Retail
giant Sears is seriously considering ending
its 16-year-long relationship with home improvement guru Bob Vila. In his place would be stud-of-the-moment Ty
Pennington. Pennington and Sears aren't exactly strangers to begin with. The store sponsors his show Extreme
Makeover: Home Edition and Craftsman is the tool brand of choice on the show. Right now Pennington has done
various advertising for Sears and has a line of soft goods bearing his name in Sears outlets. The shift is based on the
fact that Pennington's show, along with his previous stint on Trading Spaces, has given him such exposure
that he's a household name. Despite the potential (eventual?) split with Vila it doesn't seem there are any plans for
Pennington to begin hawking Craftsman tools outside of their use on the show. The concern seems to be that he's too
"touchy-feely" for the Craftsman crowd.Sears Dropping Bob for Ty
Retail
giant Sears is seriously considering ending
its 16-year-long relationship with home improvement guru Bob Vila. In his place would be stud-of-the-moment Ty
Pennington. Pennington and Sears aren't exactly strangers to begin with. The store sponsors his show Extreme
Makeover: Home Edition and Craftsman is the tool brand of choice on the show. Right now Pennington has done
various advertising for Sears and has a line of soft goods bearing his name in Sears outlets. The shift is based on the
fact that Pennington's show, along with his previous stint on Trading Spaces, has given him such exposure
that he's a household name. Despite the potential (eventual?) split with Vila it doesn't seem there are any plans for
Pennington to begin hawking Craftsman tools outside of their use on the show. The concern seems to be that he's too
"touchy-feely" for the Craftsman crowd.Reader Comments
(Page 3)42. GET NORM!!!!!
Posted at 8:18AM on Mar 5th 2006 by James Doggett
43. I love them both, Bob Villa is Sears, dont get rid of him just make things that benefit people in need and get a side kick or a helper With Ty's energy and kindness to show where the stuff Bob makes will go. People helping people, that is what I enjoy watching.
Posted at 8:20AM on Mar 5th 2006 by V. Kahlenbeck
44. KEEP BOB EMPLOYED, TY IS OK AND HE KEEPS BUSY ENOUGH WITHOUT BUMPINB BOB.....BOB IS DEPENDABLE AND TRUSTWORTHY AND SOMEONE YOU WOULD GO TO IN "REAL-LIFE" TO GET ADVICE FROM, BECAUSE HE HAS BEEN THERE, DONE THAT!
Posted at 8:20AM on Mar 5th 2006 by susan
45. when mr. bob Leaves Sears so shall I
Posted at 8:24AM on Mar 5th 2006 by Stan
46. Watch whatever show you want, dream of marrying Ty and partnering Norm With Bob if you must. But buy DeWalt and Milwaukee tools - Snap On's when you can, and forget about Craftsman brand crap.
Posted at 8:24AM on Mar 5th 2006 by BigB392
47. I feel that Sears is an out of date store..it needs to close its doors, They canned many employees when nearing retirement...and are probably still doing so...sell the tools online and put us all out of our misery.
Posted at 8:29AM on Mar 5th 2006 by karen gryb
48. The world has changed. So must SEARS.
SEARS advertising dollars must gain market share, grow their customer base, and keep pace with competition. Not that long ago, if you thought about tools, you thought about SEARS. Stores such as HOME DEPOT and LOWES continue to steal SEAR's thunder.
Bob's been a solid player for SEARS, but he's yesterday's news. He isn't going to add the next generation of consumers to SEARS. And face it, gentlemen, none of us learned our carpentry skills as a result of Bob's SEARS commercials.
Ty's charisma appeals to the next generation of SEARS shoppers. He is a credible player for SEARS in home and apparel, not just tools and appliances. Time for a change? I think so. Sorry, Bob.
Posted at 8:29AM on Mar 5th 2006 by Greg
49. My husband used to run a tool department in Sears and had the chance to meet Bob Vila at the store grand opening. Bob was signing autographs, all for women and all over their body parts. My husband tells me that a man brought in a drill and told Bob that the "chuck was stuck" and Bob looked at him blankly and told him he did not know what he was talking about. My husband stepped in at that point to assist the man. My husband remembers Bob as a rude man who did not even bother to shake hands with the Sears employees who assisted him throughout the day.
