Duracell Buys Garrity Industries

metalhed

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You can read the press release here.

I'm slightly puzzled by this acquisition. :thinking:

I wouldn't think that Garrity's distribution system has any real benefit to a company like Duracell...and I don't exactly equate Garrity with cutting-edge flashlight designs. Most of the stuff I've seen of theirs is imported from Asia.

Are they just buying a competitor? Where's the synergy here? I just don't see it.

Any opinions or insight on this you can share would be appreciated.
 

Brighteyez

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If you re-read the press release, I think you'll find the answer to your question.

Insofar as stuff imported from Asia, I see people on this site falling over each other to order stuff from merchants (within the US and abroad) that offer products imported from China that is sold without warranty. Don't you think their might be a market for a real American company to market goods that they import from China (rhetorical question.)

metalhed said:
You can read the press release here.

I'm slightly puzzled by this acquisition. :thinking:

I wouldn't think that Garrity's distribution system has any real benefit to a company like Duracell...and I don't exactly equate Garrity with cutting-edge flashlight designs. Most of the stuff I've seen of theirs is imported from Asia.

Are they just buying a competitor? Where's the synergy here? I just don't see it.

Any opinions or insight on this you can share would be appreciated.
 

mykall

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metalhed said:
You can read the press release here.

I'm slightly puzzled by this acquisition. :thinking:

I'm more puzzled by this statement from the article:

Known for its innovation, product quality and design, Garrity Industries offers some of the most technically advanced flashlights on the market


Does anyone think that Garrity offers technically advanced flahslights?
I really think they're just re-branded lights from abroad. Maybe Garrity owns their own facilities worldwide that P&G's Duracell will now have access to.

MB
 

Brighteyez

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Like Dorcy, they have a good chunk of the mainstream consumer market and it does open a path for Gillette/P&G to enter the flashlight market through the Duracell brand.

I suspect there may be a bit of a narrowed perception here with the various products that are not in the mainstream retail market. Their market demographic would be similar to that of brandings like Energizer, Ray O Vac, and Dorcy.

mykall said:
I'm more puzzled by this statement from the article:

Known for its innovation, product quality and design, Garrity Industries offers some of the most technically advanced flashlights on the market


Does anyone think that Garrity offers technically advanced flahslights?
I really think they're just re-branded lights from abroad. Maybe Garrity owns their own facilities worldwide that P&G's Duracell will now have access to.

MB
 

Empath

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Compared to Duracell's flashlight line-up, Garrity is worlds ahead technologically. Garrity was one of the first, in the lower price range, to offer LED products and useful household lighting products. Duracell's offering of novelty lights are at the best "cute", but impractical. Their D cell offering of household flashlights are barely beyond dollar store quality, but they're priced as if they're premium lights. Garrity's line could give them a jump start, if Garrity influences Duracell. If it's the other way around, and Duracell influences the Garrity line, then they'll stunt Garrity's offerings.
 

bfg9000

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Those are the two largest manufacturers of rubber flashlights in the world. As someone who likes rubber flashlights, I have plenty of examples from both so can share some observations:

Both use the same kind of cheap plastic clicky switch that is commonly found in cheap 6V lanterns. Both use riveted strips of copper and use the rivet heads themselves for the + battery terminal, just like you'd expect in a cheapo flashlight. They are pretty much equivalent in quality, but the Garrity costs less. Garrity has the unfortunate habit of putting patterns like a few fresnel lines on their lenses, that serve only to make the beam pattern funky. They also seem to facet only the tops of the reflectors (rather than only the bottom like Eveready) so the spot shows all the artifacts of a smooth reflector AND the spillbeam has this projected disco ball appearance. At least with an entirely faceted Dorcy you get a nice smooth spot with your disco light. The Duracells have a smooth reflector. Both have a lifetime warranty except for the Durabeam line so even Gilette knows those are junk (maybe simple press contacts work for Photon but a PR base should not be a contact for the switch...)

The original Garrity Tuff Lite had a rugged industrial appearance with sharp, square rubber blocks, and the Angle Head was ribbed. The 2nd generation from the '80s until very recently, had a melted chiclet appearance from the rounded blocks, and the new ones in stores now are very heavy and ribbed. I prefer the oldest ones because the 2nd gen had the funky lenses and the new ones are pretty heavy and clunky. The rubber Duracells are shaped like a peanut but have a small flat so can tailstand. In exchange for the ergonomics and syle they are very inefficient with space; the AA model is about the size of a 9P, for example.

But there's something to be said for a finish that looks new even after being dropped or thrown. Try that with a 9P.

And yes, this gives Gilette/Duracell access to much better LED lights than their archrival Schick Wilkinson-Sword/Energizer.
 

mykall

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bfg9000 said:
And yes, this gives Gilette/Duracell access to much better LED lights than their archrival Schick Wilkinson-Sword/Energizer.


As a flashaholic this really sounds like a "plasticy" all-out corporate fight for that last piece of dusty shelf space in the rear of "everything's a dollar" :crackup:

MB
 

bfg9000

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Well the pickins are pretty slim for the "Maglite is too expensive" crowd, but they do sell tens of thousands of these for each Surefire. Dorcy and Garrity at least carry Luxeon lights, so acquiring Garrity puts Duracell ahead of Energizer.

BTW Rayovac is owned by the same company that makes Remington shavers, so all three major battery manufacturers are in the shaver business!
 

metalhed

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mykall said:
As a flashaholic this really sounds like a "plasticy" all-out corporate fight for that last piece of dusty shelf space in the rear of "everything's a dollar"


I think you may have summed it up the best. I guess there is some value here for Duracell in terms of 'dollar store' shelf-space competition, and this eliminates a competitor in that space (economically speaking, since they will keep the brand.)

In doing additional research on this story, I did come up with a local article written about the issue; more from the perspective of how it will effect the local factory workers and economy.

Garrity Industries Being Sold To Giant Duracell


What's interesting about the article is this line...

"All Garrity products are made in Hopkinton."


Hmmm...and I always thought they were primarily importers. Guess I (we?) may be wrong on Garrity. I could swear I have one of their lights that looks just like imports I've seen. Anybody have any other info on Garrity?
 

Empath

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I stopped by a Fred Meyer this morning, and checked the country or origin of the different flashlights. They carry Garrity, Dorcy, Maglite, Energizer, Rayovac and Duracell. The only ones I found that indicated they were made in the U.S.A. was Maglite. The rest were all from China, Taiwan and India. I don't doubt that something is made in Hopkinton, but I've no idea what. I think the article is in error in their claim that all Garrity products are made in Hopkinton.
 

bfg9000

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Every Garrity I have, new or old, is stamped "Made in Thailand." They are my "lending" lights.

For those who do not know, Fred Meyer is owned by Kroger.
 
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