Guests from U.S. & Abroad Visit Atlas

Diane and Tom Haedrich, right, greet Czechoslovakian visitors Gustav Taus, and his son, also Gustav, in the Atlas lobby during a recent visit.

The week following the TCA Meet in York, PA always brings a flurry of meetings and conferences to Atlas’ Hillside, New Jersey headquarters. This April was no different as we welcomed Andy Peterson, owner of Peterson Supply in Portland, Oregon, and two new faces, Gustav Taus, and his son, also Gustav, of Prague, Czech Republic for a special day at Atlas.

Mr. Taus has been the President and Chief Executive Officer of Electric Train Systems of Prague, Czech Republic for the past 15 years, selling primarily O Scale metal and tinplate products. He recently began importing Atlas O 3-Rail track and will soon be importing HO Trainman® products. While he has visited the United States before, it was his first trip to Atlas headquarters. His son, age 12 ½, was enjoying his second visit to American shores, which included a vacation in the Florida Keys and St. Petersburg, Florida, with stops in New York City and York, PA.

“I liked the whole trip,” young Gustav said when asked what he enjoyed most about his U.S. visit. “I especially liked the train show in York, and Florida, too, but it’s too hot there to play sports. At Atlas, I most enjoyed all the HO Scale items.”

Bill Swarthout, (left), joined Atlas guests as they toured the basement test tracks with Joe Kolnoski, (right), Atlas’ vice-president of sales.

After meeting the staff and taking care of business, the Taus men toured the building, hosted by Joe Kolnoski, vice-president of sales, who first met Gustav Senior at the York show last year, and later resumed their relationship in Nuremburg, Germany during the annual Toy Fair in February 2007. Joe was also with the pair in York, where they met, dined and learned more about each other. According to Joe, young Gustav made quite an impression on their waitress at Friday’s, a quintessentially American eatery. To further enhance their East Coast experience, Joe, a die-hard Yankee fan, presented Gustav the Younger with an official New York Yankees cap at the end of the day, getting a big smile in return.

Acquiring our first Czechoslovakian distributor is especially significant for Atlas. Stephen Schaffan Sr., who founded the original Atlas Tool Company in 1924, immigrated to the United States from there in the late 1800’s. It was his son, Stephen Schaffan Jr., who transformed Atlas into the model railroading firm it is today.

“While Paul Graf, our COO and I were in Nuremburg, Gustav Taus showed us tremendous hospitality, allowing us to utilize his booth as our home base during the show,” Joe said. “It was especially gratifying to return the favor here on our own turf in York and at Atlas.”

Industrial Rail™ by Atlas O was among the topics of a recent meeting in Atlas’ New Jersey conference room. (Seated, left to right): Atlas O Sales Manager Bob Lawrence, Atlas O Vice-President Jim Weaver, Andy Peterson of Peterson Supply Co., (standing, left to right): Bill Serratelli, Atlas technician and Bill Swarthout, Atlas O/Atlas Model Midwest Territory Manager.

Andy Peterson, a frequent visitor to Atlas, spent his morning in discussions with Bob Lawrence, Atlas O, LLC national sales manager, and ATO Vice-President Jim Weaver to discuss future projects, Joe said

“It’s so much easier to talk face-to-face, rather than by phone, emails and faxes,” added Bob Lawrence. “Andy generally pays us a much-welcome visit after every York Meet.”