Bazinga!!! I still am not surprised that more people have not become more aware of this as they do it all the time. There HAS to be a reason why the boxes sell things so cheap other than buying power.

Indeed. This is actually the inverse of a practice pioneered long ago by Sears. Sears appliance salesmen would tell prospects "this Kenmore XXX was made by Famous Name Maker for us. You'll notice that it is the same item as Famous Name's model XYZ. But they make it for us and don't want their name on it." But you couldn't see the corners cut and so on in the device.

So this is the reverse: famous Name Maker makes it for Big Box store, puts its own label on it, no doubt cuts corners--but then does not support the product!

Also to be remembered is that these Box Box stores are aiming for "middle consumers"--not the very top, not the very bottom. People--myself incl.--all too often forget that.

As always...CAVEAT EMPTOR!

The numbers before the decimal point in Sears part numbers used to be the manufacturer identifier, and they held the list very tightly for many years.

When folks wanted decent quality ad did not shop ONLY on price, it worked well.

Kenmore had a decent name for Sears and may of the products lasted and worked well.

'Solid as Sears' was a selling phrase, and they prided themselves on having parts for a LONG time. tp support their brand.

The lowest price spiral to the bottom wrecked that model.

With ever rising labor (and thus repair) costs, many appliances have become throw away after a relatively short life.

The manufacturers know the item will never be repaired, so they spiral even further down the low cost and low quality path.

Sadly, it's not limited to only appliances, you'll find the same thing in virtually anything you can buy at the big box stores...even smaller items. Some are standrad, many are "inferior versions".

Optimist -- Thanks for getting the word out! Sorry about your experience and if you buy the Big Box Store "Maintenance or Extended Warranty" ... you should be okay.

I became keenly aware of this mock labeling when buying a tractor. Same thing - shell, appearance seems authentic but the "guts" (i.e. engine, main components) are sub-standard. Like the old adage ... if it is too good to be TRUE (price).. it probably is NOT.

Brickeye: I think you have it exactly right.

Pkovo: you are right. AAMOF last year I was looking at some flooring at Home D, and I saw that it was made by a Big Name Manufacturer. That was good. But then I saw it was made specially for Home D, and I thought, Uh-OH, that does not sound very good to me," and we beat it out of Home D.

PinesEverywhere: I think you miss the point. I said nothing about any item failing, or warrantys (Consumer Reports says "don't buy those extended warrantys") or etc.

Rather, I am very annoyed at the dishonesty of the practices of the Big Box stores, in not telling consumers that these are not the "same" item as sold elsewhere.

As well, there are certain totally ridiculous features of the microwave I bought. For example, the mfr says "replace activated charcoal filter every six months." Sure: all I have to do is drag the stepladder into the kitchen, find my Phillips screwdriver, remove 2 screws, etc. That is simply a preposterous way to design an appliance.

Actually, there is another reason for the differences many people overlook. Price matching. If the product you sell is different from every other similar product, that is the out for price matching.

Or was initially. Sales have been so competitive that has kinda been discarded.

There is a business called Nebraska Furniture Mart. Originally in Nebraska, there are now three stores, Omaha, Nebr, Kansas City, Kansas, and Des Moines Iowa.

They sell so many products, they now have their own brand of television as well mas other merchandise. We have bought a great many items from them---from vacuum cleaner, patio furniture, refrigerator, washer/dryer, to area rugs and entertainment center.---all have been well made and often name brands.

Started by a woman, the company is now a Berkshire Hathaway company, but run just like she ran it. Very high volume and great customer service. Much better than any of the big boxes(and I know a HD manager personally) or the appliance dealers.

Sounds like an urban myth; the same idea floats through the internet ether about everybody's most favourite retail villain, Walmart, too. That manufacturers would deliberately jeopardize their reputations by surreptitiously supplying selected customers with inferior knock-offs of their own products is ridiculous. Most manufacturers have several lines of products, differing in features, so you have to be sure you're comparing the same product when price shopping. Funnily, I always get better deals on appliance packages when shopping with a wholesale oriented retailer rather than a box store.

As for diminishing appliance quality generally, that goes without saying.

You make good points, and I agree with you *in general* about manufacturers risking their reputations.

That said...I think they might well do that, and have some rationalization for it. We know that this stuff happened with "the original- big-box-and-part-of-American-history" retailer...--altho the manufacturers in that situation had deniability.

But I think the question is, why don't these manufacturers state up front "this fine appliance manufactured by us for customers of Big Box X"? What, after all, is the purpose of making a product to be sold only, or mainly, by a specific retailer? I remember I once bought a certain electrical appliance (portable) at Wal-Mart,and the packaging offered no clue that it might have been made specifically for WM, but then on the last page I found some info that indicated that, and I began wondering how this product differed from the same ("seemingly") product from a smaller retailer without the clout of WM, and ultimately I returned the product--I did not want to take the chance.

We need more discussion of this stuff, from an imformed POV, and an economic/business POV.

If one doesn't buy appliances at big box or sears, where does one buy them with confidence.

Um, an appliance sales store, maybe?

WalMart is a big enough company to have products made just for their stores. They are also big enough to monopolize a market. Ask the company that makes Vlasic pickles. WalMart almost bankrupted that company.

The problem with products is there can be different levels of quality. A $900 refrigerator made by GE is not going to be the same quality as a $2,000 fridge from the same company. Actually, the less expensive model might be the better made unit---not as many bells and whistles to be cheaply made.

