"Westinghouse" Lawn/Garden Tools?

[lowefficiency]

Just lately I've been seeing ads for Westinghouse-branded cordless lawn & garden tools.

I know many legacy brands are being milked for all that they're worth nowadays, particularly the fallen American giants by overseas OEMs...
... but "Westinghouse"? On chainsaws, weed whips, leaf blowers, hedge trimmers, and chainsaws?
Really?

Love the artsy wood crates too... Trying to pull in some vintage legacy with the logo, but the designers couldn't even orient them correctly... (Logos are right-side-up, while the crates are upside-down.)

Does this brand/name have *any* value in this market?

 

[reactor]

westinghouse...sadly nothing but a name

You can see the "Westinghouse" name on televisions, tools, outdoor lighting fixtures, etc.

I've lost track of the entire trail of Westinghouse ownership. CBS retained parts of the original company and British Nuclear Fuels purchases Westinghouse' nuclear business, then Toshiba took it over.

Now some holding company Brookfield Business Partners owns in . Somewhere in the quagmire is Westinghouse Licensing Company which hold the rights to the Westinghouse logo.

Any company can license the rights to use the once renowned logo to market their products. If you decide to make a product yourself, and have the money to buy the rights to use the Westinghouse logo, then you can have the privileged of slapping it on each device you sale.

I fear this is what General Electric will soon become, a licensing company for a logo. As I have mentioned in previous posts, Haier-Quindao of communist China pays General Electric a licensing fee to stick the GE on their appliances. General Imaging pays General Electric to use the GE logo on their cameras. Jasco pays General Electric to use the GE logo on their outlets,GFCI's, consumer TV antenna's, etc.....

These "Westinghouse" tools are a new one for me. As I have stated we have Westinghouse hot water tanks you can buy online from Home Depot , Nordyne uses the Westinghouse name (as well as many others) on their central air conditioning and heat pumps. Many places carry "Westinghouse" outdoor post lights, wall sconces, etc.

Names just don't have much meaning any more. In a way, it's nice to see the Westinghouse name being kept alive, but it has n no meaning for manufacturing origin or quality.

The world is changing and I guess we have to get used to. One day we'll, no doubt, we will probably be sitting on a Westinghouse toilet....

 

[kb0nes]

Chinese products trying to capture some of the panache of a legacy American brand. We have seen similar from RCA, Zenith, Crosley, Magnavox and others.

Typically these products sell at big box retailers and they will have zero service after the same or parts availability. Buy em, hope they work and if not just toss em in the landfill.

The amazing thing is that Stihl products are surprisingly cost competitive and they are sold by independent servicing dealers that are there to support the consumer. Home Depot and Lowes etc hope we don't know this.

 

[rp2813]

Nearly a dozen years ago I bought two small ceiling fans at Orchard Supply Hardware for the tiny bedrooms upstairs at our previous house.  They were branded Westinghouse, which I thought was odd.  To their credit, they were attractive and both were still working quietly and flawlessly after all those years of use when we sold the place, but yeah, I knew they had nothing to do with Westinghouse.

 

[supersuds]

An aunt and uncle built a new house in the early 1960s and for whatever reason had everything possible by Westinghouse -- wall oven, cooktop, fridge, washer, dryer, heat pump. If you ever asked them, they would say they'd always had good luck with Westinghouse.

A few years ago, my aunt bought an HDTV and I was astonished to see it, too, was branded Westinghouse. I didn't say anything, but I could well imagine her being confused in an electronics store, seeing the familiar, comfortable name, and thinking she could be sure with Westinghouse.

The problem is you'd have to be about seventy or above to think that.

 

[superocd]

The graphic designes who put this ad together (someone likely around my age -- mid 20s to early 30s) probably doesn't even know the history behind the name Westinghouse. Probably either thought that it was a name made up amongst some marketing execs at a meeting or thought that it was a silly attempt by a Chinese company to Americanize a brand name (ie, "Wuhan Quingdao Westing-House Electric Tools Ltd.")

 

[fan-of-fans]

I think Angelo Bros Lighting and Encon ceiling fans had something to do with the Westinghouse name on light fixtures and ceiling fans. I've seen their indoor and outdoor light fixtures and lamp parts at Home Depot and Ace Hardware. They have the tagline "Innovation you can be sure of" on the packaging.

At Walmart I've seen "Westinghouse" solar lights in the garden department.

I've even seen cheapo looking small appliances with the logo on eBay, as well as "Dominion."

About 5-20 years ago Walmart used to sell small appliances and fans with the "GE" branding, as they were paying them a licensing fee. They were just putting the logo on things made by other manufactures like Rival, Holmes, etc. Even now some of those same "GE" branded appliances are being sold at Walmart but with the "Farberware" name on them.

I've even seen large appliances with the Sunbeam name on them. As well as the Magic Chef name on mini fridges and microwaves at Walmart and Home Depot.