On 1/6/2017 10:56 AM, Tim Daneliuk wrote:
On 01/05/2017 03:54 PM, Leon wrote:
ears cannot survive at this rate, thank you K-Mart.

This has little to do with K-Mart. These traditional retailers
are getting their lunch handed to them because they did not
adapt to the world of eCommerce in a timely and effective way.

KMart needed extra funds, more money than their spectacular profits
could provide back in the early 90's. They needed funds to offset the
extremely high pension payments that retiring family owners were
collecting. As profitable as it was KMart could not sustain payments to
the owners that were collecting pensions. So you look for a profitable
company to help pay costs that the family members pensions would not
affect. Enter Sears.



Amazon has set the bar very high for very fast delivery, great
pricing, and painless returns ... all from your living room. Some
traditional vendors figured this out. Some - Sears as one example -
did not. They're done for.

Capitalism and markets seek efficiency and punish the lack thereof
mercilessly. Creative Destruction is bad for individual actors,
but good for the marketplace overall.


While all of what you have said plays a factor, the problem started 25
years ago and it was not related to pricing, competition, or product
quality.

On Friday, January 6, 2017 at 10:15:58 AM UTC-6, John McCoy wrote:
Ed Pawlowski wrote in
:

They missed the boat a long time ago. Sers had a thriving catalog
business. They should have turned that into something like Amazon
before Amazon started up.

Hah, I just posted a long post saying the same thing before
reading this one. You're quite correct in that thought.

John

Not to disparage you guys, but you are basically saying Sears should have been able to predict the future. Everything would be better if we could all do that. Sears did not predict the future so they did not use their catalog business to become the major retail seller of the future. If that is the logic you are using then we are all idiots because we did not invent Apple before Jobs and Wozniak did in 1976. Why didn't you know computers and mobile phones and online was the future? Are you stupid? Who sitting here today knew that buying stuff from home using a computer was the future? Shopping in stores was out?

On 1/6/2017 12:15 PM, -MIKE- wrote:
On 1/5/17 11:34 PM, Puckdropper wrote:
wrote in news:ij7u6ctqak1ll96a1qjl9p96drgn4pj8jq@
4ax.com:

On 06 Jan 2017 04:03:05 GMT, Puckdropper
puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:

Sears struck me as a company that didn't realize who their
competition was. Prices/quality just aren't competitive with
other stores, especially on common hand tools like levels.

Puckdropper
You mean they didn't play the "compete on price only" game??? Sears
didn't kill sears. Nor did Walmart. Nor did the Internet. The North
American Public killed Sears. And are the poorer for it, when you
get right down to brass tacks.


Sears killed Sears. They might have gotten the North American Public
to do the actual work, but they got themselves into this mess.

Here's the thing: If you set yourself up just like the others playing
the compete on price game, people will respond like you're playing
that game. If your prices are higher for the same quality item, your
value is lower and people will go where the value is higher. How
does Sears make up the missing value? Well, it used to be momentum
and reputation... but that's good for only a decade or two.
"Guaranteed Forever" sold a ton of Craftsman tools, but they've been
shying away from that as well.

Are we poorer for it? Perhaps for a while, but if there's a demand
someone will fill the "Walmart/Lowe's" crossover store segment.
Thing is, I just don't see it with the way that Walmart & Lowe's are
all over the place.

Puckdropper


Like Radio Shack, they tried to stick with an outdated model and refused
to move from it until the market had passed them in the dust.

Sears was stuck in an "everything in one place" model that worked great
when people shopped once a week or less and had to plan a trip to do it.

When everybody became mobile and specialty stores started to dominate
the market, Sears stayed with their old, outdated model and were trapped
in denial. People no longer wanted to go to one store for everything.
They wanted to go to a clothing store (or several) for clothes, they
wanted to go to the huge electronics store for that stuff, they wanted
to go to the huge hardware store for tools, etc, etc.

What we complain about now, because we can do it all at home on Amazon,
was empowering and adventurous at the time. More choices, better
prices, price matching, all that stuff gave the consumer a sense of
having the upper hand. It was a game to win and you felt like you
accomplished something by driving around and finding the best deal.
Commissioned salespeople didn't help their cause either.

Sears never "got it" and never would. Even when Sears tried to play the
"price match" game, it was underhanded and deceitful. If they carried a
certain brand of widget, they'd force the manufacturer to change the
model number just enough (like adding a single digit suffix) so that
they could refuse to price match because "it wasn't the same model."

I would agree that the North American Public if it weren't for the fact
that all these other retailers were in the game, playing by the same
rules and they succeeded. No, Sears is just another wagon maker trying
to convince people they don't need a car.


Sears is not alone in failing to understand the current marketing needs.
I was in a well known store that has announced the closing of a lot of
stores. It is a huge mall store on multiple levels.

We tried to buy something and after wandering the hole floor actually
found one person at a cash register who could make the sale. They don't
understand that if there is no one to make the sale the sale will not
happen.

On the other side of this I don't think that the electronic store will
ever take over the world. It is just like the death of the Desktop.
While the PC does not have the market share they once have there still
is a demand for them.

The reason that that e shopping will never replace the store, is the
reason that we were out shopping this morning. I bought a garment of
clothing that was of a marked size. I have worn this size for decades.
That garment did not fit. We had to go to the store and try on several
different sizes to find the garment in a size that fits. You can not go
down to the store and buy a pair of pants, with out trying them on.

When it comes to hardware, many times the specification for the item are
incomplete or miss leading. They only way you can get what you want is
to see it "in the flesh" look at the item turn it around to find if the
item has what you want.

On this line I have seen some neat things on line. But when you actually
get it, the dimensions have been miss represented and it is just two
large/small for the purpose intended.

On 1/6/2017 1:49 PM, wrote:
On Friday, January 6, 2017 at 10:15:58 AM UTC-6, John McCoy wrote:
Ed Pawlowski wrote in
:

They missed the boat a long time ago. Sers had a thriving catalog
business. They should have turned that into something like Amazon
before Amazon started up.

Hah, I just posted a long post saying the same thing before
reading this one. You're quite correct in that thought.

John

Not to disparage you guys, but you are basically saying Sears should have been able to predict the future. Everything would be better if we could all do that. Sears did not predict the future so they did not use their catalog business to become the major retail seller of the future. If that is the logic you are using then we are all idiots because we did not invent Apple before Jobs and Wozniak did in 1976. Why didn't you know computers and mobile phones and online was the future? Are you stupid? Who sitting here today knew that buying stuff from home using a computer was the future? Shopping in stores was out?


