HF is happy that some customers wont be returning.
... because HF has so many fish on their line, the few who decide they want something better won't make a dent in the "Buy it cheap, use it today, when it breaks, buy another" crowd.
There was a company by the name of Lash Tamaron. Chinese toy maker, and a wholly owned subsidiary of Toys R us... they would mass produce stuff so cheap for their parent company, they were considered pure profit - make for .3 cents (as in 3/10ths of a cent), sell for $19.99...
It's no different than HF. They make stuff for fractional cents on the dollar in their wholly owned overseas factories, and sell it to you for what you think is a bargain basement price, all the while they're laughing their way to the bank, because what you got as a bargain for $89.95 cost them 89¢ to make, another <1¢ to ship by the containerful (on their own ships)... They maybe have $2.00 invested in that "bargain with a coupon $89.95 tool"...
I'm not saying the products are trash (hell, ask the Chinese Barbies), but the reality is they're a 10¢ tool you paid $10 for. Will they do the job? probably yes, maybe no, and if it breaks, you (rich American) will go out and spend $10 in gas and time to get it exchanged, or more likely, just buy a new one because you're in a hurry to get the job done...
I'm not saying stuff like Snap-on won't break, but part of that horrific high price is a bet that it will last longer, and not cost you time to go to the store to exchange it.
It's like going to Monte Carlo (or buying life insurance)... you put your bet down, take your chances. The more you pay, the better your chances, but even then, like life insurance, there's no guarantee. And that cheap term insurance when you're 30? When you hit the "term", your insurance is over, all the money you spent over the past 45 years belongs to the company, and you get... zilch.
But that's thread drift.
