Simplicity, Snapper, & Wal-Mart

[xenon172]

This is a pretty good article worth reading. It's probably been posted a while back but if you haven't seen it I think the views of most members are nicely expressed. http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/102/open_snapper.html?page=0%2C0

[RayS]

Yeah old business. Now Briggs is selling them at Sears. Atleast they have a service department.

I like the black!

[Willy]

It least they are trying to disguise them black paint and a John Deere yellow seat.:D

[JimDk]

They were actually Pittsburgh Steelers' tractors. After the Steelers played so poorly in the Super Bowl, Sears took the decals off, but retained the black and gold.:D:D:D

[Kent]

That appears to be the Snapper variant being sold at Sears, since it has front/rear anti-scalp wheels on the deck, rather than the floating deck with rear rollers... At least they're calling it the "Premium Professional" model...:O:D

[RayS]

Its a black Prestige. The 54" decks have anti scalp on each front corner. The deck does pivot with the front axle like on my Prestige.

[Kent]

quote:

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Originally posted by RayS
Its a black Prestige. The 54" decks have anti scalp on each front corner. The deck does pivot with the front axle like on my Prestige.

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Here's what I was talking about Ray... no rollers. That's the way the Snapper decks look... this may be a hybrid deck design, or something. [img]http://s.shld.net/is/image/Sears/071_28985_DeckFtr?hei=600&wid=600&op_sharpen=1&qlt=90,0&resMode=sharp&op_usm=0.9,0.5,0,0[/img]

[TommyK]

I find this quote significant and can be applied to anything sold at the Bentonville Big Box: "If you know nothing about maintaining a mower, Wal-Mart has helped make that ignorance irrelevant: At even $138, the lawn mowers at Wal-Mart are cheap enough to be disposable. " Is there any wonder that our landfills are literally overflowing with cast off yard and home appliances with barely a season's worth of use? When a product has been cheapened to the point it no longer functions well, or lasts barely a season, it's been 'walmartized.' Jim Wier is a very smart man. I read a story about how the good folks at Vlasic pickles nearly went bankrupt meeting WalMutts at the crossroads at midnight. Remember those pallets filled with gallon jugs of Vlasic Kosher Dills which greeted you as you entered the store, a couple decades ago? I loved them! $2 (if my memory serves me... but sometimes it don't), but the price was great! But the president of Vlasic didn't sleep well at night for a few years. The execs at Vlasic didn't see the train at the end of the tunnel. I also read a story about how Nelson, the yard sprinkler company, was forced to move production off shore to meet Walmutts' pricing and production demands. Thank God, Wier didn't allow Snapper and Simplicity to get walmartized. The good folks at McDonough, Ga. ought to hug that man.

[RayS]

Yep, it is the same 54" deck as in the link below without the roller bar. http://www.simplicitymfg.com/products/yard-and-garden-tractors/prestige/

[Burntime]

That should not be that hard to add?

[dentwizz]

I wonder how many of them will be showing up over here? Thanks for the heads up to look for our under-cover brethren:p

[SmilinSam]

Our Sears has had a run of the Snapper versions of the Regent, but nothing bigger as of yet.

[RayS]

quote:

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Originally posted by dentwizz
I wonder how many of them will be showing up over here? Thanks for the heads up to look for our under-cover brethren:p

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Probably not many. They cost more than you can buy a Simplicity from a dealer.

[ezliving4ume]

The deck kinda reminds me of the AC130 deck. I think if simplicity can rebrand there tractors, keep cost the same and not lose the quality its a win, win for every one. Why wouldn't a simplicity dealer want to service a craftsman or allis? We all know this is not a new business strategy by simplicity they were doing it back in the 60's