Craftsman Kit Tool

Craftsman is a line of tools and lawn and garden equipment, owned by KCD IP, LLC, a subsidiary of Sears Holdings Corporation.

The tools are sold in Sears, Kmart, and Orchard Supply Hardware stores (all three owned by Sears Holdings), as well as Fastenal and US military Army and Air Force Exchange Service stores. As of June 2010, a limited selection of Craftsman tools will be available at select Ace Hardware stores.

The mechanic's hand tools have been made by a variety of manufacturers over the years including New Britain, Moore Drop Forge, Easco Hand Tools, Stanley, and most recently the Danaher Corporation.

Consumers have ranked the Craftsman brand second (surpassed only by Waterford Crystal) in terms of quality. In 2007, Craftsman was named "America's Most Trusted Brand" and brand with "Highest Expectations". In 2009, the readers of Popular Mechanics named Craftsman their favorite brand of hand tools in their Reader's Choice Awards. Craftsman is the official tool brand of NASCAR and the DIY Network.

History

Sears has sold its top-of-the-line hand tools under the "Craftsman" name since 1927. Arthur Barrows, head of the company's hardware department, reportedly bought the rights to use the Craftsman name from the Marion-Craftsman Tool Company for $500.

The company's secondary line of hand tools was called simply "Sears." Sears also used the "Dunlap" and "Fulton" names for its lesser quality tools. The "Sears" tool line was discontinued around the late 1980s and replaced by the "Companion" tool line. The "Companion" tool line was also discontinued and replaced by the "Evolv" tool line, which has the same warranty as "Craftsman" with the caveat that it requires the original dated receipt to enact it.

In recent years, a subset of the Craftsman line, known as "Craftsman Professional" has been introduced as a "highest quality" line under the Craftsman logo, and they are billed as "Only the best" as a part of the Sears/Craftsman advertising campaign.

Since 1991, Sears has run the Craftsman Club customer loyalty program, one of the oldest such programs by a retailer.

Warranty

Craftsman hand tools have an unlimited lifetime warranty. This lifetime warranty program was instituted by Sears when they began selling the Craftsman line in 1927. This warranty program requires no receipt or dated proof of purchase. If the owner takes the item into a local retail store, it may be replaced or repaired free of charge. In some cases, such as ratchets, the customer may be offered a repair kit with which to repair the item.

The full text of the warranty is as follows:

The hand tool lifetime warranty is also in effect on many Craftsman lawn and garden products including rakes, shovels, clippers, brooms, trowels, pruners, hoses, sprinklers, hose nozzles, and other small gardening hand tools.

The lifetime warranty does not include precision hand tools, such as calipers and torque wrenches, with the exception of beam-style torque wrenches. In 2003, Sears removed the lifetime warranty from Craftsman flashlights and changed the warranty on tape measures to cover all parts except the blade itself. Replacement blades, however, were made available for purchase from the stores to offset this policy.

The warranty does not cover power tools.

After the merger, Kmart began selling Craftsman products and honoring the hand tool lifetime warranty.

Legal battles

Craftsman tools came under fire in 2004 in a lawsuit accusing Sears of false advertising and consumer fraud for questionable use of the "Made in USA" slogan.

While most Craftsman hand tools are manufactured in the U.S., many power tools and accessories are manufactured overseas, sometimes with the final assembly taking place in the U.S.

Gallery

References

  1. ^ a b Kenmore Craftsman DieHard Intellectual Property, Limited Liability Company
  2. ^ Berner, Robert (2007-04-16). "The New Alchemy At Sears". BusinessWeek . http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_16/b4030071.htm . Retrieved 2010-02-22 .  
  3. ^ "Sears to sell Craftsman tools at all Kmart stores". The Associated Press . 2006-09-14 . http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/retail/2006-09-14-craftsman-kmart_x.htm . Retrieved 2010-02-22 .  
  4. ^ Smith, Hollie (2007-07-03). "Largest fastener distributor moves to Ottawa". The Times . http://mywebtimes.com/archives/ottawa/display.php?id=302046 . Retrieved 2010-02-22 .  
  5. ^ "Craftsman Tools Now Available At AAFES". Regulatory Intelligence Data . 2000-09-20 . http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-35955907.html . Retrieved 2010-02-22 .  
  6. ^ Lloyd, Mary Ellen (2010-02-19). "Sears Agrees To Sell Craftsman Tools At Ace Hardware". Dow Jones Newswires . http://www.nasdaq.com/aspx/stock-market-news-story.aspx?storyid=201002191913dowjonesdjonline000642&title=sears-agrees-to-sell-craftsman-tool-brand-at-ace-hardware . Retrieved 2010-02-21 .  
  7. ^ "Craftsman 'BE' and H-Circle Series Tools". Alloy Artifacts . http://home.comcast.net/~alloy-artifacts/craftsman-be-hcircle.html . Retrieved 2010-02-22 .  
  8. ^ Sweeney, Paul (1988-10-15). "Brothers Come of Age With New Bid". The New York Times . http://www.nytimes.com/1988/10/15/business/brothers-come-of-age-with-new-bid.html?pagewanted=2 . Retrieved 2010-02-22 .  
  9. ^ Campbell, W. Joseph (1988-10-15). "Stanley Earnings Grow 11% Despite Weak Construction Industry". The Hartford Courant . http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/courant/access/80162400.html?FMT=ABS . Retrieved 2010-02-22 .  
  10. ^ "Sears tool work goes to Danaher". Chicago Tribune . 1991-06-18 . http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/24741125.html?FMT=CITE . Retrieved 2010-02-22 .

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