Small Business Saturday: Antioch shop on track with toy train comeback
By jim newton jnewton@stmedianetwork.com December 3, 2010 7:36PM
Model Trains manager Jack Scardina runs an O gauge Lionel train around the tracks set up in the front window. | Rob Dicker~Sun-Times Media
Antioch Model Trains & Hobby shop
924 Main St, Antioch.
Open 11 a.m to 6 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. Closed on Mondays. Open Sundays through the holiday season noon to 4 p.m.
(847) 395-5025
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Updated: December 3, 2010 9:50PM
ANTIOCH — Technology and entertainment options move forward at light speed these days, but old-fashioned model trains keep chugging along as a holiday tradition despite that competition.
“Christmas and the holiday season is a time when families get together, and model trains bring families together. It’s something they can do together, especially fathers and sons,” said Jack Scardina, a member of the family that owns and runs the Antioch Model Trains & Hobby shop.
Business at the shop always picks up for the holidays, but Scardina said that based on recent interest, model trains are “making a strong comeback.”
“I think people are going back to traditional family values,” he said. “And a lot of families get a new train car or holiday car every year as a tradition.”
The same Lionel train sets that have intrigued hobbyists for generations are still available, as are various scale models from competitors such as Kato and Atlas. Scardina said a new starter kit from Lionel, including track, an engine, a few cars and a caboose can be had for $199.
From there, the sky is the limit based on the level of interest. People can stick with the basic set-up brought out to circle the tree each year, or embark on a more serious relationship, building larger routes with bridges, switches, trestles and entire cities as scenery for the set.
“We have everything from funeral homes to movie theaters and gas stations,” Scardina said of the model buildings that are available.
Trains playing prominent roles in blockbuster movies has led to the introduction of new model sets, such as the “Polar Express” and “Harry Potter” Hogwarts Express sets.
Scardina said he loves trains and working at the hobby shop. Having started his career in an earlier hobby shop, and then spending time working as a conductor on real freight trains before returning to the model business, he said trains have been a lifelong theme. He said he is especially happy with the family and friends who help staff the Antioch business.
“It’s just fun. The people are fun and you meet a lot of interesting individuals,” he said. His regular customers run the gamut from carpenters to doctors and dentists.
“It’s like any hobby,” he said. “Once it gets in someone’s blood, it’s there for the rest of their lives.”
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