Stanley Black & Decker has reworked their Hand and Power Tool Brand Positioning chart for the first time since at least 2017.
The company, which owns Craftsman, Dewalt, and other popular tool brands, featured the updated chart in their recent May 2023 Investor Presentation.
The chart is not necessarily to be taken at face value, and is more of a rough guide as to how Stanley Black & Decker sees the various tool brands positioned relative to each other.
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Keep in mind that the Investor Presentation is a corporate document that’s not created for tool users. Still, I always find these things to be interesting and insightful.
Here, we’ll take a look at the new chart to see what has changed.
The way I interpret these charts, the left of the brand name represents the start of the segment coverage bar.
To start, Stanley Black & Decker expanded the target user segments slightly.
The Consumer segment has become Consumer and DIY, and the Tradesman segment has become Tradesman and Advanced DIY. The Professional and Automotive/Industrial segments remain unchanged.
The OPP (opening price point), MPP (mid price point) and HPP (high price point) tiers also remain unchanged.
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Let’s take a look at how Stanley Black & Decker repositioned their tool brands.
Black & Decker – The iconic beginner DIYer and household tool brand hasn’t budged from the consumer segment, with the only change being a refreshed logo.
Craftsman – Whereas the Craftsman brand spanned most of the length of the chart, from consumer to automotive/industrial, it is now centered in the tradesman and advanced DIY segment.
Additionally, the Craftsman brand was bumped down slightly, from slightly above the MPP level to right on it.
Craftsman’s segment range is much tighter than before, suggesting that Stanley Black & Decker has reevaluated their core target audience since first adding the brand to their chart in 2017.
The short segment width is not exactly representative of Craftsman’s full line, as I would argue the Craftsman V-Series tools extend the brand into professional and even automotive/industrial segments.
Dewalt – The bar for Dewalt, Stanley Black & Decker’s premier cordless power tool and jobsite storage brand, has expanded slightly, and now more noticeably reaches into the tradesman segment.
Dewalt’s product catalog does span tradesman, professional, and automotive/industrial segments, making the latest positioning a more accurate representation.
Stanley – Stanley’s bar spans from the tradesman and advanced DIY segment and into the professional space. Curiously, the bar for Stanley pulls back slightly from the professional segment, but not by a lot. They also swapped spots with Craftsman with respect to relative pricing tiers.
Stanley FatMax – Stanley FatMax is no longer included on Stanley Black & Decker’s brand positioning chart.
Stanley Black & Decker confirmed that support for the Stanley FatMax sub-brand has not changed.
Bostitch – Bostitch is no longer included on the brand positioning chart, but is still featured on the Tools & Outdoor brand slide in Stanley Black & Decker’s presentation. This is perhaps because, especially compared to their sibling brands’ broader product offerings, Bostitch has become more of a specialized brand, with a focus on air and fastening tools.
Porter Cable – Porter Cable, which announced an exclusive partnership with Tractor Supply in 2021, remains on the chart – surprisingly. The brand previously spanned tradesman and professional segments and now only sits over the tradesman and advanced DIY segment. Additionally, the bar has shifted slightly to the left, a bit towards the consumer and DIY segment.
Irwin – Irwin’s bar has increased and been shifted upwards. Rather than being placed as an entry to mid price point brand, Irwin now sits above the mid price point line, above Craftsman and Stanley, but still below Dewalt.
The bar for Irwin has also shifted to the right, slightly away from tradesman and advanced DIY segment and more towards the professional segment.
Lenox – Lenox has also shifted a bit, and is now centered over the professional user segment. Interestingly, Lenox has moved above Dewalt in the price point scale.
Proto, Mac Tools, Facom – These three brands’ positions are largely unchanged, except for Proto and Facom swapping places with respect to price point.
Peter Fox
To put into blunt terms, any hope for Craftsman to return to even a shadow of its former glory or position is dead. This plus the previous news of SBD closing their new plant in Texas are the final nails in the coffin.
