Some of them are abysmal, others are quite usable and in fact I might even consider them competitive. I bought a whole lot of Harbor Freight hand and cordless power tools a couple of months ago. While a lot of people scoff about Harbor Freight tool quality – and I can say I used to be in that group – Harbor Freight sells a lot of tools to a lot more people. But when it comes to tools, everyone seems to forget that Harbor Freight is an increasingly big player. Right now, there’s a lot of chatter about Lowe’s “closing the gap” and catching up to Home Depot.
To me, this gives Harbor Freight great potential to be a fiercer competitor. Yes, home improvement stores also have a lot of floor space dedicated to tools and related products. Sears used to have the largest tool departments, with huge amounts of floor space committed to Craftsman tools and other brands. Companies don’t grow and add retail locations without making money. Still, we can conclude that 1) Harbor Freight is a large company, and 2) Harbor Freight is a successful company.