I think you hit the nail on the head.

Monday morning quarter backing is easy but non provable.

On 1/5/2017 6:59 PM, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
I bet it has been 3 years since I set foot in a mall,

I only go to malls to fight...
--
Jack
Add Life to your Days not Days to your Life.
http://jbstein.com

On 1/6/2017 10:57 AM, John McCoy wrote:

I think Sears will go out of business shortly.

I agree with you. I don't think they have a clue how to
solve their problems - they're still trying to figure out
"how do we compete with Walmart", when the world has moved
on and the real competition is the likes of Dollar General
(and, of course, Amazon).

I recently mentioned I was looking to replace my Sony earphones. Amazon
doubled the price from $14 to $27, plus shipping. I finally found
them online at Walmart for $14 and free shipping. Walmart knows whats
up, and if Amazon isn't careful, it will be in the bag with Sears/Kmart.


--
Jack
Add Life to your Days not Days to your Life.
http://jbstein.com

" wrote in
:

On Friday, January 6, 2017 at 10:15:58 AM UTC-6, John McCoy wrote:
Ed Pawlowski wrote in
:

They missed the boat a long time ago. Sers had a thriving catalog
business. They should have turned that into something like Amazon
before Amazon started up.

Hah, I just posted a long post saying the same thing before
reading this one. You're quite correct in that thought.

John

Not to disparage you guys, but you are basically saying Sears should
have been able to predict the future.

Maybe you didn't read the other post? I specifically said they
couldn't be faulted for not seeing the future - but that the
result they got (as did many similar companies) is a predictable
result of not seeing the future.

John

On 1/6/2017 2:28 PM, Leon wrote:
On 1/6/2017 10:56 AM, Tim Daneliuk wrote:
On 01/05/2017 03:54 PM, Leon wrote:
ears cannot survive at this rate, thank you K-Mart.

This has little to do with K-Mart. These traditional retailers
are getting their lunch handed to them because they did not
adapt to the world of eCommerce in a timely and effective way.

KMart needed extra funds, more money than their spectacular profits
could provide back in the early 90's. They needed funds to offset the
extremely high pension payments that retiring family owners were
collecting. As profitable as it was KMart could not sustain payments to
the owners that were collecting pensions. So you look for a profitable
company to help pay costs that the family members pensions would not
affect. Enter Sears.



Amazon has set the bar very high for very fast delivery, great
pricing, and painless returns ... all from your living room. Some
traditional vendors figured this out. Some - Sears as one example -
did not. They're done for.

Capitalism and markets seek efficiency and punish the lack thereof
mercilessly. Creative Destruction is bad for individual actors,
but good for the marketplace overall.


While all of what you have said plays a factor, the problem started 25
years ago and it was not related to pricing, competition, or product
quality.

I recall buying a sandblaster at a relatively new Sears store about
25/30 years ago. I looked for a salesman to sell me the thing for over
a half our. Finally I somehow found a manager bouncing around and
raised hell with him, asked him how long he thought they would be in
business if no one could find a salesman. Place closed about 3 years
later.

Also, about 2 years ago I needed some shelf brackets. Sears had them
for .79 cents apiece. I asked if they were mis-priced, as they should
be about a nickel each. Found them on line, 25 for $1.49.

When you have fools running a business, competition will kill you
eventually.

--
Jack
Add Life to your Days not Days to your Life.
http://jbstein.com

Keith Nuttle wrote in news4otob$15aa$1
@gioia.aioe.org:

The reason that that e shopping will never replace the store, is the
reason that we were out shopping this morning. I bought a garment of
clothing that was of a marked size. I have worn this size for decades.
That garment did not fit. We had to go to the store and try on several
different sizes to find the garment in a size that fits. You can not go
down to the store and buy a pair of pants, with out trying them on.

Probably worth noting (since we're all dudes here) that this
is something women have suffered with for years. No two makers
of ladieswear use quite the same set of sizes - my girlfriend
can be a 4, 6, or 8, a XS, S, or M, and never knows until she
starts trying stuff on.

John

Leon lcb11211@swbelldotnet wrote in news:Yf2dnYKXGdBRcvLFnZ2dnUU7-
:

While all of what you have said plays a factor, the problem started 25
years ago and it was not related to pricing, competition, or product
quality.

Actually, it was directly attributable to those things. Back
in the day, Sears was the best catalog store (so much so that
the others, like Wards, are barely remembered). When they moved
to direct retail, they weren't the best - in fact, they were
pretty much indistinquishable from J C Penney, Macys, Dillards,
or any of the other hundred similar stores that are no longer
around. Being just like the other stores means they're getting
the same result. To survive they would have somehow had to be
better than the others, and they weren't.

Of course, having the albatros of K-Mart hanging around their
neck hasn't helped.

John

On Jan 5, 2017, Ed Pawlowski wrote
(in article ):

On 1/5/2017 4:14 PM, DerbyDad03 wrote:
On Thursday, January 5, 2017 at 1:40:38 PM UTC-5, Leon wrote:
Apparently Craftsman was around before Sears acquired it 90 years ago.
And now Sears is selling Craftsman tools to Stanley.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/sears-...-stanley-black
-decker-140907321--finance.html

I heard a (slightly) more in depth report this morning. They mentioned that
Sears is considering selling off the Kenmore and Die-Hard lines of business.

I don't recall if it's just a consideration or if negotiations had already
begun. Either way, the company is dwindling into nothingness.

They missed the boat a long time ago. Sers had a thriving catalog
business. They should have turned that into something like Amazon
before Amazon started up.

My recollection from the newspapers of the day is that the Catalog was losing
money, so after much agonizing, Sears closed its catalog, and laid 50,000
people off. I was stunned. The defense contractor I worked for at the time
had 20,000 employees, and produced far more paper than Sears Catalog ever
did. So, I can kinda guess what 20,000 of those Sears Catalog employees did,
which left the other 30,000 unaccounted for. With that kind of overstaffing,
no wonder they were losing money, with a bit of house cleaning, they could
have made money.


In the 1970s, I bought thousands of dollars worth of hand tools for working
on cars. Good stuff - still have and use it. The big debate of the day was if
Snap-On was worth their premium over Craftsman. Most of my friends did what I
did - Craftsman by default, Snap-On only if necessary.
The last technical thing I bought from Sears was an ordinary hose for
compressed air, probably 10 or 15 years ago. It was well made, but I
couldt get the hose to attach securely to threaded compressed air
connectors, like the Universal and IR and the like. It turned out that the
hose was equipped with oxygen fittings. My guess was that Sears had laid off
all the expensive grumpy old men who knew the difference, and who knew how to
use every tool Sears sold, and the newly-hired bright-eyed young thing
didnt realize that air and oxygen are not quite the same thing.