Fortunately there are more choices these days across the entire range of price versus quality spectrum. As a almost middle aged millennial I have a mix of good and bad memories of the brand and its long held position as solid middle of the road tools. Thankfully I don’t have the attachment to the brand that older generations had. Now its time to make some popcorn and watch the festivities begin again.
Stuart
Not necessarily; they’re not going to show all their cards.
fred
True enough – but the shrinking of the Craftsman bar does suggest that they have drastically reduced their expectations for the brand – perhaps as reality has set in. I would think that SBD knows the Craftsman sales figures, demographics and production economics better than any outsider and the 2023 bar chart may be signaling both customers and potential investors where they think the brand is headed. IMO the market is a bit too crowded with competing brands and more brands (beyond SBD’s) will likely continue to get sorted out and/or end in some future oblivion. Both Porter Cable and Craftsman may be headed in that direction – unless SBD has the will and incentives to turn things around. If Lowes and Ace experience several years of lackluster Craftsman sales – and they cut back or pull the plug – it might be the end of the brand. But let’s hope that I’m reading too much into a change in a bar chart and that Craftsman becomes a robust competitor in the “tradesman” niche.
Matt
I think this shows that even they know their recent decisions mean they never gain the upmarket customers targeted on their older chart with craftsman. Seems they are committed to generic quality. Maybe the power tools will continue to improve relative to ryobi, but otherwise…
It has made me sad for over a decade and it still does. Seeing craftsman in Ace is convenient and I would love to support my local ace – but not with these craftsman tools.
Separately, I wonder how big the group is that will buy foreign tools, but not foreign craftsman?
Stuart
It depends on what we’re talking about here.
Hand tools?
Cordless power tools?
Workshop equipment?
Storage, accessories, etc.
The Craftsman V20 category has two main segments – more value-oriented, and more premium-focused with Brushless RP. Craftsman’s bar being centered over the tradesman and advanced DIY segment represents this much more accurately than the previous bar.
There’s some overlap with Dewalt, but not as much as the previous chart indicated.
Strategically, Craftsman can one day be a good, best, better all-encompassing brand. If I were a decision-maker at SBD, that would still be the long-term goal.
There is still huge potential for the Craftsman brand. It would be a mistake to assume otherwise, or to think SBD believes otherwise.
potato
I think it makes perfect sense for SBD to position the brand as it appears in that chart. Honestly the previous one had brands all over the place and why would you cannibalize sales like that?
You have a stretched out version of good better best but in actuality the products have way more overlap(and sometimes mirror image of each other) as shown by torque test channel and various other comparisons. Honestly the power tool lines are like toothpastes at this point, just endless varieties to hog shelf space.
Both craftsman (and porter cable surprisingly) have been getting constant new tools so Im not really sure where the headed towards oblivion idea comes from.
kent_skinner
I think CMan was a rudderless ship for so long that they’ve blown any trust among prosumer (and up) users. I think they need to rely on the “my dad/grandfather used this; it must be good” demographic.
I honestly can’t think of what CMan would have to do to convince me to come back to the brand.
Rob H
I saw a new porter cable 20v cordless grease gun at tractor supply last week. I was kind of shocked to see a new 20v product from the line. I gave up on it and switched to Milwaukee a couple of years back. Maybe I missed it being released and it isn’t new at all.
Fyrfytr998
I’m still locked into V20. The tools have been serviceable thus far. Probably because I immediately made sure the essential items were the USA branded Drills and Impacts. Everything else has been brushless offerings as well where possible. The mid torque has been the only disappointment so far, but has been replaced by the very capable High Torque.
Roger
Porter Cable still around?
Besides that, the ’23 chart looks much more organized and sensible. The Craftsman should be marketed to consumer also.
Mopar
Mostly unrelated, but very weird timing…
this just showed up in a local legal newsletter I get:
——————————————————
Stanley Black & Decker, a manufacturer of household hardware and security systems, and its top executives have retained attorneys Leslie A. Cahill and Joseph W. Martini of Spears Manning & Martini LLC as counsel in a pending securities class action. The action, filed March 24 in Connecticut District Court by Levi & Korsinsky LLP, accuses the company of misleading investors about demand for its products in the waning days of the COVID-19 pandemic. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley, is 3:23-cv-00369, Rammohan v. Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. et al.
