The other day, I posted about the new Craftsman 20V Max drill and impact driver kit that appeared at Sears.com.
One of the things that had me shaking my head was that the branding appeared to be a simple stuck-on badge placed in a rectangular recess on the drill housing, making it look like an off-the-shelf drill that Sears simply slapped Craftsman branding onto.
A subsequent email conversation had me looking at Craftsman 20V Max Bolt-On tools (an older line made for Sears Craftsman by Stanley Black & Decker), and then Sears’ C3 tools.
It was then that I saw that Sears Craftsman has had the “rectangular brand badge placed in a molded recess” brand styling for a while.
Their C3 cordless tools had similar styling.
It had been so long since I’ve seen any new Sears Craftsman cordless power tools that I forgot this is what the branding looked like.
So maybe that’s not as bad a signal as I had thought. This made me feel a little reassured about Sears launching new 20V Max cordless power tools.
But, thanks to some footwork by Tom (thank you again!), we have some more details about the new tools, and, unfortunately, something else to frown about.
The 300 in-lbs drill has a 2-speed gearbox with 0-350 and 0-1300 RPM ranges. The impact driver delivers up to 1100 in-lbs of torque. Both have an “electric brake” to “quickly stop bit rotation.”
Okay, so the tools have low-end specs, no real surprise there. The marketing language reads a little weird to me, but is that because I’m looking for anything out of place?
Tom spoke with the associate at his local Sears store, and this is what was said:
I was actually driving past one of the last Sears in my area and decided to stop in. They had the new drill in stock. They wouldn’t take it out of the package for me.
The worker told me—very excitedly—that Black and Decker is coming out with 1500 new tools and these are the first they have received. He said that the batteries were compatible with Dewalt since all Craftsman power tools is just rebranded Dewalt.
No, no, no.
I was told that the new SBD Craftsman tools will NOT be available at Sears. This isn’t one of the new Craftsman V20 offerings.
Could it even be made by Stanley Black & Decker? That’s highly unlikely. To be thorough, let’s for a moment pretend that we’re unsure of this, and take a closer look. The new “DieHard” 20V Max slide-style battery does not look to match the geometries of any current Stanley Black & Decker brand battery pack.
As an aside, after testing the new Craftsman entry-level and premium cordless drills at their recent media event, I can tell you for certain that they’re not “just rebranded Dewalt.” Maybe the brushless drill evolved from Dewalt designs or specs, but not the entry-level one.
Looking at an image of the new Sears Craftsman drill and Sears Craftsman Bolt-On drill with Black & Decker-compatible 20V Max battery pack, it’s obvious that they’re distinct and non-compatible shapes.
If Stanley Black & Decker was in any way related to the new Sears Craftsman 20V Max products, they could (or should) have made them compatible with the Bolt-On 20V Max tools and battery packs, which were made by Stanley Black & Decker for Sears.
Here’s a look at the Black & Decker SmartTech drill, for another example. No match.
There are some resemblances to Dewalt’s 20V Max battery pack form factor, but even if the geometries were a closer match, I can all but guarantee that Stanley Black & Decker is not building Craftsman tools and DieHard battery packs for Sears.
What the Sears associate said to Tom seems concerning. Did they mean what they said as fact, or was it their presumption? Hearsay?
The worker told me—very excitedly—that Black and Decker is coming out with 1500 new tools and these are the first they have received. He said that the batteries were compatible with Dewalt since all Craftsman power tools is just rebranded Dewalt.
Where did the associate get this information from?
I am waiting for Craftsman (SBD, not Sears) to get back to me about this, but in the meantime, I am 99.9% certain that what the Sears associate told Tom is completely inaccurate, and that there is zero cross-brand tool and battery compatibility.
This is exactly one of the concerns I have, both about Craftsman tools being pushed hard at Lowes stores, and Sears launching new Craftsman tools of their own. Interpretation and misinterpretation of facts and policies is going to be a problem if not carefully handled. I regularly hear about Kobalt and Husky warranty or replacement issues, and I used to hear about Craftsman warranty problems too, back when more people bought tools at Sears.