Id hazard that the self-defeating layoffs may have been a part of the
closing of the Catalog division.

Returned the hose, bought a Goodyear air hose from Home Depot. This hose
worked right from the box.

My guess that the Craftsman line will do better under Stanley/B&D, for all
their sins. At least Stanley/B&D know what an air hose is for. I wonder how
those bright-eyed young things will do under the new management.


Joe Gwinn

On 1/6/2017 3:08 PM, John McCoy wrote:
" wrote in
:

On Friday, January 6, 2017 at 10:15:58 AM UTC-6, John McCoy wrote:
Ed Pawlowski wrote in
:

They missed the boat a long time ago. Sers had a thriving catalog
business. They should have turned that into something like Amazon
before Amazon started up.

Hah, I just posted a long post saying the same thing before
reading this one. You're quite correct in that thought.

John

Not to disparage you guys, but you are basically saying Sears should
have been able to predict the future.

Maybe you didn't read the other post? I specifically said they
couldn't be faulted for not seeing the future - but that the
result they got (as did many similar companies) is a predictable
result of not seeing the future.

John



He said you guys not you.

On 1/6/2017 3:00 PM, Jack wrote:
On 1/6/2017 10:57 AM, John McCoy wrote:

I think Sears will go out of business shortly.

I agree with you. I don't think they have a clue how to
solve their problems - they're still trying to figure out
"how do we compete with Walmart", when the world has moved
on and the real competition is the likes of Dollar General
(and, of course, Amazon).

I recently mentioned I was looking to replace my Sony earphones. Amazon
doubled the price from $14 to $27, plus shipping. I finally found them
online at Walmart for $14 and free shipping. Walmart knows whats up,
and if Amazon isn't careful, it will be in the bag with Sears/Kmart.




Not everything purchased through Amazon is supplied or sold by Amazon.
There are thousands of retailers selling their goods on Amazon and they
ship direct from their stores, and they have all different prices and
many are not even in the ball park of being competitively priced.

On 1/6/2017 3:13 PM, Jack wrote:
On 1/6/2017 2:28 PM, Leon wrote:
On 1/6/2017 10:56 AM, Tim Daneliuk wrote:
On 01/05/2017 03:54 PM, Leon wrote:
ears cannot survive at this rate, thank you K-Mart.

This has little to do with K-Mart. These traditional retailers
are getting their lunch handed to them because they did not
adapt to the world of eCommerce in a timely and effective way.

KMart needed extra funds, more money than their spectacular profits
could provide back in the early 90's. They needed funds to offset the
extremely high pension payments that retiring family owners were
collecting. As profitable as it was KMart could not sustain payments to
the owners that were collecting pensions. So you look for a profitable
company to help pay costs that the family members pensions would not
affect. Enter Sears.



Amazon has set the bar very high for very fast delivery, great
pricing, and painless returns ... all from your living room. Some
traditional vendors figured this out. Some - Sears as one example -
did not. They're done for.

Capitalism and markets seek efficiency and punish the lack thereof
mercilessly. Creative Destruction is bad for individual actors,
but good for the marketplace overall.


While all of what you have said plays a factor, the problem started 25
years ago and it was not related to pricing, competition, or product
quality.

I recall buying a sandblaster at a relatively new Sears store about
25/30 years ago. I looked for a salesman to sell me the thing for over
a half our. Finally I somehow found a manager bouncing around and
raised hell with him, asked him how long he thought they would be in
business if no one could find a salesman. Place closed about 3 years
later.

Not every store has a good location or a smart manager. One store does
not reflect the sum of the stores. Remember Woolco? The Woolco store
in Corpus Christi, TX would still be open today if it could have
continued to operate. I worked there when I was going to school. It
was not unusual at all for an ambulance to show up every weekend to haul
some one away. The store was so crowded that people passed out, no
kidding. Woolco was one of the first big stores to close.




Also, about 2 years ago I needed some shelf brackets. Sears had them
for .79 cents apiece. I asked if they were mis-priced, as they should
be about a nickel each. Found them on line, 25 for $1.49.

You can always find a better deal but there is a price to pay for
getting the product right now vs. tomorrow or later.

I was reading that ACE hardware and Aldi were a couple of brand stores
that are doing well and growing. I went to ACE hardware a month ago to
buy 8 magnetic cabinet door catches. 8 would have cost me $26. I drove
4 miles north and got the 8 catches at HD for $3.


When you have fools running a business, competition will kill you
eventually.


True but there are many more factors the will sink you.

On Fri, 6 Jan 2017 00:16:21 -0500, Ed Pawlowski wrote:

On 1/5/2017 11:37 PM, wrote:

Sears struck me as a company that didn't realize who their competition
was. Prices/quality just aren't competitive with other stores,
especially on common hand tools like levels.

Puckdropper
You mean they didn't play the "compete on price only" game???
Sears didn't kill sears. Nor did Walmart. Nor did the Internet. The
North American Public killed Sears. And are the poorer for it, when
you get right down to brass tacks.



How are we poorer for it? I never thought Sears had anything better
than other stores in terms of price, value, service. Never bough
Kenmore appliances but I do like my 50 year old Craftsman hand tools.
It's not just sears that is failing because of it. It is almost
impossible to buy decent quality merchandise any more because every
reseller is fighting for the bottom price - which also usually
translates to the bottomof the barrel.

And those places thar DO have better quality stuff available don't
have it "on the shelf" which means if you needed it yesterday or today
you are TOTALLY screwed - and if you need it tomorrow? - Lots a
luck!!.
In many cases even the cheap crap is "special order only" or only
available on-line.

On that basis, I maintain we are all "the poorer for it".

You don't have to agree - but that's MY view, from where I sit.

Today I just spent almost 3 hours locating a supplier for a
particular compact flourescent replacement bulb - none available
locally or within 5 days.