05/11/2023
Mopar
If anyone wants to read the complaint, you can find it here:
https://ia801602.us.archive.org/5/items/gov.uscourts.ctd.153627/gov.uscourts.ctd.153627.1.0.pdf
Robert
Stuart, the charts may be quite good face value clues for the tool buyer. Big institutional investors like pension funds, sovereign funds will demand that investor documents been meaningful. Though the suit mentioned by mopar muddles the waters a bit in this case – was there noticeable change in the charts from 2022 to 2023 because SBD corporate wants to show they are truthful and not misleading, or is the suit catching that 2023 chart is misleading?
Assuming the chart is fulfilling their regulatory obligations, notice the shift to the left of many brands. That means something has to go to meet lower price point. Less inspection points, less destructive testing, not flowing down as many requirements (ISO, EU, SAE) to suppliers in order to get lower cost suppliers to bid. Example of Dewalt, they no longer have overlap with Proto and Matco in the industrial/automotive sectors. So perhaps Dewalt will not follow Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) standards. And perhaps some Dewalt products were previously built to AS (Aerospace Standard) standards and requirements for industrial use. Less likely now, as AS rigor is high and costs manufacturers more to follow.
Stuart
These are the types of assumptions that the chart doesn’t support.
The chart won’t dictate product category, user focus, or price points, these factors create the chart.
The bars shifting slightly towards the consumer side of the chart, or on the price point axis doesn’t indicate that “something has to go to meet the lower price point.”
The chart is an updated reflection of how SBD considers their brands’ relative positioning, and not a strategy plan that could affect tool design, pricing, or things like adherence to engineering standards.
Seeing the chart as the start of SBD getting “lower cost suppliers to bid” is an extreme stretch.
Stevo
I have noticed that some of the Fatmax measuring tapes don’t appear to be made anymore-specifically the 8m/26 footer version. I wonder if they are phasing out the brand- maybe moving all measures to dewalt?
Bonnie
I’ve never really understood the FatMax branding. It’s awkward to say, awkward to read, and just doesn’t scream “professional” when lumped in with the bargain-bin Stanley name.
Mark M.
That’s a great observation and totally agree. A lot of the FatMax-branded products seem a notch above Stanley but they seem to have handicapped their efforts with such a mehh name. Part of me thinks product segmentation is largely a way for marketing teams to justify their existence within an organization. I say put your best foot forward within a (singular) brand, dispense with these silly sub-brand tangents and aim to impress.
potato
Does anyone actually know the origins of the name /where it came from? I tried looking up for mergers and the like but couldnt find anything regarding FatMax.
It seems like its more well known/regarded overseas given craftsman/old portercable stuff is branded as fatmax there.
Stuart
Rewind a bit, back to when Stanley and Black & Decker were separate companies.
Stanley FatMax was the more premium end of the Stanley line.
Louie+Orama
Personally, I never thought of FatMax to be a bad name-professional? Not that either. But when I think of FatMax, I DO think of it as being the professional version of Stanley. Also, most FatMax items have a blacker look to them, like their hammers and what have you. Could’ve they thought of other names like a “Stanley Pro/Professional” (i.e. Craftsman Professional) or “Stanley Steel” or what have you? I can see the point in that, albeit again, I like the name.
Now, when it comes to Craftsman…
What I do find to be odd is the fact that we all know it, we’ve known it for 15 years (at least), yet many people are still surprised AND still complaining about it.
I’m 48-have done mostly sales work in my life and, about ten years ago, I decided to try out laborious work. Did great in sales, but it started to weigh on my conscious. And with that, I fell in love, especially with tools. I remember going into Sears and it felt like every time I was there, I would witness older gentleman talking about how “Craftsman isn’t what it used to be”, “these tools are garbage compared to…,” or the most common, “All of this s*** is made in China now.”
