People who were brand loyal??

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norgeway

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I was thinking today about brand loyalty, people dont seem to really care anymore like they used too,For instance, Our next door neighbors when I was growing up bought only Sears products, I remember a 62 Coldspot refrigerator, a 58 Coldspot freezer, a Homart Oil furnace, a 70 Coldspot window ac, a 68 Kenmore range, a 69 BOL Kenmore dryer, and a 63 Lady Kenmore washer...Sears sink, all the bathroom fixtures, Homart rubber tile floors,a Kenmore toaster oven, and even a Craftsman lawnmower...about the only things that were not Sears were the tv and vacuum,the always bought Zenith tvs and had a Automatic F Electrolux...we werent that loyal, and I never knew many people who were, anyone else know of people who bought like this???
 
Once upon a time manufacturers encouraged brand loyalty. Not any more. That went out in the 70's. I think that the mfgs just cut that part out of the advertising budget.

Our family was loyal for a lot of products. My mom was partial to Chevrolet for cars, my dad was partial to Lincoln/Mercury. I was a Chevy guy myself until about 1979 when I switched to Ford and then imports later when it didn't matter any more.
We always had Zenith televisions until they were sold and we switched to Sony.

When I was growing up we always used Standard/Amoco gasoline. I always used Union 76 until I went to college, then I switched to Gulf. It just goes on and on.

If you want to talk about brand loyalty, just ask a Mac user why they think that Mac's are so much better than PC's. But then ask them about how to do something
technical on a Mac. They almost always say "It doesn't matter. The Mac will do it for me!". See.
 
There used to be a time my mother would have nothing but GE appliances in her home.  

 

My Dad never owned anything other than a Chevrolet car until the last car he owned was a Ford Galaxy 500.

 

As Whirlcool stated, they used to go for the loyalty.  Then everyone got greedy and wanted bigger, and bigger slices of pie.  Then they started building cheaper and cheaper crap to  try to lure more customers.  

 

Now it seems it's just price points that drives sales.

 

 
 
Why does brand loyalty matter? What purpose does it serve? Frankly, the idea of brand loyalty seems like a psychological manipulation used by corporations to encourage blind loyalty to their products. Make purchases based on whichever brand provides the best quality and features at a price point you are comfortable with.
 
Brand Loyalty

Brand loyalty is not as prevalent today as when I was growing up. As a baby boomer, I am from the era of quality produced appliances. My family always owned TOL Lady Kenmore washers and dryers, Kitchenaid (by Hobart) dishwashers, Amana refrigerators, General Electric ranges, Electrolux vacuums, and General Motors vehicles. Quality was implied and these products lasted for years.

In today's disposable society, brand loyalty does exist to some level. Only because consumers perceive that a fancy foreign name means quality and durability. NOT SO! All of the aforementioned products and manufacturers have been absorbed into conglomerates and none of them are worth the price you pay. Today we purchase appliances that we hope will last at least 5 years. Then if they need repair, it usually costs more to repair then to purchase new.

I am now only loyal to Miele vacuums, Kenmore Elite dishwashers, and Whirlpool Duet washers and dryers. It is so unfortunate that in the United States, where we produced the best products in the world, we now produce very little as everything has been sourced out to Pacific Rim countries, Mexico, etc.

Try to purchase dishes that are not made in China. Try to purchase a small appliance that is not made in China or Mexico. It is all garbage. I now try to find vintage small appliances that are in excellent condition, dishes from Europe, and try to never purchase anything manufactured in China, the Pacific Rim, or Mexico. Sometimes you have no choice. It takes extensive research.

I am ranting. Sorry.

Stay well everyone and keep those vintage appliances working.

Richard
 
For me grew up with Kenmore appliances,Craftsman tools and Kirby vacuums.Only brand there I am loyal to now is Kirby.Would love to buy more US made things-but this is getting impossible.Try to get vintage on many things,too.Esp washers.Won't buy a new one excepting Speed Queen.At present shop for appliances at the swap shops.And for other things-yard sales.
 