A few weeks ago I needed a 100 watt "compact flourescent" replacement
bulb - (mogul base, integrated ballast) and by calling the
manufacturer's agent, was able to get it tacked onto an open order
from a wholesaler in the next city down the highway and got it in 10
days without paying double the price to have it shipped special (and
we are not talking peanuts here - thebulb was $82 US wholesale, the
shipping another $78 plus brokerage!!!!!!) Needless to say, I ordered
2 so I don't have to go through that again when the next one blows
(there are 8? in the building.and they are all the same age - all on
the same switch)

On Thu, 5 Jan 2017 23:30:46 -0600, Leon lcb11211@swbelldotnet wrote:

On 1/5/2017 10:37 PM, wrote:
On 06 Jan 2017 04:03:05 GMT, Puckdropper
puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:

wrote in
:



Closing a bunch on stores too, it will not belong till it goes under.

http://fortune.com/2017/01/05/sears-kmart-closings/



I heard that they were considering groceries ...
" stick a fork in that one - I think it's done .. "
John T.


Sears struck me as a company that didn't realize who their competition
was. Prices/quality just aren't competitive with other stores,
especially on common hand tools like levels.

Puckdropper
You mean they didn't play the "compete on price only" game???
Sears didn't kill sears. Nor did Walmart. Nor did the Internet. The
North American Public killed Sears. And are the poorer for it, when
you get right down to brass tacks.



I believe it was merging with KMart that killed Sears. KMart had bad
deals going back in the early 90's.
Sears was dying bit by bit before the K-Mart merger. It may be the
merger is the only thing that kept it from dying right there. There
was not a long line of suitors lined up to buy it, was there???

On 06 Jan 2017 05:34:59 GMT, Puckdropper
puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:

wrote in news:ij7u6ctqak1ll96a1qjl9p96drgn4pj8jq@
4ax.com:

On 06 Jan 2017 04:03:05 GMT, Puckdropper
puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:

Sears struck me as a company that didn't realize who their competition
was. Prices/quality just aren't competitive with other stores,
especially on common hand tools like levels.

Puckdropper
You mean they didn't play the "compete on price only" game???
Sears didn't kill sears. Nor did Walmart. Nor did the Internet. The
North American Public killed Sears. And are the poorer for it, when
you get right down to brass tacks.


Sears killed Sears. They might have gotten the North American Public to
do the actual work, but they got themselves into this mess.

Here's the thing: If you set yourself up just like the others playing the
compete on price game, people will respond like you're playing that game.
If your prices are higher for the same quality item, your value is lower
and people will go where the value is higher. How does Sears make up the
missing value? Well, it used to be momentum and reputation... but that's
good for only a decade or two. "Guaranteed Forever" sold a ton of
Craftsman tools, but they've been shying away from that as well.

Are we poorer for it? Perhaps for a while, but if there's a demand
someone will fill the "Walmart/Lowe's" crossover store segment. Thing
is, I just don't see it with the way that Walmart & Lowe's are all over
the place.

Puckdropper
Up here in Ontario (and most of Canada) we still have Home Hardware
and Canadian Tire partly filling PART of that role. Canadian tire
used to be the place to go for low price and low quality. Today they
are a little more upscale than WalMart

On Fri, 6 Jan 2017 16:14:25 +0000 (UTC), John McCoy
wrote:

Leon lcb11211@swbelldotnet wrote in news:QZOdnbpFJasTtvLFnZ2dnUU7-
:

On 1/5/2017 10:37 PM, wrote:

Sears didn't kill sears. Nor did Walmart. Nor did the Internet. The
North American Public killed Sears. And are the poorer for it, when
you get right down to brass tacks.

I believe it was merging with KMart that killed Sears. KMart had bad
deals going back in the early 90's.

KMart was the "coup de grace" - and a great lesson in how to
use bankruptcy court to avoid all your mistakes and make a
fortune from other people's money - but Sears's problems go
way back before that.

Sears was once what Amazon is today - you could buy anything
from them. Mail in your order, and in a week or two go down
to the Railway Express Agency(*) and pick up your package.
With the arrival of mall culture in the 50's and 60's, Sears
let the catalog business fade away, and became just like a
hundred other department stores (most of which have long
since disappeared). Come the revival of mail-order, and
instead of Sears sitting pretty with an order processing and
shipping system already in place, they have nothing - and
the new guys take over that space.

You could by a house, a car, a motorcycle, all your furniture, all
your clothing, all your tools and hardware - virtually anything you
needed "on line" (the phone line) back in the early years of Sears.
They were WAY ahead of their time. They totally lost touch by racing
all of their "competition" to the bottom.

Is it fair to fault 70's Sears management for not having any
vision to be different from Penney's (or Mays, or Foleys,
or Burdines, etc etc etc)? No, but the result of the lack
of vision will predictably give them the same result as most
of their 70's competitors.

John

(* REA was to Sears as UPS is to Amazon)

On Fri, 6 Jan 2017 16:44:02 +0000 (UTC), John McCoy
wrote:

Ed Pawlowski wrote in
:

I don't know how much real estate Sears owns, but mall space is
usually leased. They may have more liability to the end of the lease
that what the space is worth.

Today Sears directly owns virtually no real estate, since
they restructured most of it into an REIT (which they still
mostly own, so indirectly they own the real estate). I have
read that around 1/3 of their stores were owned, rather than
leased.

I agree that retail will never disappear, but look around at how much
empty space is available. how many malls have empty spots? I know of
three stip malls built about 8 or 9 years ago. One is 100% empty, the
other two are 75% empty.

Two different expressions of the same problem...for big malls,
they got way over built in the 80's, and that situation is
slowly correcting itself. Around here about half the malls
that existed in the 80's have been torn down or repurposed,
the remaining half are doing well, since supply now matches
demand (more or less).

Strip malls are cyclical - there will be a shortage of strip
mall space, and several developers will rush in to build new
ones at the same time. Then there's a glut, and most of the
new space sits empty. Eventually demand will catch up with
supply, and then a new set of developers will build a new
surplus of strip space to sit empty for 3 or 4 years.

John
Around here the new ones fill up - and the old ones sit empty -----

On 1/6/2017 4:13 PM, Jack wrote:
On 1/6/2017 2:28 PM, Leon wrote:
On 1/6/2017 10:56 AM, Tim Daneliuk wrote:
On 01/05/2017 03:54 PM, Leon wrote:
ears cannot survive at this rate, thank you K-Mart.

This has little to do with K-Mart. These traditional retailers
are getting their lunch handed to them because they did not
adapt to the world of eCommerce in a timely and effective way.

KMart needed extra funds, more money than their spectacular profits
could provide back in the early 90's. They needed funds to offset the
extremely high pension payments that retiring family owners were
collecting. As profitable as it was KMart could not sustain payments to
the owners that were collecting pensions. So you look for a profitable
company to help pay costs that the family members pensions would not
affect. Enter Sears.