Fact of the matter is, nothing in life is the way it used to be. The things we used to get away with at work, less and less couples celebrating a 50-year anniversary, gas prices, ALL prices, barely anyone leaves their door unlocked… you name it. All the way down to, “back when I was your age, the police would just take your keys and drive you home if you were drinking.”
I wish we all got to re-live the Sears days. The catalog, the homes in a box, wish book and the LOYALTY. I chose the route of restoration (mold/fire/water/smoke damage) and did a water job at an elderly woman’s home in Wilkes-Barre PA, a town once flooded to the points of some homes being submerged to the top of the 1st floor. Her home was one of them. She ALSO mentioned that her late husband retired from Sears in ‘89. She told me that anyone affected by the Flood of ‘72 who had Sears items on a payment plan, Sears cleared their balances. And… AND… if you worked for Sears at the time, anything in your house that was affected, whether it was from Sears or not, Sears replaced for their employees for free… including the piano in her living room.
Wow, imagine that.
Andrew
Couldn’t agree more. Terrible brand name in my opinion. On the other hand, here we are talking about it…
MM
I’m surprised to see them bumping up both Lenox and Irwin brands. Frankly I am not all that fond of either one. Irwin isn’t bad but they’re not anything great either: most of their tools are thoroughly generic, those that aren’t seem to be copies of third party designs, like their NWS plier knockoffs. I haven’t forgotten how they stopped making Vise Grips in the USA either and those are now downgraded to a lesser foreign version. Lenox is thoroughly “meh” when it comes to anything I might buy at a hardware store. Now that said when I had my machining business my shop manager worked out that Lenox bandsaw blades gave a good balance of performance, value, and rapid availability so we used those pretty much exclusively on all our saws including both the manual and CNC so that was certainly an honest professional/industrial use.
Badger12345
I have long believed that Craftsman is a distraction for SBD. Whereas we see Milwaukee and Makita continuing to innovate in ways that matter by expanding the range of capabilities of tools (e.g. circular saws of various diameters, side and rear handles) and new cordless tools in trades that have traditionally used hand tools or corded tools. As an advanced DIY, I appreciate that I can buy into a quality tool system that is good enough for many professionals, but also accessible to homeowners who appreciate good tools, but don’t have business income to pay for them. All that to say is that I don’t give two hoots about Craftsman anymore. They are not really relevant in a very crowded market. Craftsman is a dead brand as far as I am concerned.
My grandfather was a professional mechanic and used a lot of Craftsman tools. They were much less expensive than the truck tools, were decent quality for the price, made in the USA, and came with a lifetime warranty. Now they are just cheap. If a person wants cheap, disposable tools, then just go to HF with a coupon.
Dave
I missed the memo about Irwin being owned by SBD but that’s okay. I have quite a few miscellaneous Irwin hand tools and generally have high regards for them concerning price vs. quality. Craftsman isn’t really on my radar anymore and I haven’t purchased Craftsman Mechanics or hand tool in many many years. SBD has had plenty of time to turn Craftsman around and they haven’t been honest with their promises or commitments! Black and Decker means little to me as a Handyman and DIY’er mechanic. Dewalt will alway be a favorite for me unless they really screw it up! I have always liked the Stanley FatMax series of tools and I would purchase that brand name over many other tools competitors may have in the same category and price point. Lenox not a big deal to me. Porter Cable not a big deal to me but I do own a few of their air powered nail guns.
ak28117
Thanks for sharing. Given the context that its part of an investor presentation, highlighting that there is a range of brands across the customer continuum makes sense. It’s telling investors that SBD has brands spread out to leverage macroeconomic complexities (For example – inflation impacted consumer spending down, industrial spending up, trades are slowing picking up and willing to spend more etc.).
We have a brand for Opening Price Point (OPP) and we have a brand for High Price Point (HPP) etc.
In Cordless Power Tool category, Craftsman/Porter Cable 20V etc programs can be just pure channel management. (“Hey Tractor Supply – you get PC20V exclusive, hey Lowe’s you get V20 exclusive, hey Northern Tool…let us introduce you to our brand new IRWIN 20V program…And Barney’s Bargain Bin – you get Stanley20V exclusive..”). Half kidding here.
