Something is happening at Porter-Cable. Remember them? I do, because my Dad exclusively used their routers for as long as I can remember. But PC has been quiet for a LONG time. Their Instagram suddenly came to life only 24 weeks ago, after being completely silent for 3 years.
The last time they posted a YouTube video was 4 years ago. Porter-Cable still has a fan base of users, who have been fairly vocal about a lack of availability. Many have been threatening to give up on the storied American Brand for years. But this morning, we may have good news for Porter-Cable fans. It looks like the sleeping giant just might be waking up. Let’s go.
This morning, Porter Cable announced a new partnership with Tractor Supply Company, a popular American retail chain focused on home improvement, agriculture, lawn and garden, livestock, and equine and pet care. With over 1,900 stores across the country, Tractor Supply is within a few hundred locations of either Home Depot or Lowes and considering their target demographic, this makes a ton of sense for Porter-Cable.
You’ll still be able to find Porter Cable online, but as of today, TSC will be their exclusive retail destination.
But what does this partnership really mean? Well, TSC has committed to expanding their tool aisle, and at the same time, Porter-Cable has committed to expanding their line of tools, with the understanding that the new tools, coming in 2022, will be exclusively available at Tractor Supply.
It would be easy to dismiss this news as “another exclusive carrier deal”, but Tractor Supply is not a small store. They’re huge. They’re the biggest rural lifestyle retailers in the country. And Stanley Black and Decker, PC’s parent company, could have just put DeWALT in there. Instead, they’re clearly reinvesting in a brand that has been quiet, for way too long. This feels like good news to me.
But I’ll feel a lot better when the new tool announcements get here in 2022. Hang in there Porter Cable fans, this may just be the revival you’ve been waiting for.