I haven’t been in a sears store is several years… around here they just seem old… and i last time in (to get free replacement tape measures) I didn’t get a sense of value….
BUT if i was running Sears … I’d go to any and every US manufacturer and tell em… “work with us and we’ll work with you” We want to sell made in the USA… We want quality product we can stand behind and a price point where we can compete.. have the biggest ad campain and i wouldn’t push price… in fact i’d tell people “out sweat shirts might cost 50 cents more but the value is there and they are 100% made in the USA” I’d make it “american” to shop at sears I’d let the venders in on it and i’d be loyal to them… and expect the same in return…
I think more and more people are becoming “anti-walmart” I won’t bash em because i shop there and always buy more than i went for… but i hate to see the US lose it’s manufacturing base for a 50cent lower price… not that it is only price that has driven manufacturing off shore… it’s hard to run a business with 20 goverment guys and 50 lawyers looking over your shoulder…. and no way to get rid of a worker who causes problems and won’t perform… most manufactures didn’t leave the US they were driven away…
just my thought for the week
pony
Replies
I wish i knew what caused/is causing it.
in some cases the manufacturerers got fat dumb and happy and ignored their market.
others are only in it for short term gains to make their stock price go up (quick) so the CEO can retire with maga bucks. others are beaten by super low wages and no environmental and safety rules "offshore".
Sears sales people did very well in the 50s and 60s now walmart pays min wage- ???????
won't bash em because i shop there and always buy more than i went for...
Answered you own question. Sears wouldn't last a quarter selling "american made" only cause:
1. it would be more expensive and that's the bottom line for allmost everybody
2. Where would they get enough product to fill their stores?
>>I think more and more people are becoming "anti-walmart" I won't bash em because i shop there and always buy more than i went for
Shop for the "best price" and you're gonna ship jobs out of the us; and close down local small retailers
We get what we pay for.
_______________________
Tool Donations Sought
I'm matching tool donors to a church mission to Haiti - we're shipping a bus converted to a medical facility in January (we hope) and can fill it with clothes, tools and all sorts of stuff needed in that poorest of all countries. A few hand tools or power tools can provide a livelihood for an otherwise destitute family. Please email me if you have tools to donate.
if... hold on make that a big IF: Sears did the proper marketing, updated the stores, and got the proper staff & management I for one would revisit their stores... and yes I'd pay a little more if they convinced me that they were TRYING to bring me made in the USA product... there is no way they could do it 100% but the manufactures left in this country would flock to them just so they wouldn't be "owned" by walmart I'd also bet that other manufactures dealing with walmart would come to sears and pledge to bring jobs back to the usa if they had an outlet other than walmart for their product...
why do i say sears and not K-mart? i guess sears just sounds more american... and in marketing... that counts... alot...
I don't know what the product mix would or should be... and there would have to be a ton of "hype" but If they appeared to make the effort ...
this is all selfish on my part... i just want a choice where i buy... and i don't feel i have it at this point... we now have Target & walmart super stores side by side... and i have to say Walmart does it so much better in 9 out of 10 depts....
pony
I'm with Ponytl...I'm still a sucker for cheap prices, but it's becoming clearer and clearer to me that the more I shop at Wal-Mart, the more jobs I'm sending over seas.
I would certainly take a second look at Sears if they pushed a little harder with the made in US thing.
Perhaps that's a good idea for a spin off of theres. Focuse on a new store concept under the Sears umbrella. Everything in the store with be US-made only. I'd certainly try my best to visit there first.
Even better if it tried selling regionally made products.
I was in HD the other day to buy a pair of stainless steel mesh washer hoses. Got home and looked at the back of the bag:
Mad in the [CHINA]
The 'china' was a slapped on sticker to cover USA. I felt a bit sad.
Manufacturing is going over seas and we're loosing more jobs then gaining mainly due to a lopsided free trade arrangement. There was a great Now with Bill Moyers a few weeks ago that looked into it. The summary was that 'a true, free market is actually quite good for all...the problem is that we are not in a true free market. We give a lot of advantages to certain segments preventing true benefits for all.'
By the way, for you shopper-patriots out there, don't always believe the tags. When I was in China, I saw lots of stuff that had made in the USA labels on it, but you know as well as I do that it wasn't.
I heard acouple of interesting tidbits today.
China buys 18 billion a year from the US
America is the fastest growing supplier of products to China
(last month alone they bought 3 billion dollars worth of Jet engines for their airline fleet from the USA)*
Yes there is a trade surplus with the US, 122 billion last year.. what did china do with the money?
They bought US treasury Bonds
* It seems when Airbus sells to China US made GE engines are included, so even when our president offends the chineese and they don't buy Boeings, we at least get the engines..
You'd pay a "little more" for American made stuff? Right.
Lets see, Sears has their Table Saws made in China by Emerson, where the laborers make a dollar an hour or less. Get real and be honest.
You'd have to pay close to double the price to get quality American made stuff and as much as everyone says they want to buy American, they don't.
Its so sad.........Regards,
Boris
"Sir, I may be drunk, but you're crazy, and I'll be sober tomorrow" -- WC Fields, "Its a Gift" 1934
Does no one remember the days when Wal-Mart used just that marketing strategy??
I remember Wal-Mart commercials that included comments from the workers in some small American plant in some small American town about how Wal-Mart has saved their jobs....
Wal-Mart all wrapped up in the American flag.
Then they realized that low prices sold more goods.
Rich Beckman
Another day, another tool.
"You'd pay a "little more" for American made stuff? Right."
There are people that would. How many? Well, that's the question.
made in the usa. Higher price, people won't buy them. yes, yes and no. Look at snap on tools. made in Usa, outrangeous price. people buy them like crazy. For some reason you can increase the price on the same item and people will buy the most espensive model. Just look at all the new pickups on the road. There no reason to have a 30k pickup but they buy like crazy. About Harley Davidson, same reason.