Craftsman is still a strong brand and as pointed out, they wont reveal their full plans. Craftsman has a strong impact in Outdoor Power Equipment and the electrification of that category is a big opportunity in the DIY/Consumer segment there, especially after the MTD acquisition.
Thanks for sharing.
gene colley
As a carpenter and woodworker, the options from SBD are getting more limited. If they could rebuild the quality line up of Porter Cable, they could have a better market share. Even if it was just the routers and sanders, I would be satisfied. I own a ton of cordless Dewalt tools, but nothing will match the original Porter Cable.
Jeremiah
PC of yesteryear is definitely a thing of the past. The only area where a PC tool is higger quality if the industrial segment, and even those are being overshadowed by other companies and brands.
The PC tools in this chart are consumer grade and used for brand recognition.
Ball_bearing
What’s the difference between a Tradesman, and a Professional? Some people say that tradesmen don’t have degrees, but that makes no sense, Especially when they are pushing for associates and baccalaureate degree in HVAC Technology, Electrical Technology, and Plumbing.
Jeremiah
A tradesman is someone that is just starting out in the trades, as compared to a DiY/homeowner that by comparison, barely uses the tools.
A professional is someone that has been in the trades for several years and not only uses the tools regularly, but allows their employees to use them. We’ve been in the career fields long enough to start businesses and can afford to buy more expensive tools and classify them as an asset for tax purposes. We know we are settled into this career.
Ball_bearing
Thank you very much!
Stuart
That doesn’t sound right. The difference between tradesman and professional isn’t experience level.
I tend to consider tradespeople as pros that buy their own tools – independent electricians, plumbers, HVAC pros, contractors, and so forth.
They’re professional tool users – experienced skilled users who earn a living through the use of their tools.
Professional use might be the commercial user whose tools are selected and purchased for them.
So, a plumber who might own their own business, with the cost of tools coming out of their bottom line – they might classify as a tradesperson.
A plumber that works for a larger organization such as Roto-Rooter might be a professional user.
A plumber who works at an refinery might be an industrial user.
MRO – maintenance, repair, and operations users might do a lot of facility plumbing work, but might not necessarily be tradespersons. They’d be professional or industrial depending on the context. But that doesn’t necessarily make them more experienced or skilled than tradespeople.
Andrew
Very minor point, but I expect tools would come out of top line, not the bottom line.
Andrew
Sorry, meant net income
David Z
This is closer to my understanding.
OldDominionDIYer
Reality has set in, and Craftsman will be reduced to a bygone brand like they set aside Porter Cable. Sad but probably a good business decision. SB&D is never going to bring back Craftsman to anywhere near its former glory and this chart clearly says that and that’s what happens when big unfocused corporate conglomerates purchase these former brands. So many brands layered on top of one another it is like cannibalism their brands are eating each other! Setting modern technology advances aside can anyone really claim any of these brands are actually better than in their heyday as independents? Not knocking the current products there’s a lot of great products but still in my heart it’s a bit sad to see them go this way. Like when GM had Chevy, Pontiac, Olds, Buick, Caddy, GMC, Saturn, Hummer and probably a few others I have already forgot, and I think they made like four power plants and put them in all their cars/trucks! Big corporate entities usually benefit shareholders much more than consumers. But it’s the consumer that sustains those profits not shareholders so it’s a poor long-term strategy that almost 100% of the time ends poorly.
fm2176
Prior to the ’70s Oldsmobile, Chevrolet, Buick, and Pontiac all had their own 350s. When I went to GM School in the late-’90s GM owned all of the brands you mentioned along with Subaru and Saab. I think it was the late-’70s into the ’80s when every major company started badge engineering instead of having truly unique vehicles between marques.
There were a lot of comparisons between Craftsman tools and Porter Cable or DeWalt versions when the V20 series was released. Having no inside knowledge, and having owned neither V20 nor PC 20v Max tools, I’ll risk assuming that SBD borrowed heavily from existing tools when developing their new Craftsman system.