Amazon has set the bar very high for very fast delivery, great
pricing, and painless returns ... all from your living room. Some
traditional vendors figured this out. Some - Sears as one example -
did not. They're done for.

Capitalism and markets seek efficiency and punish the lack thereof
mercilessly. Creative Destruction is bad for individual actors,
but good for the marketplace overall.


While all of what you have said plays a factor, the problem started 25
years ago and it was not related to pricing, competition, or product
quality.

I recall buying a sandblaster at a relatively new Sears store about
25/30 years ago. I looked for a salesman to sell me the thing for over
a half our. Finally I somehow found a manager bouncing around and
raised hell with him, asked him how long he thought they would be in
business if no one could find a salesman. Place closed about 3 years
later.

Also, about 2 years ago I needed some shelf brackets. Sears had them
for .79 cents apiece. I asked if they were mis-priced, as they should
be about a nickel each. Found them on line, 25 for $1.49.

When you have fools running a business, competition will kill you
eventually.

Shelf brackets for a nickel apiece 2 years ago??? Maybe 50 years ago

--
Jeff

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This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
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On 1/6/2017 2:49 PM, wrote:
On Friday, January 6, 2017 at 10:15:58 AM UTC-6, John McCoy wrote:
Ed Pawlowski wrote in
:

They missed the boat a long time ago. Sers had a thriving catalog
business. They should have turned that into something like Amazon
before Amazon started up.

Hah, I just posted a long post saying the same thing before
reading this one. You're quite correct in that thought.

John

Not to disparage you guys, but you are basically saying Sears should have been able to predict the future. Everything would be better if we could all do that. Sears did not predict the future so they did not use their catalog business to become the major retail seller of the future. If that is the logic you are using then we are all idiots because we did not invent Apple before Jobs and Wozniak did in 1976. Why didn't you know computers and mobile phones and online was the future? Are you stupid? Who sitting here today knew that buying stuff from home using a computer was the future? Shopping in stores was out?


When the future was already happening around them they still did
nothing. Yes, that is stupid. Even WalMart was late to the e-commerce
game and recently invested in (bought?) jet.com so they can catch up.
Check out the JC Penney web site to see a useless disaster. Sears is
just a link for items sold by others.

When the world shifted to using computers, Sears, Macy, Penny started to
investigate upgrading to electric typewriters.

Unlike Wozniak I did not have the ability to invent a PC, but I did
start using one in the 1980's. Some simple automated reports we use at
work today are descendants of the DOS things I did back then.

You don't have to invent technology to embrace and use it.

John McCoy wrote in
:


Probably worth noting (since we're all dudes here) that this
is something women have suffered with for years. No two makers
of ladieswear use quite the same set of sizes - my girlfriend
can be a 4, 6, or 8, a XS, S, or M, and never knows until she
starts trying stuff on.

John


It's the same way with shoes. People keep insisting shoe sizes are the
same, but that just doesn't match my reality. I just sent back a size 9
boot to trade for an 8.5, but I have a 9.5 shoe that fits perfectly. The
boots I'm wearing now are 10's.

If I had my way about it, the foot would be measured and the shoe would
be specified to fit the measurements of the foot. The dimensions would
be inches or centimeters, not whatever measurement the manufacturer
decided to use today. Now you know your 25.5cm by 7.76cm (length by max
width across the ball of the foot) foot will likely match a 26cmx8cm
shoe.

Puckdropper

--
http://www.puckdroppersplace.us/rec.woodworking
A mini archive of some of rec.woodworking's best and worst!

On 1/6/2017 4:00 PM, Jack wrote:
On 1/6/2017 10:57 AM, John McCoy wrote:

I think Sears will go out of business shortly.

I agree with you. I don't think they have a clue how to
solve their problems - they're still trying to figure out
"how do we compete with Walmart", when the world has moved
on and the real competition is the likes of Dollar General
(and, of course, Amazon).

I recently mentioned I was looking to replace my Sony earphones. Amazon
doubled the price from $14 to $27, plus shipping. I finally found them
online at Walmart for $14 and free shipping. Walmart knows whats up,
and if Amazon isn't careful, it will be in the bag with Sears/Kmart.



I don't think so. I have a peeve with Amazon. Originally free shipping
over $25.. then they moved it to $35, and quickly thereafter to $49... I
understand the $35, but the $49 was not necessary. It was to make you
buy into PRIME.. and that's where my disdain lies. I understood when
they said in order for them to remain profitable they had to move to
$35.. That I got..

--
Jeff

---
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
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On 1/6/2017 3:46 PM, Leon wrote:


Not to disparage you guys, but you are basically saying Sears should
have been able to predict the future. Everything would be better if
we could all do that. Sears did not predict the future so they did
not use their catalog business to become the major retail seller of
the future. If that is the logic you are using then we are all idiots
because we did not invent Apple before Jobs and Wozniak did in 1976.
Why didn't you know computers and mobile phones and online was the
future? Are you stupid? Who sitting here today knew that buying
stuff from home using a computer was the future? Shopping in stores
was out?


I think you hit the nail on the head.

Monday morning quarter backing is easy but non provable.

No, this is not Monday morning, it is 16 years too late. Amazon stated
in 1994. Sears let many Mondays pass and is still not an internet
presence. They (and many others) ignored what was going on around them.

Auto dealers were losing ground and finally caught on a few years back.
My last car was bought at a dealer in 15 minutes after using on line
sources to get the best price. I sat down with the salesman he made an
offer. I told him what the numbers had to be and he said "no". I
showed him the numbers on my phone and in two minutes he met the deal.
The horseless carriage was just a novelty, as was the telephone,
television and most every advance and new technology.

I'm going to check out them new fax machines. I understand you can send
copies of things in minutes to another machine.

On 1/5/2017 11:37 PM, wrote:
On 06 Jan 2017 04:03:05 GMT, Puckdropper
puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:

wrote in
:



Closing a bunch on stores too, it will not belong till it goes under.

http://fortune.com/2017/01/05/sears-kmart-closings/



I heard that they were considering groceries ...
" stick a fork in that one - I think it's done .. "
John T.


Sears struck me as a company that didn't realize who their competition
was. Prices/quality just aren't competitive with other stores,
especially on common hand tools like levels.

