@rplst8 posted:Lionel is doing a fine job of ruining their own reputation, so I don’t think they have much to worry about.
You can buy knock off parts (filters, batteries, cartridges, accessories, etc.) for thousands of products (appliances included) already on Amazon or a hundred other places. If ruined reputations were really a problem, I think the market place would show it.
instead, companies remain shortsighted, and concerned only about the bottom line, rather than the long term prospects of their business. They find ways to cheapen every aspect of their products to save pennies per unit, turning them into cheap, unrepairable throwaway garbage, that clog landfills and use up scarce resources.
Name a single US appliance manufacturer that isn’t a shell of what it once was 40 years ago, now often just renting their name out to a third party who actually makes the goods.
Yet, you expect a 100-year-old low volume toy manufacturer in a decaying (no offense) market to magically be immune from all the market realities you just listed….all the while they should just give away what little remaining technology they have “for the benefit of the hobby.” Gulp. They’re not “doing a fine job of ruining their own reputation”, they’re trying to survive.
As an aside, your analysis of the US appliance market is also way off base. There is still lots of US made stuff under the traditional brands - Whirlpool, Maytag, Kitchenaid, Jennair, GE, etc. - admittedly under brand consolidation, but still US designed and built.