Continuing the GM comparison, it’s clear that Craftsman and Porter Cable power tools are considered near-peers, not too dissimilar from Olds and Pontiac back in the day, perhaps with Craftsman being more like Buick in a way if the brand endures. I’d say that B+D is essentially the Chevy of the brands, while DeWalt would be the Cadillac of the bunch. Mac is basically recolored DeWalt and specialized, so they might be the GMC of the bunch–not necessarily going anywhere.
Jeremiah
The Only thing that changed on those two charts,… the color/shape of the logos. Other than that, the tool brands are in the same categories.
Robert W Mitchell
Interesting enough. Would be nice to see a defensible placement of some other brands, like Bosch and Milwaukee. Buying DeWalt might be the best decision B&D ever made, and they handled it well. So people want DeWalt, and SBD says to Lowes: If you want to carry DeWalt, you have to carry Craftsman, so we see Craftsman all over? Does anyone know for sure? I always thought PC was higher up. I always liked Proto and am happy to see it where it is.
We live in an interesting economy. Make a tool good enough for a pro to use every day with gusto, and the DIY guy wants one who will use it gently for 10 minutes twice a year, at most.
fred
Yep
When B&D (then independent form Stanley) bought Dewalt in 1960 – they took a one-trick pony (making mostly radial arm saws) in a declining niche market and turned them into their flagship brand. It is the stuff of business school case studies. B&D itself had a pretty good history with power tools – having introduced some first-of-a-kind items and having produced many professional quality tools (the Supersawcat comes to mind.) But they seemed to have started to concentrate on the low-end of the market. They bought GE’s small appliance business (mid-1980’s) – and were making toaster ovens to go along with cheap orange plastic corded drills and saws being sold at mass-market discounters. Professionals in the US market probably lost confidence with any tool bearing the B&D logo. So, Dewalt with some very savvy marketing and further acquisitions (like the German toolmaker Elu) and selloff of the RAS business – was turned into B&D’s professional tool brand. Much later (2004), when B&D (still pre-SBD merger) bought Porter Cable (along with Delta and DeVilbiss) from Pentair the strong presence of Dewalt in B&D’s lineup sort of sealed Porter Cable’s fate. B&D was smart enough not to try to have 2 brands competing for their top spot – so Porter Cable was pushed down in the mix.
Paul C
Look it simply isn’t going to happen. Give up on this pipe dream.
Craftsman was a premium house brand for Sears. There may have been others but most of it was made by Apex Tool Group, and most of those plants are scattered around the Southeast. APT headquarters is on Lufkin Road in Apex, NC, by the way, right down the street from one of my bigger customers.
Sears was a discount department store chain. Craftsman was the name they built up as their premium branding (similar to Dewalt for SBD). The Sears branded stuff was generally “HART” (Walmart) grade. As a discount store they priced it at mid grade prices. So OF COURSE everyone that wasn’t a total tool snob and had to buy tool truck or more obscure industrial brands bought Craftsman. Even as a maintenance manager I frequently had to stop at Sears after work spending thousands of dollars in tools for my crews.
So now SBD owns Craftsman. The brand image would suggest red colored Dewalt tools sold at a discount to Dewalt. So if SBD did that, how much Dewalt do you think they would sell? And what would this do to their profits? Face it, Craftsman is NEVER, EVER going to be a premium brand again. No matter who bought it.
So if you buy only professional grade tools, time to move on. Nothing to see here. But if you are trying to buy tools that are a step up from homeowner grade but not willing to fork over Dewalt premium prices, this tool’s for you.
ITCD
Craftsman was never a premium brand, sorry to say. A good brand sure, but premium was never the purpose (that was more reserved for their Professional and Industrial lines). There was no secret sauce making the same tools made by the same people but with Craftsman on it any different except… Looser QC tolerances. When Danaher took up the contract and was making 3 brands under one roof, Craftsman had the loosest QC spec. That was the ultimate secret to US-made for cheaper, complete with lifetime warranty and *still* making Sears absolute tons of money.
