Posted on 05/28/2016 11:27:48 AM PDT by PROCON
Oh...OK...I was just assuming due to this in the story:
“...The struggling retailer, which also owns equally troubled Kmart...”
I was thinking Sears owned K-Mart, not that K-Mart owned Sears...
Sears really messed up when they started selling their brands at other retailers such as Ace. I bought a Craftsman compressor at an Ace hardware. The thing started having ‘issues’ before the warranty ran out. So I brought it to the Ace store I purchased it at. The Ace manager stated that they only SELL the brand, but do NOT honor the warranty. For that, I’d have to find a Sears store and bring it there. So I did, and it took over a month for the minor repair to be done, and done incorrectly at that! Meanwhile, I had to buy another compressor (not Craftsman) to keep my business running.
Really sad. There was a time when Sears and their brands were great.
Good one ;~)
I worked a temporary job for Sanyo at the border in San Diego. The Kenmore refrigerators are Sanyo refrigerators manufactured at the Sanyo factory in Tijuana. The only difference between the Kenmore refrigerator and the Sanyo model in the name plate.
“The Craftsman socket set I bought 15 or 20 years ago was made in America. The Craftsman socket set I bought a few months ago was made in China. I see no reason to continue purchasing Craftsman.”
Exactly! I’ve bought my last Chinese made piece of crap from them. I’d gladly pay more for it to be made in the USA and have their old guarantee back. Now I have a broken Chinese made Craftsman compressor that isnt worth fixing, while my ancient (and very heavy) USA made one keeps on running.
Later, when I bought my first house, I had a toilet that needed a new part... it was a Sears toilet, and you could only find the part at Sears. They wouldn't let me simply pay cash for the part... they said I could only order it if I got a Sears charge card and used that. So I told them to pound sand and replaced the whole toilet.
How dumb do you have to be to be a CEO these days?
Why sell good assets and keep the junk?
I have a Makita miter saw and it has never let me down.
I used to have a Sears hardware store near me. Loved that place. One of the only stores I can say that I’ve gone into just to “browse”. It was always busy.
And then they changed it.
Some bean counter thought it would be a great place to sell appliances. So they took out half the tools and hardware, to make space for washing machines and refrigerators.
Not long after, the store closed.
Bean counters are idiots.
The Sears’ Craftsman tool catalog used to be my favorite catalog- after the Victoria’s Secret catalog. At least, I could afford what’s in the Sears’ catalog. No VS models for me...
Bingo! They should go full on e-commerce, with regional warehouses to deliver goods. The day of the big box store is done.
Sears going the “softer side” ruined an excellent store.
Yea that Chinese crap.Had a socket wrench break while working on some farm equipment a couple weeks ago.Cut the knuckles on my right hand halfway to the bone.
Actually Kmart bought Sears about 15 or so years ago if I remember correctly.
I have a small Kenmore fridge that my mom bought new in the mid 1970’s. It still works fine. So does the Kenmore air conditioner which is about 30 years old. Roars like a monster, weighs more than I do, and cools a 15x35’ room in a few minutes.
New stuff — no freon, all plastic, no thank you!
I've bought tools on ebay. Some very old tools. Housewares too. Never been disappointed yet. The old stuff was built to last.
There is no such thing as the “Kenmore” brand. They are all made by someone else. I had a Kenmore washer (came with the house), and that thing was a tank. It was actually a 70s vintage Maytag. It lasted about 40 years.
Sears also sold radios, TVs, other electronics under the Silvertone name. Again, that stuff was all made by other companies.
We used to get everything at Sears when I was growing up. So many memories. My dad had an old Monte Carlo that had Diehard mufflers on it. I don’t remember how many times he sent me with the rusty old one to exchange for a new one. I bet they regretted selling anything with a lifetime warranty to my dad. He always insisted that they give him the floor model of the TV because they always had the bugs worked out of them & he didn’t want to have to take them back if the ones out of the box didn’t work. He’s been gone 25 years..I miss him so much..
I went to a local SEARS a few days ago. It was like a morgue. No one there except me and a couple of other people.
We ordered one full set of appliances from Lowe’s and the installer-—who rescheduled twice and was late when he did come-—was terrible. The dishwasher had to be completely replaced due to his malfeasance.
We got our newest stuff from Sears and it was installed well, on time.
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