When there’s an issue, and tools are covered by warranties or satisfaction guarantees, most consumers will head to their local store for immediate resolution. Sometimes that’s the best or only option. What will happen when a customer takes a Lowes-bought Craftsman tool to Sears? A Sears-bought Craftsman tool to Lowes?
At Stanley Black & Decker’s 2018 Craftsman brand relaunching media event, I asked about the warranty, and how replacements would be handled, since that type of service would be expected from customers used to Sears’ Craftsman warranty policies.
I was told that users could eventually potentially replace pre-SBD Craftsman tools with “2018 versions” at Lowes. It’s possible that I didn’t quite interpret things correctly, but I took that to mean that a broken non-SBD Craftsman tool could be exchanged at Lowes. This sounds very reasonable to me, and it’s something that could potentially convince now-former Craftsman tool fans to give the “new” Craftsman brand a chance.
The biggest test might come in December and January, when tool users seek to replace, exchange, or return Craftsman-branded tools that were purchased or gifted to them during the holiday shopping season.
By then, Sears associates and Lowes customer service associates will have to get things right. If not, it’ll be even harder for Craftsman to appeal to customers who are either confused or let-down by the retailers’ handling of things.
Wait, there’s more. Following are significant excerpts from Tom’s online chat with Sears customer service. He shared the transcript with me when he first tipped me off about the new Sears Craftsman cordless power tools. The online chat preceded the dialog – discussed above – that he had with a local Sears retail store associate.
Tom (17:11:16 GMT) : I am looking at: Item # 00921417000
Tom (17:11:55 GMT) : I have a question about this drill. I haven’t ever noticed this on the site before and the batteries don’t appear compatible with any other Craftsman tools. Is this a new line of power tools that Sears is offering?
Sears Rep (17:12:47 GMT) : I will check the details for you.
Sears Rep (17:21:17 GMT) : 20V Drill and Impact Driver Combo Kit is a brand new item introduced by Craftsman.
Tom (17:23:28 GMT) : Can you tell me whether there are going to be new products offered under this battery platform?
Sears Rep (17:24:58 GMT) : Yes, there will be new products offered under this battery platform.
Tom (17:25:11 GMT) : Is there any information on this? A brochure or a website?
Sears Rep (17:26:39 GMT) : I will help you with the link for Craftsman website.
Sears Rep (17:29:48 GMT) : https://www.craftsman.com/
The conversation continues.
Tom (17:37:04 GMT) : Do you have any information about other products offered under this battery platform?
Sears Rep (17:38:07 GMT) : https://www.sears.com/dewalt-tools-dewalt-dck285l2-20v-max-lithium-ion/p-00901656000P
Sears Rep (17:38:13 GMT) : Please check.
Tom (17:39:41 GMT) : Hi, that’s a Dewalt drill
Tom (17:39:47 GMT) : Not craftsman
Sears Rep (17:40:19 GMT) : Sorry.
Sears Rep (17:40:22 GMT) : https://www.sears.com/craftsman-c3-19.2-volt-drill-impact-combo-kit/p-00955233000P
Sears Rep (17:40:28 GMT) : Check the above link.
The Sears customer service agent is trying to help Tom, but is obviously ill-informed. First they direct them to the new Craftsman website to see more tools under the Sears Craftsman 20V Max power tool lineup, but customers visiting Craftsman’s website will currently see the new SBD Craftsman V20 offerings. Then the chat agent links to a Dewalt 20V Max tool combo, and then a Craftsman C3 19.2V kit when asked about other products on the same platform.
That’s 0 for 3. All 3 of their referrals would have led a less tool-savvy customer to an incompatible cordless tool battery platform.
In Andrew’s post about the new Craftsman brand, he showed a screenshot of Craftsman brand advertising behind the home plate at a Brewers-Cubs baseball game. Will SBD’s marketing efforts inadvertently drive some customers to Sears, thinking they’ll find the new tools there, even thought they’ll only be at Lowes?
