[Shop-talk] Eastwood vs Harbor Freight

[scott.hall at comcast.net]

 -------------- Original message ----------------------
From: Michael Lye <mlye at risd.edu>
> Note that it's not just with knock-offs that this happens. Home  
> despot will often ask/force their vendors to take an existing product  
> and make it cheaper to meet a price point without changing the  
> external appearance. Makes it seem like you're getting the same  
> product cheaper at HD but in fact it may not be the same product  
> inside. The manufacturer that I've spoken to isn't happy about it but  
> doesn't have much choice in the matter or the don't get on the  
> shelves at the HD.

I think if I'm the manufacturer, I'd almost rather not be on the shelves at HD than cheapen my product and ruin my reputation.  if I'm the victim of that when I buy xx, then I'm not buying it at the specialty store either, out of fear that they've made those crap as well.

I'll give you an example: right now I'm shopping for a riding mower.  I've had several people try to sell me their used john deere with the line, "I bought this from the dealer, not hd.  the ones they sell at hd are junk."  well, as far as I can tell, the ones they sell at hd are identical (same engine, the deck seems the same thickness, etc.)

I have no idea if they're different at hd or not, but I'm going to avoid jd just on the risk that they might be crap everywhere.  if deere really had a good product, they'd sell it, and if a retailer didn't want to carry it, they'd let them do that, not cheapen the product so sucker consumers would buy it.  and if I did buy a deere, it'd be the home depot one.  if it's crap everywhere, might as well pay the least I can for it.

I had to sit through a semester of these issue in school.  amazing how all the buzzwords boil down to this.
scott