As you might recall, Craftsman has come out with a new Versastack tool bag that connects to Versastack and presumably also Dewalt Tstak modular tool boxes. Well, good luck trying to buy one.
I went through the trouble of visiting the three closest Lowe’s stores a couple of times these past two weeks, not just to spot the new Craftsman tool bag, but it was one of the things I was looking for. No luck.
One of my local Lowe’s stores has also moved or hidden their display of Craftsman Versastack mechanics tool sets, and the others don’t seem to have put them out yet. That’s understandable, I guess, since these will be discounted for Black Friday.
The new Craftsman tool bag is also being reported as out of stock many places online. One store a couple of towns over is said to have two in stock. A couple of towns further than that and there are three in stock.
I looked at my “gift center” photos, and it turns out that my closest Lowe’s store actually did have these tool bags in stock. Shown above is the lone tool bag I photographed on the first or second day after the gift center was set up. That display is long-gone.
Technically I could order one online, but Lowe’s wants $79 freight shipping. This might seem shocking, and it is, but what it really means – or at least strongly suggests – is that Lowe’s doesn’t have any of the tool bags in their warehouses and that they can only pull stock from local stores.
Maybe more is on the way? However, it’s late-November with Black Friday just days away. If stores don’t have inventory in-hand now, the chances are slim that they’re getting more any time soon
Over the weekend I saw a lot of social media “influencers” oohing and aahing about their new Versastack tool bags. Maybe they’re sponsored posts, who knows these days, few people ever disclose their monetary connections anymore. That’s what prompted me to check local inventories yet again.
If you were hoping to get one, check online first. Or skip Lowe’s and Craftsman and head to Home Depot, where they always have ample supplies of popular Husky tool brands. Still, it seems like a convenient DIYer combo to fill up a Versastack tool bag and stack it on top of the new Craftsman mechanics tool kit.
There’s also Milwaukee’s heavier duty Packout tool bag and box system, but that’s overkill for DIYers or homeowners shopping on a budget. Plus, they don’t yet have a drawer setup similar to Craftsman’s.
I asked our Craftsman and Dewalt contact whether we’ll see any of these new Craftsman Versastack products in Dewalt colors. Maybe that’s why Lowe’s supply has been so slim? But, wouldn’t we have seen it by now?
It’s unclear as to whether only a couple of stores in our region received the new Craftsman Versastack tool bags, or stores quickly sold out of what they had. What’s the situation at your Lowe’s stores? I checked a couple of different zip codes, and it seems some stores have either 0 2-4 in stock.
$40 seems steep for a Craftsman tool bag. If they did sell out quickly, who’s buying them – Craftsman Versastack tool storage system owners or Dewalt Tstak users?
Why doesn’t Lowe’s have any Craftsman Versastack tool bags?
A) They sent them all to “influencers.”
B) They only ordered a couple each for select stores.
C) Craftsman could only supply a couple each for select stores.
D) They sold out FAST.
There’s also the question of why Lowe’s doesn’t seem to have any available for online shipping and only truck delivery (which carries a $79 fee around here). This – Lowe’s inability to fulfill online orders via normal ground shipping means – also suggests that either Lowe’s didn’t order ample supplies, or Craftsman had supply constraints.
There aren’t enough of these tool bags to stock warehouses to fulfill online orders?
Did they only send tool bags to Lowe’s stores with a history of strong Versastack/Tstak sales?
And as a reminder, the new Craftsman Versastack mechanics tool set will be a Lowe’s Black Friday 2019 special buy at $99. Home Depot’s Black Friday 2019 Husky mechanics tool sets give you more tools for the same money, but that Versastack tool box looks to be an upgrade over traditional blow-molded cases.