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 12pt;">One of the reasons that Kenmore and other Sears brands had such loyal followings is that their credit plans made it easy for people to pay things off over time.  The interest rates and credit terms were often more attractive than a bank, credit union, or finance company.  Even local stores who financed purchases made it easier to go through them vs a financial institution.  This did much to encourage brand loyalty in families. </span>
 
You hit the nail on the head, Tim: Our house was filled from basement to roof with Sears brands (Craftsman, Kenmore, Coldspot, Harmony House, Silvertone, etc.) due to easy credit terms and competitively-priced products.
 
And dont dorget..

Sears service plan!, Our neighbors always had Sears service plans and Sears came annually and checked everything...Now they have the worst service on earth!
 
Growing up in Schenectady

everyone was a loyal GE customer. ALL the houses around were filled with GE appliances from the washers to the toasters. I remember the only odd range in the neighborhood across the street , the Skalski's had a Tappan Fabulous 400 and I was shocked to see all the burners in a line and that they could slide away. Moving burners blew my kid mind at the time!

 

We were always Olds 98 people too and sneered at any other brand. 
 
Recently it was Samsung. For a while...

I got it in my head after several excellent Smasung tv's that Samsung was it!
After buying a Samsung Blu-Ray, a $2500 Samsung fridge,,, etc. i quickly learned i was dreaming and for the most part it's all garbage.
 
My parents were completely loyal to Kenmore and GM through the mid 90s. They moved on to Chrysler and GE, and now I think they just buy whatever's cheapest, since it doesn't seem to matter any more.
 
Back in the day

we were JC Penney folks. Most friends, neighbors and the like were Sears, esp Kennmore but ever since the 1972 Sears B&W Tv blew a transformer, Dad did an about face and if Penney's sold it, we had it.

Any more, I'm in agreement with others here, people buy whatever is cheap these days.

Myself, I stick to Bunn, SQ, Koballt USA made tools, Wustoff knives, Cadbury chocolate, and Benelli firearms.
 
Brand Loyalty....

Used to be a manufacturer's reward for good quality, service and satisfaction. It used to be a sought-after commodity, because loyal customers are ones you don't have to chase with advertising or cut-your-own-throat discounting.

Since manufacturers don't give a rat's derriere about quality, service or satisfaction any more, consumers jump from one to another for the lowest price. This does not hurt manufacturers, because if they lose fifty thousand consumers over a bad product or service, fifty thousand more who are seeking refuge from another manufacturer who has done the same thing will take their place.

It is a race to the bottom, but we all know that.
 
GE in our house.

Growing up we had mostly GE in the N.J. house and all GE in the cottage on the Cape.

Mom had a new Oldsmobile every other year. Then Dad splurged in 1968 and got Mom a Cadillac DeVille Convertible.

She was one happy lady !!!
 
You Should Have Been Me

Hans, that's what I tell Nate all the time, particularly with regard to Norge items.

Ours was a Go-Ward's household. Laundry, freezer, vacuum cleaner, power tools, lawn mower, air compressor, light fixtures, accordion doors, clothing (blecch) and so many other miscellaneous items that don't come to mind right now.

For Kevin's wash-in I brought a box of literature for people to pick through and it sparked comments about how much of it was Wards-related.

A common occurrance during my childhood was Dad cursing over some failed Wards item, most notably the washer that did so just after the warranty expired. Or, all too often, getting a new item from Ward's that required assembly, only to have parts missing.

It has been said that the definition for insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result. In that respect, both of my parents were certified.

There is no logic for this loyalty, that's for sure. I do think it may be related to my mom having worked for Sears in the late '30s. I don't think that job went or ended well, and as a result Sears became a last resort.

My dad did buy Craftsman tools because I presume their lifetime warranty beat anything Ward's had to offer.

It was only in the mid '70s when I was able to influence my mom, who had apparently mellowed out with regard to Sears, and she bought the wonderful, nearly TOL Kenmore washer and a new Coldspot side-by-side that were infinitely more reliable than anything that had come from Ward's. The fridge was still running flawlessly more than 30 years later -- it outlasted her.
 
Whirlpool

I have always been brand loyal for Whirlpool appliances. I have purchased the following Whirlpool appliances: 1990 Electric stove that I am still using, dishwasher from 2005 that I am still using and new 'fridge, bottom freezer that I bought last year. So far so good. Gary
 

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