I really believe Sear could All american, increase price 100% and double the sales they do now.
The best employee you can have but you wouldn't want him as a neighbor " He the shifty type"
BB:
What kind of vehicle do you drive? Grab 3 items atr random from your dresser and check the labels - where were th3ey made? The next 3 toools you pick up?
Big ticket items do sell like crazy, but their sales are nothing compared to the needs of the majority of folks, and inexpensive stuff sells a lot more than the big ticket stuff.
_______________________
Tool Donations Sought
I'm matching tool donors to a church mission to Haiti - we're shipping a bus converted to a medical facility in January (we hope) and can fill it with clothes, tools and all sorts of stuff needed in that poorest of all countries. A few hand tools or power tools can provide a livelihood for an otherwise destitute family. Please email me if you have tools to donate.
What kind of vehicle do you drive?
I drive a toyota. Bought it brand new in 1985 it has 430,000 miles on it, same engine 27 mpg city.
The best employee you can have but you wouldn't want him as a neighbor " He the shifty type"
Seems to me it would be a quick way for them to go bankrupt.
I think JJWALTERS covered it pretty well. The tools would be more expensive. While there will always be those who seek out USA made products, the majority of the people don't seem to care about anything but price. Sears is too large of a retailer to fill a niche market like that.
And Sears would certainly have a hard time finding enough tools to sell. Hardly ANY tools are manufactured in the USA anymore.
What do you get when you cross a zebra with an ape man for all eternity?
Tarzan Stripes Forever.
I never said "only made in the USA" I said to try ... there is no way they could have only "made in the USA" but in their product mix I'm sure they could push suppliers for more... there are many suppliers that are scared of walmart... once you start to "outsource" there is very little to stop anyone (walmart) from going to that same factory and say'n... "Hey can you make us one just like the one you make them... but we want ours in Yellow" happens everyday...
I think a $6 retail t-shirt can be manufactured with a profit for everyone just about anywhere... I've imported and branded items from china & south America... people would be amazed at what "cost" is... I can buy a pretty nice 125cc scooter from china by the container load for less than $300 landed in any US port... french doors from south america come in at around $22ea... i use to bring in the "chevy" pu truck replacement fenders for about $16... most of the stuff/junk in the "everything is a dollar" stores cost less than 10cents as it leaves china... i was buy'n watches out of china for less than i could buy the battery for it here... you just have to wonder how anyone can sell a watch for 50cents... and i wasn't buy'n dirrect on those...
some things will never be "made in the USA" but a smart retailer would sure promote that he tries to sell "made in the USA" even if he has to tell you it might cost you an extra 50 cents... there is the "feel good effect" that people would get just like drop'n a few bucks into a guys bucket... the time is right for someone somewhere to jump on it...
Pony
Lie Nielsen makes some nice tools, Maine of all places and he seems to be thriving. Personally I would pay the money for a quality product, something you know will hold up to years of use.
Regards
"Lie Nielsen makes some nice tools..."
They sure do - I have one of their planes.
But they only fill a niche market. They're not a large company who's going to increase their sales volume substantially. Heck, I had to wait 3 months for the plane I got from them. They don't produce enough volume to sell through a large company like Sears.Personality has the power to open doors, but character keeps them open.
Sears is no longer the largest retailer in america..
Walmart
then Home depot then Penny's and Target although sometimes it's Target then Penny's (has been for about the last 6 months) then comes Sears
I was in the market for a drill press vise a month ago, one of those two axis jobs, like a milling machine. Went to Sears, nice Craftsman $179, Guaranteed forever(or until Sears goes Chapter 13) went to Harbor Freight for kicks......hey, that's the same vise, for $59, same made in China casting.....hmmmm, can someone please explain.......yeah, but at Sears, and were gonna ream ya.
Finding the vise and castings on a Harbor Freight version is not as simple as it appears. Sure they, Sears, could be getting their finished vises and casting from the same shop in China. They also might be getting the raw castings and doing the milling and finish at some other location or nation. Another explanation is that the Chinese have a long history of reverse engineering good designs. Often going so far as to use the original parts to create the molds.
I worked in a machine shop with a mix of genuine Bridgeport mills, old and new, and a few Enco, made in China I believe, copies. A few of the castings on the old, mid 40s, Bridgports matched the castings on the Encos all the way down to the sprew points and gouges on interior areas. The resident expert on machine setup and assembly told me that the Chinese got their hands on an old model and used it to create the molds to cast their own version.
The Enco models never did work as well as even the much older Bridgports. I was told the iron used was poorer quality and the machining of the ways, the core source of accuracy of a machine tool, not quite as true. The made in USA models could be adjusted easily and would hold an adjustment. The cheap copies would drift during complex adjustments and would seldom hold the adjustments for long. Particularly if the temperature shifted while the shop was unoccupied. Was told this had to do with the stress in the cheaper castings.
Right now I'm in the midst of a 55K kitchen remodel for the VP of a major US bearing and steel company. I've known him since I was a kid, and they are close friends of our family. He was always a "Buy American" guy. I got out my Harbor Freight drill bits for a job, and he commented. I said why buy the $100 set when I get a decent set for 9.99? Then told him the story about the drill press vise.
His explaination was this: In the 70's and 80's the china/taiwan/off shore stuff was mostly trash. But then came the advent of the affordable microprocessor, and the human control went to a machine, and quality skyrocketed in these companies. They had the state of the art machining capabilities, and barring junk raw materials, they had a good product. Then the mills went to computer controlled steel batching, and it's tough to find the crappy steel.....sounds plausible to me.