Selten is based on the combined experience of its founders, Mark Hambach and Jake Durling. Mark and Jake have seen both sides of the high-end used car market. Mark launched a predecessor to Selten when he created a consignment sales company that enjoyed immediate success selling cars for and to Boulder area car enthusiasts. Jake found an advertisement that Mark had created and was drawn to the quality of presentation: it was informative, thoughtful, and centered around superb photography. What’s particularly telling is that all of this was gleaned from an advertisement for a vehicle that Jake had no interest in buying. However, Jake, an avid consumer of new and interesting vehicles, was in the process of selling two of his vehicles and engaged with Mark to get assistance selling them. From this connection, the idea of Selten slowly started taking shape until the launch of dealership in November of 2024.
Mark’s love for cars didn’t ignite until a bit later in life, but once it did, it burned brightly and never faded. Introduced to the world of automotive passion by some close friends in high school, he quickly found himself immersed in what started as a hobby and soon became a lifestyle. A defining moment in his journey came when he watched The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift. After having to Google the car driven by D. K., he set his sights on upgrading from his hand-me-down 1999 Ford Explorer to a Nissan 350z. When the Explorer began having overheating issues that weren’t worth fixing, it became the perfect time to make the switch. Determined, Mark hunted down a one-owner 2003 Nissan 350z, negotiated a great deal, and made the purchase. From that moment on, his goal was clear: to experience as many fun cars as possible. Since then, Mark has owned a variety of cars ranging from a 2008 BMW E92 M3 to a 2016 Porsche 981 Cayman GT4, and he loves nothing more than sharing stories about these cars.
His desire to open a specialty car dealership grew from a blend of his passion for cars, his love for photography, and the success he found buying and selling cars on his own—all supported by his professional experience in automotive marketing and branding. Despite the many cars that have passed through his hands, his dream car remains the same: a manual Lamborghini Murciélago LP 670–4 SuperVeloce.
Jake Durling came by his love of cars by way of his grandfather. His grandfather was a mechanic whose lifelong passions were family and Fords, namely Model Ts that he managed to collect and restore in his New England barn. Jake drove anything with a motor he could get his hands on as a child: snowmobiles, dirt bikes, minibikes, four-wheelers, even lawn tractors. If it had an internal combustion engine, he wanted to ride it. When he couldn’t afford a car at 16, he bought a motorcycle (a beautiful 1986 Honda VF500F Interceptor). Once kids arrived and motorcycles weren’t an option, he began to delve into his grandfather’s world of cars. After a brief career in law, Jake began investing in various commercial real estate ventures. As his businesses grew, the cars evolved: a Honda Civic Si became a Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro which became a Ford Raptor which then turned into a fully built out Ford Raptor which then finally became a Jeep Wrangler Rubicon on 38s with a RubiTrux Hemi engine and a Porsche Taycan 4S.
The driving experience has always captivated Jake: not the mindless daily commute but the moments when the distractions of the day fall away and a driver’s attention is fully directed at the demands of the road, the track, or the trail. This was the child’s love of simply driving that has endured and what has captured Jake’s imagination.