Today we’d like to introduce you to Rob Santen.
Hi Rob, so excited to have you on the platform. So, before we get into questions about your work life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
What started as a napkin plan of sorts, or I guess the more modern version, a coffee, and a laptop plan, started a few years back in between classes at UC. The idea that there has to be a way to blend the passion between Motorsport and the passion of creativity through artwork had to have an intersection point that was achievable in my own capacity.
Fast forward a few months later, and we had made out first sale on Type Schrift. Type Schrift has since over the years grown to reach Motorsport and Automotive enthusiasts in 9 countries and hundreds of garages alike. Bringing Authentic Automotive History to the walls and homes of those who can appreciate the artful nostalgia that all these pieces have.
A curation of 1,500 (and counting) Authentic and original pieces of automotive advertising, collectibles, trinkets, and surviving artifacts from decades past. Something for a car enthusiast of any type and within any budget.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
The entire thing has been a steep learning curve, which is a good thing. The passion and the pride that goes into sourcing, preserving, and preparing these collectibles has been 100% organic and 100% natural; at the end of the day, as a car enthusiast myself, that stuff is as authentic as can be. It has my name on it, and that is not something I take lightly.
However, past that I can’t exactly recall the last time I built an e-commerce website from scratch and curated a community around all this historic novelty before this – ha
There have been hiccups along the way, but it’s all been seen to me as learning moments and teaching moments for next time, figuring it out, and thanks to a close group of friends who are equally as passionate about this in my corner offering support, there has yet to be an issue we can’t resolve or work through.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Type Schrift is a very niche community and a very niche market, but contrary to the marginal space that we occupy, that same niche community is a passionate one, Type Schrift has tons of repeat customers, and with the automotive passion comes the same dedication. I think a lot of our customers, after experiencing the “Full Type Schrift Experience”, can tell that this all comes from the heart, and the passion for motorsport shines through more than just another website with automotive relics for sale.
We are known specifically for being one of the premier providers for authentic and hard-to-find relics of Motorsport and Automotive History; everything that is listed on the site, be it a wearable or a framed piece of history, is authentic to the era, no reprints, no scanned images, nothing but real deal nostalgia from the eras that we have spent so long apart from.
The community that Type Schrift has generated has been one of the most significant fruits of my labor. From the friendships overseas that have developed through these same passions for all things automotive to the networking that has come through the fellow collectors of this stuff has been significant to me on a personal level. Recently we held our first official event, Coffee and Motorcars as we called it, and the turnout and the caliber of cars that showed up truly impressed me. To know that our reach was that far and that our event was the highlight of many attendees day was pretty cool to me.
I think if I had to pinpoint the thing that separates TS from others is the passion that goes into this at all levels. As an enthusiast myself, Type Schrift or not, I am still super into this stuff at the end of the day, I think that the opportunity to share my passion, or obsession is just the icing on the cake; everyone likes talking about the things they love the most, that’s all we are doing with Type Schrift, just in a different way, it’s awesome to see the returned passion and thanks that gets returned.
Pricing:
- Pricing of items that fits all budgets
- Genuine history and real collectibles available at as low as 40 dollars
- Gift Cards available
- Free shipping within the Cont, 48 US
- Higher caliber pieces and Rare items available for the serious collectors.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.typeschrift.com
- Instagram: @TypeSchrift
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Typeschrift
