Kobalt is a line of
hand and mechanics' tools,
power tool
A power tool is a tool that is actuated by an additional power source and mechanism other than the solely manual labor used with hand tools. The most common types of power tools use electric motors. Internal combustion engines and compressed ...
s, and tool storage products owned by the
American home improvement
The concept of home improvement, home renovation, or remodeling is the process of renovating or making additions to one's home. Home improvement can consist of projects that upgrade an existing home interior (such as electrical and plumbing), ...
chain Lowe's. It is the
house brand
A private label, also called a private brand or private-label brand, is a brand owned by a company, offered by that company alongside and competing with brands from other businesses. A private-label brand is almost always offered exclusively by th ...
for both Lowe's in
North America and their joint venture with the now defunct
Masters Home Improvement
Masters Home Improvement was an Australian home improvement chain operated by retailer Woolworths Limited. It was established as a way for Woolworths Limited to enter the hardware retail market, which has been historically dominated by Bunnings W ...
in
Australia.
History
Lowe's and manufacturing partner
J.H. Williams launched Kobalt in 1998, with the intention of competing against rival retailers
Sears
Sears, Roebuck and Co. ( ), commonly known as Sears, is an American chain of department stores founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosenwald, with what began a ...
and
The Home Depot
The Home Depot, Inc., is an American multinational home improvement retail corporation that sells tools, construction products, appliances, and services, including fuel and transportation rentals. Home Depot is the largest home improvement re ...
and their respective
Craftsman and
Husky
Husky is a general term for a dog used in the polar regions, primarily and specifically for work as sled dogs. It refers to a traditional northern type, notable for its cold-weather tolerance and overall hardiness. Modern racing huskies that mai ...
tool brands.
In 2003, the
Danaher Corporation
Danaher Corporation is an American globally diversified conglomerate with its headquarters in Washington, D.C. The company designs, manufactures, and markets professional, medical, industrial, and commercial products and services. The company' ...
began producing the majority of Kobalt hand tools.
In 2011, Lowe's ended its arrangement with Danaher and switched to a different supplier for its mechanic's hand tools,
JS Products of
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vega ...
. Screwdrivers continue to be supplied by
Great Neck
Great Neck is a region on Long Island, New York, that covers a peninsula on the North Shore and includes nine villages, among them Great Neck, Great Neck Estates, Great Neck Plaza, Kings Point, and Russell Gardens, and a number of unincor ...
. The same year, the Kobalt line expanded to include cordless
power tool
A power tool is a tool that is actuated by an additional power source and mechanism other than the solely manual labor used with hand tools. The most common types of power tools use electric motors. Internal combustion engines and compressed ...
s, manufactured by
Chervon. The current (2020) miter saws are manufactured by Rexon Industrial Corp. Taiwan. In 2019 Lowe’s announced that they will launch the Kobalt XTR power tools .
Budget brands
Lowe's has two brands of tools and supplies positioned below Kobalt in quality and cost: Project Source and the more recent Blue Hawk, introduced in 2009.
Gallery
File:Kobalt wrenches.jpg, An assortment of Kobalt combination wrenches, manufactured by Danaher.
File:Kobalt lineman's pliers.jpg, A pair of Kobalt lineman's pliers
Lineman's pliers (US English), Kleins (genericized trademark, US usage), linesman pliers (Canadian English), side cutting linesman pliers and combination pliers (UK / US English) are a type of pliers used by Lineworker, linemen, electricians, and o ...
.
File:Kobalt utility knife.jpg, A Kobalt utility knife.
See also
*
Kobalt 400
The Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube is a NASCAR Cup Series stock car race held annually at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is the first of two races at Las Vegas with the other one being the South Point 400 in the pla ...
—A
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...
race sponsored by Lowe's
References
External links
*
{{Tool manufacturers
Lowe's
Store brands
Tool manufacturing companies of the United States