This is a messy situation, and it’s not any better that Sears’ new Craftsman 20V Max cordless power tools have the same color scheme as SBD’s new Craftsman V20 cordless power tools, not to mention the same brand name.
News articles, discussing the potential confusion about there being two separate Craftsman brands, quote spokespersons from Stanley Black & Decker and Sears who don’t appear to be confused about potential customer confusion.
But if you ask me, they should be worried about customer confusion. I am. Stanley Black & Decker and Lowes will have to work together so that Lowes associates are all on the same page regarding Craftsman tools and warranty policies.
Will Sears train or inform their associates in such a way so as to avoid customer confusion? Tom has already provided us with two examples that show why this is necessary.
Some readers have suggested that Sears’s new Craftsman cordless power tools could be an attempt by Sears to cash in on SBD Craftsman’s recent marketing efforts.
It could very well just be an issue of Sears not keeping their associates well-informed, leaving them to their presumptions, hearsay, interpretations, or other sources of information, accurate or not. Maybe they didn’t even realize this was something to be addressed.
Another problem is that there’s no incentive for Sears to correct the situation. Objectively, it might actually help them for consumers to be confused, but it will certainly hurt Stanley Black & Decker’s efforts to revive and reshape the Craftsman brand at Lowes and later other retailers.
According to a Chicago Tribune report about the potential confusion surrounding the Craftsman brand the way things are now, a Sears spokesman said that both companies have agreed to a set of brand standards and guidelines, in the context of avoiding customer confusion. Let’s just hope that those guidelines kick in soon.
It’s been a while since I’ve chatted with Sears about tools, which was when I tested their Sears Blue Tool Crew “tool expert” a while ago.
Here’s how my weekend chat with Sears went:
Stuey (01:45:29 GMT) : Hello. Is the Craftsman 20V drill and impact driver combo kit compatible with the Craftsman V20 drill kit shown at craftsman.com?
Stuey (01:45:31 GMT) : https://www.sears.com/20v-drill-and-impact-driver-combo-kit/p-A027414469
Stuey (01:45:39 GMT) : https://www.craftsman.com/products/20v-max-drill-driver-kit
Sears Rep (01:46:08 GMT) : Let me check on that and help you .
Sears Rep (01:47:28 GMT) : I have checked on that and see that the Craftsman 20V drill and impact driver combo kit will be compatible with the Craftsman V20 drill kit.
Stuey (01:47:46 GMT) : Okay, thank you!
Sears Rep (01:48:06 GMT) : Satisfying customers by offering them a good value is what we are all about!
I basically asked if these two cordless tools platforms were compatible with each other, and Sears’ customer service chat said yes. That cannot be true.
If Sears sales associates and customer service representatives are confused, you can certainly bet that customers will be confused.
As Andrew discussed in a recent post, Craftsman will have to work to restore their public image, at least among among enthusiasts and other users whose affinity for the brand had diminished in recent years.
This bifurcation, where you have Craftsman tools at Sears and Craftsman tools at Lowes, and with no connection between them, has the potential to make things harder for everyone.
I would bet that Stanley Black & Decker, Craftsman, and Sears weren’t too concerned about the potential for brand confusion. I wasn’t. I thought there might be some confusion, but mainly surrounding hand tool warranties and how Lowes customer service handles customers used to Sears’ Craftsman tools satisfaction guarantee and in-store warranty policies.
That was before Sears’ new Craftsman 20V Max cordless power tools arrived on their website and in stores, and with styling that’s perhaps too close to Craftsman’s V20 20V Max cordless power tools, and I’m now wondering about how confusing things could really get.
For final thoughts, I find myself wondering if Stanley Black & Decker is in fact making the new Craftsman 20V Max cordless power tools at Sears. While I’m 99.9% certain they aren’t, little things, like the 20V Max branding and “Lithium” font style on the battery pack, give me moments of doubt.
I’m sure that Craftsman will clear things up for me, but who will clear things up for the types of customers that don’t read tool blogs? Such customers will see new Craftsman advertising, or hear about new tools, and think “Sears.” I think that this could be a bigger problem than anyone could have anticipated.