Puckdropper
You mean they didn't play the "compete on price only" game???
Sears didn't kill sears. Nor did Walmart. Nor did the Internet. The
North American Public killed Sears. And are the poorer for it, when
you get right down to brass tacks.


I disagree. Sears had a big hand in it. And yes the public did too.
But they did it because Sears was not servicing their needs. I grew up
on Long Island they had a store in Hicksville. Their largest from what I
understand. My dad and I were there 2 - 3 times a week. They had
hardware and tools. Then the hardware disappeared. Then the tool area
got really small. They were more interested in soft goods. Well
without the hardware we were now going every couple of weeks. You see
to us, that was their loss leader to get us in the store. My dad often
bought tools he didn't need because they were caught his interest while
he was there for hardware.

When I was in my 20's and now in NJ I needed to replace a broken breaker
bar, and some ratchets that didn't work. The salesman gave me a hard
time and told me that I should buy a 1/2 breaker bar since the 3/8
failed. I had to argue to get my just deserved warranty.. He said if it
broke I was miss using it, and it was too undersized. I had decided
that was too much work to get what was promised.

I also fell prey to the Die Hard battery scam. My short lived very
expensive car battery, that died hard and the pro rating wound up
costing me heavily for another battery that lasted a short time. I
replaced that with an Exide and was happy (1980s). I remember reading a
few years later that there was a scam of used or dead batteries being
given as new.. it's so long ago, I am sketchy on the details. But they
were charged and did face the charges. They admitted nothing, but would
offer something to people who were affected... Guilty as far as I am
concerned.

--
Jeff

---
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
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On 1/6/2017 4:20 PM, John McCoy wrote:


Of course, having the albatros of K-Mart hanging around their
neck hasn't helped.

John


But K-Mart bought Sears. Double albatross. K-Mart was always a
discounter but maybe 10 or so years ago they seemed to carry cheaper,
lower quality merchandise.

On Fri, 06 Jan 2017 16:34:16 -0500, Joseph Gwinn
wrote:

On Jan 5, 2017, Ed Pawlowski wrote
(in article ):

On 1/5/2017 4:14 PM, DerbyDad03 wrote:
On Thursday, January 5, 2017 at 1:40:38 PM UTC-5, Leon wrote:
Apparently Craftsman was around before Sears acquired it 90 years ago.
And now Sears is selling Craftsman tools to Stanley.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/sears-...-stanley-black
-decker-140907321--finance.html

I heard a (slightly) more in depth report this morning. They mentioned that
Sears is considering selling off the Kenmore and Die-Hard lines of business.

I don't recall if it's just a consideration or if negotiations had already
begun. Either way, the company is dwindling into nothingness.

They missed the boat a long time ago. Sers had a thriving catalog
business. They should have turned that into something like Amazon
before Amazon started up.

My recollection from the newspapers of the day is that the Catalog was losing
money, so after much agonizing, Sears closed its catalog, and laid 50,000
people off. I was stunned. The defense contractor I worked for at the time
had 20,000 employees, and produced far more paper than Sears Catalog ever
did. So, I can kinda guess what 20,000 of those Sears Catalog employees did,
which left the other 30,000 unaccounted for. With that kind of overstaffing,
no wonder they were losing money, with a bit of house cleaning, they could
have made money.


In the 1970s, I bought thousands of dollars worth of hand tools for working
on cars. Good stuff - still have and use it. The big debate of the day was if
Snap-On was worth their premium over Craftsman. Most of my friends did what I
did - Craftsman by default, Snap-On only if necessary.
The last technical thing I bought from Sears was an ordinary hose for
compressed air, probably 10 or 15 years ago. It was well made, but I
could’t get the hose to attach securely to threaded compressed air
connectors, like the Universal and IR and the like. It turned out that the
hose was equipped with oxygen fittings. My guess was that Sears had laid off
all the expensive grumpy old men who knew the difference, and who knew how to
use every tool Sears sold, and the newly-hired bright-eyed young thing
didn’t realize that air and oxygen are not quite the same thing.

I’d hazard that the self-defeating layoffs may have been a part of the
closing of the Catalog division.

Returned the hose, bought a Goodyear air hose from Home Depot. This hose
worked right from the box.

My guess that the Craftsman line will do better under Stanley/B&D, for all
their sins. At least Stanley/B&D know what an air hose is for. I wonder how
those bright-eyed young things will do under the new management.


Joe Gwinn
From past experience, B&D could be the death knell for Craftsman. The
only thing B&D does well is marketing.

On Fri, 6 Jan 2017 15:52:47 -0600, Leon lcb11211@swbelldotnet wrote:

On 1/6/2017 3:00 PM, Jack wrote:
On 1/6/2017 10:57 AM, John McCoy wrote:

I think Sears will go out of business shortly.

I agree with you. I don't think they have a clue how to
solve their problems - they're still trying to figure out
"how do we compete with Walmart", when the world has moved
on and the real competition is the likes of Dollar General
(and, of course, Amazon).

I recently mentioned I was looking to replace my Sony earphones. Amazon
doubled the price from $14 to $27, plus shipping. I finally found them
online at Walmart for $14 and free shipping. Walmart knows whats up,
and if Amazon isn't careful, it will be in the bag with Sears/Kmart.




Not everything purchased through Amazon is supplied or sold by Amazon.
There are thousands of retailers selling their goods on Amazon and they
ship direct from their stores, and they have all different prices and
many are not even in the ball park of being competitively priced.
But being aligned with Amazon, the (sheeple) public are convinced
they are getting the deal of the century - just because they bought it
online from Amazon - - - - - - .

On Fri, 6 Jan 2017 19:06:06 -0500, Ed Pawlowski wrote:

On 1/6/2017 3:46 PM, Leon wrote:


Not to disparage you guys, but you are basically saying Sears should
have been able to predict the future. Everything would be better if
we could all do that. Sears did not predict the future so they did
not use their catalog business to become the major retail seller of
the future. If that is the logic you are using then we are all idiots
because we did not invent Apple before Jobs and Wozniak did in 1976.
Why didn't you know computers and mobile phones and online was the
future? Are you stupid? Who sitting here today knew that buying
stuff from home using a computer was the future? Shopping in stores
was out?


I think you hit the nail on the head.

Monday morning quarter backing is easy but non provable.

No, this is not Monday morning, it is 16 years too late. Amazon stated
in 1994. Sears let many Mondays pass and is still not an internet
presence. They (and many others) ignored what was going on around them.

