I have no direct insight here but I hear from multiple 2nd hand sources that the Hobbico buy of Estes gave rise to a shunning of them by Wal-Mart and also Michaels. Now Michaels could overcome that by second-sourcing hobby items from Hobbico as well as Horizon. Or they could sell Estes at Michaels through Horizon, since they have purchased Estes goods for decades. That would probably raise fur all the way around, but it would be good business.

Heck we sell stuff to Iran for goodness sake.

Wal-Mart has an agenda of always trying to bypass popular national brands after a couple of years with house brands by insisting the national brands do manufacturing in China where the vendors have no respect whatsoever for intellectual property rights and are anxious to sell clones to Wallyworld. Why that known series of events is not a crime here despite the actions partially happening here I will never understand.

Thank goodness model rocket motors are NOT readily cloned.

Jerry