The philosophy still holds today, too. If you want X item at Y price, you’re going to have to cut your quality, your after-sales, your labor (whether that’s outsourcing, paying peanuts, or attempting automation), or some measure of these factors and more. Buying in bulk helps but there’s a price floor because the contracted maker still wants to make money. Sears didn’t cut on after-sales as evidenced by the super warranty, they couldn’t control labor cost to make as it was the same folks getting the same pay as they did to make other brands, and they did buy in extreme bulk but still there was a price floor. It was the quality, it was “good enough” without being as absolutely mind-blowing as rose-tinted glasses might make it seem.
SCOOTER
The new Stanley works is like the old one
…nut under the big nut tree…where is the nut? They will slaughter the lambs to save the dividends!
No sofa king
So is Milwaukee not on there because it would embarrass all the others or is it because it’s better than this chart, lol. I love Milwaukee and stand behind it but they as well have 2 levels , entry level Milwaukee and then the fuel but why I don’t see them makes me curious. Any one answer that please? I prefer them over any of these!
Stuart
Stanley Black & Decker does not own Milwaukee Tool. These charts only feature SBD tool brands.
Dominic S
SBD has way too many brands in its repertoire for it to make any sense. They need to pare down their offerings and focus. There is way too much overlap in their portfolio, and a lot of it is JUNK. If you’re going to have an entry level brand, fine, pick ONE and properly market it. So on and so forth. The example of Craftsman and Porter-Cable hanging around in the same product line is laughable. They ought to pick one out of Black & Decker, Porter-Cable, and Craftsman as their entry/basic line and can the rest.
fred
The too many brands proposition make sense form the consumer standpoint. But I wonder if some of SBD”s larger retail outlets continue to foster the desire for continuing with extra bands. For example, to the extent that Porter Cable still has any remaining cache as a brand – some retailers (perhaps Tractor Supply?) might like the idea that they continue to offer the brand that has become harder to find elsewhere – giving them a reason for PC customers to shop at their stores.
fred
BTW – SBD has seemingly consolidated some of their acquired brands under ones that they seem to be headlining. Blackhawk – now seems to have been placed under Proto. Chesco, Hanson, Marples, Quick-Grip , Record and Vise Grip brands (if they are being still used at all) – seem to be slotted under Irwin. Bostitch seems (as I think Stuart noted) to be absent from the chart and Emhart (once slotted under Bostitch) now seems to be subsumed under a Stanley brand.. Tools for concrete anchors etc. – once sold under the Powers Fastener brand are now mostly branded Dewalt. USAG tools are now usually slotted under Facom.
Neighbor Joe
Craftsman’s repositioning to consumer brand is tied to SBD dismal stock decline. Short term move to focus on short term gains while they refocus resources to boast stock price. Later when stock price rebounds a fresh approach, reinvestment and repositioning Craftsman tools to include trade level customers. The Fort Worth plant is closed not sold. The fall of Craftsman tools had little to do with quality at first. It was decisions by upper management at Sears, Apex and later SBD that tarnished the brand, lowered performance and quality. All to save a buck and increase profits. Before Sears moved production to Apex chinese plants Craftsman was bringing in a billion per year for Sears. There is a market for this product made in America.
ITCD
I’m interested in the Proto brand being above Mac on price point, when Mac famously has “tool truck” list prices. Unless that’s more of an indicator of what SBD is actually charging the retailers themselves, with different lists given, since it’s very easy to find Proto for less than Mac prices.
Bill D
We need a graphic chart adding Makita, Metabo, Ryobi and Milwauki .
That’s the first thing a brand strategist would do.
Robert W Mitchell
True, and I want one too, but does SBD have enough info and honesty/objectivity to create one? So who should create the graphic?
Stuart
The chart is from a document intended for SBD investors and potential investors. I don’t know of any brand that names competitors in their financial documents.
In terms of competition, Dewalt, Milwaukee, Makita, Bosch, Flex, and others are lumped together in the pro category. There are going to be other competitors for specific categories, such as automotive tools.