[1/7/17] Since the brand was introduced by Sears in 1927, Craftsman hand tools have a famous warranty, lifetime and unlimited. Legend held that scavengers used to scour for old beat-up and broken Craftsman wrenches in the trash, and would bring the damaged tools manufactured half a century or more earlier to a local Sears (SHLD) store.
When they walked out, in hand would be a shiny new wrench—or sometimes a rebuilt one with someone else’s initials still scratched in. No receipts or proof of purchase were necessary to get a replacement or a free repair. They’d then go flip that cold steel for cold cash. In a way, Craftsman tools, enabled by their generous guarantee, were cash.
“We used to have people go looking for Craftsman tools at old garage sales,” one former employee posted on Reddit. “Or from little old ladies who still had some in storage and return them for brand new [tools], then turn around and sell them as new.”
But the long-popular choice for home tools may have its status as currency thrown up in the air. After 90 years, Sears announced Thursday that it would sell the Craftsman brand to Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) for $900 million to raise cash it needs, as Sears weathers store closings and declining revenue. Sears will continue to sell Craftsman products – which include everything from wrenches to floor jacks – for 15 years without restriction. After that period, it will pay 3% royalties to Stanley Black & Decker, which sells its own line of tools as well as other brands.
The Craftsman warranty has suffered some loss to its reputation in the past decade, with some stores setting quotas, such as a three-piece limit on exchanges, asConsumerist reported in 2009. At the time, Sears VP David Figler wrote to confirm the warranty’s robustness, restating the version at the time: “If for any reason your Craftsman hand tool ever fails to provide complete satisfaction, return it to any Sears store or other Craftsman outlet in the United States for free repair or replacement.”