In my college days I worked at sears and back then they pointed out that their Kenmore line, or even Craftsman tractors were made by another company BUT to Sears specificatons...which were supposedly superior. That may have been the case then...likely not anymore!

I never heard of Sharp making a model microwave for Sears and the same one (looks & features) but with crappier parts for WallyWorld. That sounds like a lot of overhead to make various models of the same microwave to different specifications for different stores...only to get a bad product reputation. I do believe manufacturers have different tiers of products and you will find cheaper product lines in WallyWorld, cheaper and moderate lines in Big Box stores and those plus more expensive models in Appliance Stores...if you can even find an appliance store anymore.

I do believe that sometimes a Big Box will have a special version of a product that differs in no meaningful way from another BigBox. Ex BigBoxA sells a dehumidifier that comes with a hose...BigBoxB sells the same dehumidifier but theirs comes with a fragrance filter or something. This is more done to make it look like you are getting a better value than WallyWorld or to cover their butt on proce matches.

Just my opinion...

"Sounds like an urban myth"

A careful examination of many of the big box products, even when they have a 'famous' braid name, shows subtle differences between the 'same' product from other suppliers.

In many places the part numbers HAVE been subtly changed.

I had a kitchen faucet that had a different counter top seal then the 'regular' Moen seal.

Instead of a narrow groove on the bottom of the faucet body for an o-ring it simply had a large flat bottom.
The large contact area with eh counter made rotating a PITA.

The seal was so large it interfered with rotating the faucet when it was tightened enough to be water tight.

But every other feature looked the same.

It was indeed less expensive though.

Even things like ball valves at the big box do not have Teflon sealing balls, but other types of plastic not that likely to survive soldering of the valve into the plumbing system.

But you can save $3 to $4 a valve over those 'expensive' valves.
The big box stores are about price point and sales volume.
Nothing else.

I have customers tell me "But it's the 'same one' for a lot less (sometimes) at the big box..." Nope! Looks, maybe, but different number and different grade product.

Plumbing fixtures are notorious for "looking the same", but being cheaper versions with plastic parts, flimsy guts, etc. Go buy a delta or moen basic kitchen faucet from the big box and see how it feels in your hand. Like night and day compared to one that "looks the same" from a plumbing supply.

In other cases, something may be the same but with a specific number for a chain. I once bought an HP officejet "6650" from Costco. Turns out it was the same as the "6680" everywhere else. It was a pain to find drivers, since the HP help database was seemingly unaware that a "6650" existed for Costco.

Another time I bought a Dell computer from Walmart. Great computer, but a year or so later it was a nightmare to start a repair ticket with Dell. The unique product id# on the computer kept telling them that the computer was "owned by Walmart", not me. I tried to explain that, maybe, but I bought it as a customer....."Nope, our records say it's 'owned' by the Walmart in Alexandria!"

My recollection is that when Consumer Reports reviews those very high-end appliances, it usually finds lots of reasons not to buy them.

I know lots of folks who've bought those high-end refrigerators and had problems with them.

If I bought an expensive appliance, and it had problems, I'd go bonkers. You expect more from a more expensive appliance.

Here is a story I heard many years ago that I think is illustrative and representative. He told me this story in a kind of sad tone.

Don was a part-owner of a hardware store and had previously owned a manufacturing company making tool boxes.

"One day a guy from Sears comes in. 'Those toolboxes you make--we'll show you how you can sell them to us for less than your $10 retail price, yet make much more money doing so.' So I was leery, but a bit interested. 'You use a lighter-weight clasp, use hinges that are a bit lighter,' and so on.

"I wound up doing what he suggested, and he was right about how much money we made. But I was never happy about it."

"My recollection is that when Consumer Reports reviews those very high-end appliances, it usually finds lots of reasons not to buy them. "

CU is for middle of the road stuff.

Their reviews for "high-end" tend to be prejudiced by the criteria they select to rate on.

" That manufacturers would deliberately jeopardize their reputations by surreptitiously supplying selected customers with inferior knock-offs of their own products is ridiculous."

It IS ridiculous, but unfortunately it is true. This is the result of the race to the bottom. Manufacturers have to play be the same rules in order to remain competitive, even if it means "jeapordizing their reputations"

The customer is not an individual who has already bought the product. No, the "customer" is everyone else looking to buy an appliance, and the common belief is they will choose the cheapest one with the same listed features.
Corporations conducting business globally are all competing to offer the lowest cost product, make the most dollars, and please their investors. The main motive is to have more customers, not happy customers. When an appliance breaks, its time to buy a new one, not repair the broken part. This creates more customers. Even if the brand reputation is tarnished, more customers = more sales.

I have said "I'll never buy another brand X" so many times, I've excluded every company out there, and eventually have to eat my words now, every time i buy something.

It occurred to me that perhaps the ultimate questions to be asked on this subject, the ones that in a sense sums up this discussion, are these:

What are the motivations for a manufacturer to make a product, under its own name, specially for a retailer, and not as part of its "general product line"--and without informing the customer "this product was made specially for Retailer X"?

And how does this phenomenon work? What are the size of the benefits to the manufacturer, and to the retailer? How come the retailer does not point out to the customer that the product is "specially made to our specs?" Generally, when you are proud of something you are selling, you emphasize its specs or selling points.

" Generally, when you are proud of something you are selling, you emphasize its specs or selling points. "

This assumes the specifications have been upgraded, as opposed to lowered to produce the price point and sales volume the big-box stores rely on.

When volume & price are the big drivers at the retail level, something has to give.

The big box stores routinely discontinue products that do not meet their sales volume requirements.