Hiawatha Hobbies — Local services in Waukesha

I love hobby stores. I used to go to Greenfield News and Hobby when that place was still open. To me that's what every hobby store should aspire to (minus the going out of business of course).

This place certainly has its strengths and weaknesses. I'm going to start with the weaknesses because they are so upfront.

As numerous people have noted, the first thing you see upon entering is stacks of boxes obscuring lines of vision and walking. Not a great way to welcome new faces. If you're an old hat like me, I don't care, I kind of like it, and I think that's the root of the problem: The people who work here seem mired in their environment, and not mindful of how easily they could be gaining new long-term / repeat customers, or at least being respectful and welcome of first-timers. I'm a pretty grumpy guy, but I wouldn't run my business like this.

This naturally extends into customer service. I walked past a couple workers, nobody said anything to me. I don't expect to be greeted, but asking what I'm looking for or at least letting me know you're willing to help if I need it would go a long way. The second point is a little grittier. There was a railroad grognard customer at the front desk speaking way too loudly with the cashier. Or more accurately, at the cashier. It must have gone on at least 15 minutes. Probably a regular who does this frequently because none of the employees batted an eyelash. As a customer it was quite grating, and was especially off-putting for my young kids. I stood there waiting far too long, the grognard completely oblivious that a paying customer was waiting to check out, The cashier not really doing much to get the point across.

Okay enough whining. The good thing is that this place has a ridiculous assortment of train stuff. I've never seen this density of model train boxes anywhere. Is it easy to find stuff? I don't know, I don't really care. As long as the staff can find it for you and are paying attention I guess that's all that matters.

Secondly they had a decent assortment of other stuff. Puzzles, scratch building supplies, kites and outdoor toys, RC with little assembly, RC parts, a really nicely stocked albeit chaotic brio nook with a small play area for kids. It was nice, I'm glad they had that just wish it wasn't surrounded by towering boxes that could topple over if someone winked crooked.

I'm only docking one star for all of the stuff above that I complained about, but I probably should have taken off at least two or more. I guess I'm leaving it at 4 because there's a lot of potential, I just wish they would realize that and get their...

Great selection. They have everything. Trains, wooden Thomas, RC, plastic kits galore, slot cars in all scales and lots of VHTF stuff. There is even a section near the front for puzzles and the best model rocketry selection I've seen in a long time. Staff was very helpful. I'm from the Chicago area and this is my go to place every time I'm in Milwaukee. I've even made trips just to go there. I don't know about the review that stated nothing priced, everything I bought and looked at had a price tag on it. They do mail order, but I prefer to go in person. About %80 of what I got from them was at the shop. The only downside is you can go in looking for that one item you really want and walk out with a trunk full if stuff you just find too cool to pass up. Concerning boxes piled up. I've building for over 50 years and all the real good hobby shops I've been to always seem to have stuff packed in the shelves, aisles and everywhere else. If you want neat, go to a museum. If you want...

I've come every now and again to this store in the many years they have been here. They have always been well stocked and you can usually find something for just about any of the common hobbies. They are best known for model trains, and it's obviously their specialty. But lesser known is that they have a good selection of model kits, slot cars and general hobby tools. And I just stopped there yesterday to discover that they have really upped their game in Radio Control, especially cars and trucks. If you are looking for Traxxas parts, or pretty much any of the major RTR vehicles (Axial, Arrma, Associated, Traxxas, etc.)- they probably have it- and have it at a better price than what you can get online or anywhere else. People say it is messy- but it's not. It's just completely stocked to the gills. If this is how they keep their overhead low,...