Auto dealers were losing ground and finally caught on a few years back.
My last car was bought at a dealer in 15 minutes after using on line
sources to get the best price. I sat down with the salesman he made an
offer. I told him what the numbers had to be and he said "no". I
showed him the numbers on my phone and in two minutes he met the deal.
The horseless carriage was just a novelty, as was the telephone,
television and most every advance and new technology.

I'm going to check out them new fax machines. I understand you can send
copies of things in minutes to another machine.
Hang on - 3dfax is coming - -

On 1/6/17 5:55 PM, woodchucker wrote:
On 1/6/2017 4:00 PM, Jack wrote:
On 1/6/2017 10:57 AM, John McCoy wrote:

I think Sears will go out of business shortly.

I agree with you. I don't think they have a clue how to
solve their problems - they're still trying to figure out
"how do we compete with Walmart", when the world has moved
on and the real competition is the likes of Dollar General
(and, of course, Amazon).

I recently mentioned I was looking to replace my Sony earphones. Amazon
doubled the price from $14 to $27, plus shipping. I finally found them
online at Walmart for $14 and free shipping. Walmart knows whats up,
and if Amazon isn't careful, it will be in the bag with Sears/Kmart.



I don't think so. I have a peeve with Amazon. Originally free shipping
over $25.. then they moved it to $35, and quickly thereafter to $49... I
understand the $35, but the $49 was not necessary. It was to make you
buy into PRIME.. and that's where my disdain lies. I understood when
they said in order for them to remain profitable they had to move to
$35.. That I got..


I bought Prime and will never look back.
I think I got my money's worth in the first month.
Worth every penny and more.


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

On Fri, 6 Jan 2017 19:13:13 -0500, Ed Pawlowski wrote:

On 1/6/2017 4:20 PM, John McCoy wrote:


Of course, having the albatros of K-Mart hanging around their
neck hasn't helped.

John


But K-Mart bought Sears. Double albatross. K-Mart was always a
discounter but maybe 10 or so years ago they seemed to carry cheaper,
lower quality merchandise.
The biggest problem with K-Mart stores around here was they never
had stock on the shelves.

Same problem with Target for the short time they were here. The
shelves were half empty, and their prices were nowhere near what the
prices were in US stores. Not only that, but they didn't even PRETEND
to carry half of the products Canadians used to cross the border to
buy at Target stores.

They could have had a large portion of Walmart's lunch, along with
quite a few other stores if they had done it right - - -

On Fri, 06 Jan 2017 23:54:16 +0000, Puckdropper wrote:

If I had my way about it, the foot would be measured and the shoe would
be specified to fit the measurements of the foot. The dimensions would
be inches or centimeters, not whatever measurement the manufacturer
decided to use today. Now you know your 25.5cm by 7.76cm (length by max
width across the ball of the foot) foot will likely match a 26cmx8cm
shoe.

Some of the shoe makers are discussing using 3D printing to do exactly
that.


--
Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!

woodchucker wrote:
On 1/5/2017 11:37 PM, wrote:
On 06 Jan 2017 04:03:05 GMT, Puckdropper
puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:

wrote in
:



Closing a bunch on stores too, it will not belong till it goes under.

http://fortune.com/2017/01/05/sears-kmart-closings/



I heard that they were considering groceries ...
" stick a fork in that one - I think it's done .. "
John T.


Sears struck me as a company that didn't realize who their competition
was. Prices/quality just aren't competitive with other stores,
especially on common hand tools like levels.

Puckdropper
You mean they didn't play the "compete on price only" game???
Sears didn't kill sears. Nor did Walmart. Nor did the Internet. The
North American Public killed Sears. And are the poorer for it, when
you get right down to brass tacks.


I disagree. Sears had a big hand in it. And yes the public did too.
But they did it because Sears was not servicing their needs. I grew up
on Long Island they had a store in Hicksville. Their largest from what I
understand. My dad and I were there 2 - 3 times a week. They had
hardware and tools. Then the hardware disappeared. Then the tool area
got really small. They were more interested in soft goods. Well
without the hardware we were now going every couple of weeks. You see
to us, that was their loss leader to get us in the store. My dad often
bought tools he didn't need because they were caught his interest while
he was there for hardware.

When I was in my 20's and now in NJ I needed to replace a broken breaker
bar, and some ratchets that didn't work. The salesman gave me a hard
time and told me that I should buy a 1/2 breaker bar since the 3/8
failed. I had to argue to get my just deserved warranty.. He said if it
broke I was miss using it, and it was too undersized. I had decided
that was too much work to get what was promised.

I also fell prey to the Die Hard battery scam. My short lived very
expensive car battery, that died hard and the pro rating wound up
costing me heavily for another battery that lasted a short time. I
replaced that with an Exide and was happy (1980s). I remember reading a
few years later that there was a scam of used or dead batteries being
given as new.. it's so long ago, I am sketchy on the details. But they
were charged and did face the charges. They admitted nothing, but would
offer something to people who were affected... Guilty as far as I am
concerned.

I abandoned Sears when the terminal fell off my nearly new battery. I
took it back and the manager refused to replace it. He said, "read
the warranty--it says only ability to hold a charge. You are not
claiming that." To his credit, the mechanic told me to give him a few
minutes. He went in and came back with a new battery and replaced it.

--
GW Ross

On Fri, 6 Jan 2017 15:52:47 -0600, Leon lcb11211@swbelldotnet wrote:

On 1/6/2017 3:00 PM, Jack wrote:
On 1/6/2017 10:57 AM, John McCoy wrote:

I think Sears will go out of business shortly.

I agree with you. I don't think they have a clue how to
solve their problems - they're still trying to figure out
"how do we compete with Walmart", when the world has moved
on and the real competition is the likes of Dollar General
(and, of course, Amazon).

I recently mentioned I was looking to replace my Sony earphones. Amazon
doubled the price from $14 to $27, plus shipping. I finally found them
online at Walmart for $14 and free shipping. Walmart knows whats up,
and if Amazon isn't careful, it will be in the bag with Sears/Kmart.




Not everything purchased through Amazon is supplied or sold by Amazon.
There are thousands of retailers selling their goods on Amazon and they
ship direct from their stores, and they have all different prices and
many are not even in the ball park of being competitively priced.

You can order something on Amazon and never get it, high thread count
Egyptian cotton sheets never ever showed. Now Amazon is going after
the counterfeiters, after how many years of letting them ply their
trade goods.

