Throughout my life, I have been interested in cars. I progressed from Dinky Toys to photographing, collecting, and racing them. The collection, of course, reflects that lifetime passion. As a young boy of twelve, I admired the Lagonda M45 of Max Lips at Autotron, his museum. There is one in the collection now. The Fiat Dino coupé of the local Fiat dealer back in the seventies was another one which deeply impressed me. So a Dino has joined the collection too. Regretfully, there are too many memories to have them all in the collection. I remember the excitement of seeing the first Opel GT in Switzerland, but I never owned one. And I never owned a Lamborghini Miura, though I was mesmerised when a Swiss owner parked one in bright orange in front of my father's shop. If you look closely, you see me behind the Lamborghini, admiring the work of Marcello Gandini. At Waldorf & Statler, we are all passionate about cars; we understand old vehicles and have the knowledge to advise you on any matter out of passion.
My first memory of a racing car is not conscious, though I always imagine that I remember a green and yellow Lotus, driven by Jim Clark, when I was three years old. In reality, I remember a Super 8 film fragment of just three minutes that shows my parents taking my brothers and me into the dunes of Zandvoort to see the Dutch Grand Prix in 1962.
I don't remember all the faces of the inhabitants in the village we lived in, but I still remember clearly all the cars they drove, type and colour. Just ten years old, I visited the RAI international car exhibition in Amsterdam with my brothers and witnessed the DAF cars, just returned from the epic London-Sydney Marathon.
Soon after, the first books and artefacts started a still-growing comprehensive archive. Max Lips’ Autotron was the first car collection I visited, and as a young boy, I was struck by a beautiful black Lagonda M45. In the collection today, we have a similar, very original M45 from 1933 in black.
In the little theatre of Autotron, I remember being impressed by Bill Mason's Shell films about pre-war Grand Prix racing, which resulted in researching the racing period 1930 to 1940 for the rest of my life. I attended the first Christie’s classic car auctions in the Netherlands at Louwman & Parqui in Leidschendam. Slowly, prices for "just old cars" climbed, and the hobby to preserve and drive classic cars developed into a serious investment alternative, speculating on rapidly increasing value. Of course, the catalogues of those sales are still in the collection—and they illustrate how unbelievably low prices were at that time for Ferrari, Bugatti, and Mercedes. Soon, the world of classic cars would change dramatically.
Seventeen years old, I travelled to Mulhouse by train from Switzerland to see the Schlumpf collection, which had just been discovered by the workers' unions, who had occupied the collection. I still remember walking down the stairs and seeing the vast rows of lanterns and under them, rows and rows of Bugattis I had never seen before. I even managed to sit in one of the W154 Mercedes on display. Together with the Mason films, the impressive and visible technique of the Schlumpf W154 without a body prompted me to conduct in-depth research on the prewar Grand Prix history. It brought me to the most interesting archives throughout Europe, from Stuttgart to Turin, exciting times of discovery and learning.
When I got a driving license, my brothers were already driving MGs, so I also started driving MGs. It was a time when a decent MGB would cost no more than 1,500 Dutch guilders. Repairing and restoring old cars was rarely profitable in those days. However, many enthusiasts still decided to keep old vehicles in good condition, fix them for the sheer fun of it, and save them for the future.
Our first MGB is still cherished and has been in our family for over 45 years. It is one of the oldest registered MGBs in the Netherlands. We even got married in that car!
Some years later, the Alfa Romeo 105 series became the next object of interest. After a first Bertone GTV (still in the collection), a Duetto, and several Giulias followed. Today, Alfa Romeo is still significant in the collection. It remains one of the most fascinating brands in the business with a unique romantic history of more than a century. People like Jano, Satta and Busso have created so many fabulous cars over that long period. In an Alfa Romeo, I always feel that its creators had enjoyed the process of development and creation; they had as much fun as we have now in driving their cars, full of refined technique.
Between 1991 and 2000, I campaigned an Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV throughout Europe in historic racing for a period of ten years. It was exciting and serious fun, perhaps the best I ever had with classic cars. This car was seriously fast, weighing 970 kg and producing 185 HP out of the classic Nord 2-litre engine. The car is now fully restored and remains in Germany.
In the 1990s and early 2000s, investment soon propelled extensive restoration projects for rare and exclusive classic cars. Budgets increased, and vehicles became serious business, like art or antiques. Being busy in the food production sector, it took until 2022 before I could fulfil a lifetime dream and set up a business dedicated to classic cars. After decades of leading companies and a lack of time for hobbies, I am enjoying working on classic cars again.
At Waldorf & Statler, we invest in a modest collection of interesting cars to keep them for the future in a temperature- and moisture-controlled facility in the southwest of the Netherlands.
For the first time, I ventured into pre-war cars, adding a new dimension after many years of activity with post-war vehicles. A lifelong experience in cars forms the base of Waldorf & Statler.
We can help you find rare and interesting cars, advise you on collection management or restoration. For technical expertise and restorations, we cooperate with a young family company in the Netherlands that can realise any project, small or big.
We love to talk about classic cars, analyse the market and keep an eye on price developments and the popularity of different types of vehicles.
Call or email us for any enquiries about classic cars, and please enjoy our website!
