craftsman tools at..... ACE!

[durango dude]

I went to my neighborhood ACE to pick up some supplies --- and saw the aisle was loaded with CRAFTSMAN tools!

I asked what the deal was --- and the salesman said that Sears lost their contract with craftsman - and that ACE picked up the line.

Holy smokes!

Is this true???

[Skaning]

Hard to say whats going on here. Remember Western Auto sells Craftsman tools. That was a redult of Sears buying WA before the days os Sears/KMart.

So, exclusivity to Sears for Craftsman was already weakened. My guess is KMart made a deal.

This will take some digging.

[Daryl]

Craftsman is a line of tools and lawn and garden equipment controlled by Sears Holdings Corporation; the brand is owned by KCD IP, LLC,[1] a special purpose entity created by Sears Holdings for securitization purposes.[2]

The tools are sold in Sears, Kmart, and Orchard Supply Hardware stores (all three owned by Sears Holdings), as well as Fastenal[3], US military Army and Air Force Exchange Service stores, and Ace Hardware.[4][5] They are also now sold at "The Craftsman Experience," the brand's retail venue in downtown Chicago

From a Wikipedia article on Craftsman tools.

[Skaning]

And here's the answer pretty much as I had expected.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/sea...are-2010-02-20

Looks like Sears Holding is starting to trade off some of its signature brands. Around here Sears is stuck in what once was a major shopping center in the 70's. It has been passed by and they own the store in what has become an inconvenient location. They have steadfastly refused to relocate to one of the centers near the interstate probably because they couldn't sell what they own. Result, they don't have the traffic that they need.

Sears is struggling, Kmart isn't a lot better. Target and Wal Mart are killing them although I have little use personally for either of those two.

[BigguyZ]

Sears is struggling, Kmart isn't a lot better. Target and Wal Mart are killing them although I have little use personally for either of those two.

Not to get OT, but I went into a major Target in my area (there's a few), and they didn't have tools in the Home Improvement aisle anymore. I'm wondering if they're pulling out of that market all together?

[cwsmith]

My own experience has been that neither Target or Walmart offer much in the way of competition for Sears and their "Craftsman" brand. IMHO, Lowes and Home Depot are the biggest competition. First off, both of these are easier to get to, than the typical Sears's stores in my area, which are located in "Malls" where parking is usually less convenient.

Worse I think, is that Sears is killing itself. I've been a big "Craftsman" fan most of my life, and like a little kid I used anxiously wait for the new Craftsman catalog and then use that to reference anything that I might buy in the local store. My FIL also managed the hardware dept at the Binghamton store (the story my wife occasionally uses as my reason to marry her ).

But over the last few years, the "Craftsman Catalog" lists almost as many of the competition's tools, as it does the "Craftsman" brand of tools. Worse perhaps is that the catalog is just a jumble with little sense of organization. There's been a few times when I've thought a tool has been dropped, because you couldn't find it within the pages.

Then of course there's the store... within a few years after my FIL retired, he wouldn't visit the store anymore, just to frustrating to see the haphazard displays, missing parts, poorly assembled stationary tools, and just out of stock items. (He for many reason he had the largest selling hardware dept, east of Chicago. He had all kinds of "awards".)

Today you go into the store and there's more sales people than customers and nobody seems to know a thing about what they are selling. Store is sort of dreary looking too, with all that black and red. I think Sears needs to seriously modernize; but until that happens I'm sure they're trying anything to move product. I wouldn't be surprised one day to see them selling at Lowes. (Which actually wouldn't be a bad idea, I think.)

CWS