Soon if Amazon has its way there will be floating wharehouse dropping
their drones out to deliver. (That plan is pie in da sky)

On Fri, 6 Jan 2017 18:55:28 -0500, woodchucker
wrote:

On 1/6/2017 4:00 PM, Jack wrote:
On 1/6/2017 10:57 AM, John McCoy wrote:

I think Sears will go out of business shortly.

I agree with you. I don't think they have a clue how to
solve their problems - they're still trying to figure out
"how do we compete with Walmart", when the world has moved
on and the real competition is the likes of Dollar General
(and, of course, Amazon).

I recently mentioned I was looking to replace my Sony earphones. Amazon
doubled the price from $14 to $27, plus shipping. I finally found them
online at Walmart for $14 and free shipping. Walmart knows whats up,
and if Amazon isn't careful, it will be in the bag with Sears/Kmart.



I don't think so. I have a peeve with Amazon. Originally free shipping
over $25.. then they moved it to $35, and quickly thereafter to $49... I
understand the $35, but the $49 was not necessary. It was to make you
buy into PRIME.. and that's where my disdain lies. I understood when
they said in order for them to remain profitable they had to move to
$35.. That I got..

Amazon sent me a Visa card, never activated it they then charge the
$99 prime membership to the card.

Other than the Amazon cloud services the company has not been
profitable, how long till that catches up.

On 06 Jan 2017 23:54:16 GMT, Puckdropper
puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:

John McCoy wrote in
1:


Probably worth noting (since we're all dudes here) that this
is something women have suffered with for years. No two makers
of ladieswear use quite the same set of sizes - my girlfriend
can be a 4, 6, or 8, a XS, S, or M, and never knows until she
starts trying stuff on.

John


It's the same way with shoes. People keep insisting shoe sizes are the
same, but that just doesn't match my reality. I just sent back a size 9
boot to trade for an 8.5, but I have a 9.5 shoe that fits perfectly. The
boots I'm wearing now are 10's.

If I had my way about it, the foot would be measured and the shoe would
be specified to fit the measurements of the foot. The dimensions would
be inches or centimeters, not whatever measurement the manufacturer
decided to use today. Now you know your 25.5cm by 7.76cm (length by max
width across the ball of the foot) foot will likely match a 26cmx8cm
shoe.

There is an Irish shoe maker who will take a mold of your foot, make a
last and make your shoes. Cost though...

On Fri, 6 Jan 2017 19:11:06 -0500, woodchucker
wrote:

I disagree. Sears had a big hand in it. And yes the public did too.
But they did it because Sears was not servicing their needs. I grew up
on Long Island they had a store in Hicksville. Their largest from what I
understand. My dad and I were there 2 - 3 times a week. They had
hardware and tools. Then the hardware disappeared. Then the tool area
got really small. They were more interested in soft goods. Well
without the hardware we were now going every couple of weeks. You see
to us, that was their loss leader to get us in the store. My dad often
bought tools he didn't need because they were caught his interest while
he was there for hardware.

When I was in my 20's and now in NJ I needed to replace a broken breaker
bar, and some ratchets that didn't work. The salesman gave me a hard
time and told me that I should buy a 1/2 breaker bar since the 3/8
failed. I had to argue to get my just deserved warranty.. He said if it
broke I was miss using it, and it was too undersized. I had decided
that was too much work to get what was promised.

I also fell prey to the Die Hard battery scam. My short lived very
expensive car battery, that died hard and the pro rating wound up
costing me heavily for another battery that lasted a short time. I
replaced that with an Exide and was happy (1980s). I remember reading a
few years later that there was a scam of used or dead batteries being
given as new.. it's so long ago, I am sketchy on the details. But they
were charged and did face the charges. They admitted nothing, but would
offer something to people who were affected... Guilty as far as I am
concerned.

My remembrance of Sears from childhood was walk into the Golf Mill
anchor and getting warm roasted cashews.

On Friday, January 6, 2017 at 6:13:15 PM UTC-6, Ed Pawlowski wrote:

But K-Mart bought Sears. Double albatross. K-Mart was always a
discounter but maybe 10 or so years ago they seemed to carry cheaper,
lower quality merchandise.

I'm not positive exactly how the K-Mart Sears combination occurred. Eddie Lampert the investor hedge fund manager bought one or the other. Then decided to buy the other. Mainly for the real estate assets. Not the retail sales. So you cannot say Sears or K-Mart bought the other. A third party, Lampert, bought both separately. And they ended up linked. Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway bought GEICO insurance and BNSF railroad. You can't really say GEICO and BNSF bought each other.

Its been 10-15 years since I've been in Sears or K-Mart stores. I still like my Craftsman wrenches and other tools. Good quality to me.

On Fri, 06 Jan 2017 19:34:51 -0600, Markem
wrote:

On 06 Jan 2017 23:54:16 GMT, Puckdropper
puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:

John McCoy wrote in
:


Probably worth noting (since we're all dudes here) that this
is something women have suffered with for years. No two makers
of ladieswear use quite the same set of sizes - my girlfriend
can be a 4, 6, or 8, a XS, S, or M, and never knows until she
starts trying stuff on.

John


It's the same way with shoes. People keep insisting shoe sizes are the
same, but that just doesn't match my reality. I just sent back a size 9
boot to trade for an 8.5, but I have a 9.5 shoe that fits perfectly. The
boots I'm wearing now are 10's.

If I had my way about it, the foot would be measured and the shoe would
be specified to fit the measurements of the foot. The dimensions would
be inches or centimeters, not whatever measurement the manufacturer
decided to use today. Now you know your 25.5cm by 7.76cm (length by max
width across the ball of the foot) foot will likely match a 26cmx8cm
shoe.

There is an Irish shoe maker who will take a mold of your foot, make a
last and make your shoes. Cost though...
A guy I went to school with did exactly that - he was a custom she
maker who catered mostly to those with "difficult feet". Too bad he
has turned into a total drunk. He was always a bit of a pompous ass
when he was sober - and he's gotten a lot worse

On 1/6/2017 6:55 PM, woodchucker wrote:

I don't think so. I have a peeve with Amazon. Originally free shipping
over $25.. then they moved it to $35, and quickly thereafter to $49... I
understand the $35, but the $49 was not necessary. It was to make you
buy into PRIME.. and that's where my disdain lies. I understood when
they said in order for them to remain profitable they had to move to
$35.. That I got..


I'm surprised Bezos let you see the books to determine that. How much
profit do they make on a $35 order so they can give you free shipping?

I placed 56 order in 2016 so Prime works for me. Listen to Prime music
too.