The Snap-on Wrench Company was born in the 1920’s by Joseph Johnson and William Seidemann. The dual manufactured a set of ten sockets that would “snap on” to five interchangeable handles. Believing that they had an innovative product that would help all auto mechanics, the pair took the set to an auto repair shop along Michigan Avenue and presented their revolutionary tools to the auto community with the marketing slogan “Five Do the Work of Fifty.” It was this slogan that led them to sell six-hundred-and-fifty sets in their first sixteen days on the market (I’m not econ major but I do think that’s pretty impressive!). The company began to boom and soon after, Johnson and Seidemann enlisted the help of Stanton Palmer, who began taking the tools directly to the customer’s place of business and demonstrating the benefits of their tools. This inventive marketing approach was a great success and is still used by the company today.
In just eleven short years, (1931) the Snap-on company was able to enter the international arena. To commemorate this momentous event (But more in response to the Great Depression) the company began to offer its cliental interest free credit when they purchased tools. This is a practice still in use today (so long as the purchases are under a thousand dollars). In 1950, Snap-on expanded their concept and began to bring fully stocked walk-in vans to their customers. This van is now the pinnacle of most mechanics week, waiting in anticipation for the opportunity to blow their hard earned cash on pry bars, ratchets, or things that need to be calibrated!
Since its conception, Snap-on has stayed focused on its target market, avoiding forays into even related markets such as construction or home improvement. The focus has always been quality and customer relations. It wasn’t until early 1997 that the company opened their first retail outlet. Giving people who are not professional mechanics an opportunity to buy Snap on tools for themselves, or as gifts (But in order to give a gift you need to know what the junkie has and doesn’t have, which proves to be a problem).
Yes, Snap-on does seem to be the tools of choice for both young and old. For a young mechanic, stepping onto the Snap-on truck and buying a new set of Snap-on wrenches or their first pry bar must be similar to the feeling a dancer must experiences when they go to buy their first pair of pointe shoes. (Yes, that’s right, I went there! I compared Snap-on to Pointe!! Deal with it!).
The definition of a pry bar (found from Dictionary.com) is as follows:
Noun1.pry bar - a heavy iron lever with one end forged into a wedge.
Now, with that vague of a description, I figured that this would be an easy blog, I was wrong there are three, count them, THREE different categories that you can fit these tools into Cats Paw, Pry Bar, and Wrecking Bar (Otherwise known as a Crow Bar). If you’re actually interested in what these three categories consist of, click here.
Pry bars actually come in a variety of different sizes, depending on how much leverage you need, and the size of the space that you need to get into.
So, why would I write a blog on Snap-on pry bars??? Well, I got this sweet 36” pry bar the other night and felt the need to enlighten the rest of the world about the magic that this company has to offer.
Oh yeah, I know just by looking at it you can tell, there is a difference!
Snap-on Facts
- Measured by number of vans on the road, Snap-on owns 60 percent of the business. Mac Tools (Snap-on’s nearest competitor) has 13 percent
- Snap-on also makes an appearance in the movie Swordfish as well as other key television shows, such as American Chopper.
- Snap-on employs approximately 11,500 people worldwide.
- The company is currently worth about 2.4 billion dollars US.
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