4 ms·

Memorex It was a good name that got bought and then came out with crappy products we who used to work at RadioSnack had to sell. Amazing how •consumers• drop

Memorex It was a good name that got bought and then came out with crappy products we who used to work at RadioSnack had to sell. Amazing how •consumers• drop money on brand name alone.

sarchertech 3y ago
Happened to several formerly respected tool brands too. I’ve heard the process called “reputation mining.”
- olddustytrail 3y ago
  I guess you probably meant physical tools, but that immediately brought Norton to mind for me.
- phpisthebest 3y ago
  Not Happened, it Happens every day with Tool and Outdoor Power Equipment.... This is still a common and ongoing process. Hell the same brand is manufactured by several companies, for example Brand X may have a pressure washer that is made by MTD, but a Lawn Mower that is made by someone else, and a chainsaw that is made by a 3rd company. All with different levels of quality. Even if you see a list of who "owns" the brand, many of them contract with each other to make the tools and equipment so it hard to tell who is actually making the product.
  - mark-r 3y ago
    That's exactly how Sears' Kenmore brand used to operate. I don't think they made anything themselves. I bought a Kenmore garbage disposal because it was an obvious rebadge of a major brand but was $10 cheaper.
    - hakfoo 3y ago
      That works as long as there's a long-term stake in the brand. Because Kenmore was a "face" of Sears, who had a vested interest in staying in business, they had a motivation to say "let's pick competent suppliers, and hold them to specific quality metrics." If that "major brand" model started getting returned too much, the next model Kenmore would be sourced from someone else. Today's brand resurrections seem like less of a long-term play, and more as a shot of "instant credibility" for more short-lived products. My last office had a bunch of Westinghouse-brand LCD monitors. (That pretty much dates it to the late 2000s) They were competent enough, but the brand basically vanished after a couple of years. I suspect they discovered there was little value in the brand as a long-term venture-- they probably didn't actually sell very many based on "Grandma's 14" Westinghouse CRT was awesome back in 1966" and there wasn't enough market impact to fully jolt it back to life as a memorable, going-forward brand.
      - mark-r 3y ago
        Yes, I fell for a couple of "Memorex" products before I realized someone was just using the brand for a shot of credibility. The products themselves were absolute trash.
- fomine3 3y ago
  It's already happened for Toshiba in Japan. Its home appliance brand is sold to Chinese company, and many Toshiba products become just an OEM.
  - dirtyhippiefree 3y ago
    I remember when Toshiba laptops were among the best. They aren’t dead, but they’re delisted. https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/topstories/toshiba-delisted-after-74-years-faces-future-with-new-owners/ar-AA1lM8m5 https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/topstories/toshiba-delisted-...

Memorex It was a good name that got bought and then came out with crappy products we who used to work at RadioSnack had to sell. Amazing how •consumers• drop money on brand name alone.

sarchertech 3y ago

Happened to several formerly respected tool brands too. I’ve heard the process called “reputation mining.”

olddustytrail 3y ago
I guess you probably meant physical tools, but that immediately brought Norton to mind for me.
phpisthebest 3y ago
Not Happened, it Happens every day with Tool and Outdoor Power Equipment.... This is still a common and ongoing process. Hell the same brand is manufactured by several companies, for example Brand X may have a pressure washer that is made by MTD, but a Lawn Mower that is made by someone else, and a chainsaw that is made by a 3rd company. All with different levels of quality. Even if you see a list of who "owns" the brand, many of them contract with each other to make the tools and equipment so it hard to tell who is actually making the product.
- mark-r 3y ago
  That's exactly how Sears' Kenmore brand used to operate. I don't think they made anything themselves. I bought a Kenmore garbage disposal because it was an obvious rebadge of a major brand but was $10 cheaper.
  - hakfoo 3y ago
    That works as long as there's a long-term stake in the brand. Because Kenmore was a "face" of Sears, who had a vested interest in staying in business, they had a motivation to say "let's pick competent suppliers, and hold them to specific quality metrics." If that "major brand" model started getting returned too much, the next model Kenmore would be sourced from someone else. Today's brand resurrections seem like less of a long-term play, and more as a shot of "instant credibility" for more short-lived products. My last office had a bunch of Westinghouse-brand LCD monitors. (That pretty much dates it to the late 2000s) They were competent enough, but the brand basically vanished after a couple of years. I suspect they discovered there was little value in the brand as a long-term venture-- they probably didn't actually sell very many based on "Grandma's 14" Westinghouse CRT was awesome back in 1966" and there wasn't enough market impact to fully jolt it back to life as a memorable, going-forward brand.
    - mark-r 3y ago
      Yes, I fell for a couple of "Memorex" products before I realized someone was just using the brand for a shot of credibility. The products themselves were absolute trash.
fomine3 3y ago
It's already happened for Toshiba in Japan. Its home appliance brand is sold to Chinese company, and many Toshiba products become just an OEM.
- dirtyhippiefree 3y ago
  I remember when Toshiba laptops were among the best. They aren’t dead, but they’re delisted. https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/topstories/toshiba-delisted-after-74-years-faces-future-with-new-owners/ar-AA1lM8m5 https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/topstories/toshiba-delisted-...