The way we sold Sears was that any product that was labeled “Sears Best”, “Roadhandler”, “Diehard”, or “Craftsman”, etc. was because they were the best products in the store, and that Sears had contracted with the to make them better than their own product line and that manufacturer could not sell that product under their own name.
It was so easy to sell up because they had better warranties, lasted longer, and there was pride in the product line as opposed to just a bunch of different brands lined up to see which one caught the buyers eye.
Did you know that ACE Hardware now carries Craftsman Tools? I don’t think they are affiliated with Sears or KMart though.