Posted at 8:29AM on Mar 5th 2006 by linda
50. do what ever you want, what people say really dosen't matter. you will do it anyway. i like bob villa and who in the heck is this guy ty. funny
Posted at 8:32AM on Mar 5th 2006 by bob
51. I LOVE BOB Vila. I guess it stems from when I was raising my children and my son use to watch him. As a 4 year old he would drop whatever he was doing to run to the TV if good ole BOB was on. He inspired a love of creating, building and can-do spirit in him. I would love to see more regular THIS OLD HOUSE episodes. I miss 1/2 of them doing a house because they put them on so sporatically.
Posted at 8:32AM on Mar 5th 2006 by Marge Reich
52. To get rid of Bob Villa is like taking the name off of Sears poducts. Kenmore is to Sears as Bob Villa's name is to Sears. I'm sorry, Ty is good at what he does on Extreme Makeover but Bob is for the professional craftsman. If you have to shout, then someone is not listing!!!!!!!
Posted at 8:32AM on Mar 5th 2006 by Ron Gurney
53. I've enjoyed watching Bob for many years also. To anyone who has never watched Extreme Makeover, you're missing heartfelt help given to people who need it, and deserve it. Sears backs Ty on it and I don't see why he can't replace Bob. Keep Bob around as a mentor of sorts.
Posted at 8:33AM on Mar 5th 2006 by m. hughes
54. I LOVE BOB Vila. I guess it stems from when I was raising my children and my son use to watch him. As a 4 year old he would drop whatever he was doing to run to the TV if good ole BOB was on. He inspired a love of creating, building and can-do spirit in him. I would love to see more regular THIS OLD HOUSE episodes. I miss 1/2 of them doing a house because they put them on so sporatically.
Posted at 8:37AM on Mar 5th 2006 by Marge Reich
55. People who think Bob Vila and Tom and those guys don't know what they're doing are wrong. Yeah, the holes are probably pre-drilled at this stage of the game; those guys have drilled tens of thousands of holes by now. The same way Julia Childs started a lot of steps in the kitchen, but had numerous versions prepared to different stages; the coq au vin might actually take 4 hours to make at home, but you could watch Julia do it in 30 minutes, because in a sense she pre-drilled the holes, too. I don't watch the show to see how to drill holes, I watch it to get answers no one else can give: things I couldn't figure out and the guy I hired couldn't figure out. I also like Ty, he's made his mark by doing great things for people in trouble. But Ty's stuff is all dream stuff -- no one is ever going to come into my house and do an "extreme makeover." I am going to have to drill holes and put up wallboard and fix pipes and re-wire electricity on a shoestring myself and Bob Vila is going to help me way more than Ty ever will. I say keep them both, they are both important to Sears and to the public for what they represent.
Posted at 8:38AM on Mar 5th 2006 by Kathi Sweetman
56. Ty is a little too demonstrative for my tastes. Would you really want him running and flinging his arms around your house, showing you how to repair things? Bob Villa exudes confidence and stability. He's the guy for me. And, I don't want to seem mean but, what's with that strange brown, off centered patch of hair that hangs under Ty Pennington's lower lip? He'd look much better without it. When I look at him (not a bad looking guy overall), it's all I see.
Posted at 8:44AM on Mar 5th 2006 by Teddy Brickner
57. I love to sit down with my husband and watch "This old house" and I feel very confident that Bob Villa is giving us the best of the best. I am not interested in watch someone like Ty acting a fool and screaming, if I wanted that I would watch a comedy show not a "how to do it show". What a sad idea to replace the best experience with just youth.
Posted at 8:45AM on Mar 5th 2006 by Victoria
58. I was a worker on one of the extreme makeover shows and to say Ty works on the show is foolish. He does nothing. We the helpers do all the work and he takes the credit for it.
Posted at 8:45AM on Mar 5th 2006 by frank
59. I am an Union Carpenter from St. Louis and I NEVER did like Bob Villa. They should have replaced him a long time ago. I hate the way he touches everything. I would love to see all his bloopers. I be there is 10 years worth at 40 hours per day,7 days a week. Wow thats alot of bloopers. I'm not sad to see him go. John
Posted at 8:49AM on Mar 5th 2006 by John
60. Drop Bob and I drop Sears
Posted at 8:49AM on Mar 5th 2006 by A J Hough
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41. Bob Villa typically appeals to the men, while Ty appeals to the women ... Sears has the best of both worlds here. I don't know why they would consider changing that.
Posted at 8:14AM on Mar 5th 2006 by Tammie