them for about 2 decades now, mostly by mail and some in person at the Toledo NNL back in the 90s the few times I went. I've also bought a bunch of their kits over the last 15 years or so...got the Shasta trailer on order now, need to get the '61 Coupe de Ville, 66 & 67 Grand Prix hardtops, '62 Chrysler Newport sedan, etc...great stuff, excellent customer service. Will definitely miss them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danno Posted March 23, 2015 Share Posted March 23, 2015 Bob and Polly Zetterman have stocked and retailed a large inventory of Modelhaus kits and parts for years. They are close to Don and Carol. They confirmed the decision, but indicated a lot can change in two years. Bob and Polly will be at DESERT SCALE CLASSIC with a large supply of Modelhaus products. Probably still a good idea to stock up on anything you want now! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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