Looking at buying a 90 cc saw and I don't know if I am liking the Stihl electronics or not. So I thought I would look at a 395 Husky. It was a nice day around here the other day so I jumped on the internet and found four dealers in a 60 mile radius from home and I started out. I will say at this point I don't go to the small engine dealers much. Do my own work and order parts. Got to the first place it was completely closed. Went to the second place it had sold out it was a place I had bought grasshopper parts before they only handle Stihl now. Got to the third place and they only have Stihl now. The one I saved for last years back when I was zero turn mower shopping they were a big Echo and Husky dealer. Pulled up no Husky sign only Echo and Sihl now. I don't want a Echo as it does't have a compression release. I got a bad shoulder. The guy at the dealer couldn't say enough bad about Husky. So I went out the door headed for home and still have my money.
Around my area, that all kinda started around the late 90’s when Husqvarna started distributing their saws into the big box stores, namely Lowe’s around here.
Prior to that, we had a couple Dealers, one of which was excellent. He carried both Stihl and Husqvarna, as well as other Logging supplies etc. Great guy, very knowledgeable, a very knowledgeable staff with all the products they sold, and also a very good full time saw/small engine mechanic on staff to service everything they sold.
I always bought all my supplies and saws from there, most of which were Husqvarnas.
Every saw they sold, whether it was a small homeowner or large professional saw was filled with gas and oil, taken out back by the mechanic and put into a log, and if everything wasn’t perfect, tweaks were made or the problem resolved whatever the case.
They would even swap out bar and chain etc. if you preferred something other than what came standard, at no additional cost, within reason.
Anyway, at some point, late 90’s I believe, I stopped in one day to buy a new Husqvarna weed eater.
The owner was kinda bashing Husqvarna and suggesting I get a Stihl instead.
It was very unlike him to trash talk, so I asked what was up?
He said once the remaining Husqvarna stuff was off his shelves he’d no longer be a Husqvarna dealer or carrying Husqvarna equipment.
When I asked why, He said it was due to Husqvarna going to the Big Box Stores. Said they had upped their game and was now gonna require him to commit to purchasing xxx thousands of dollars in product each year in order to keep his Husqvarna Dealership status.
Whatever the xxx ‘amount’ was, it was much more than he knew he’d be able to sell each year, especially since he was also a Stihl Dealer, and had to account for committing to a certain amount of inventory from them also.
Long story short, he gave up his Husqvarna Dealership status and walked away from husqvarna simply because they forced him financially to do so.
There are now hardly any Husqvarna Dealers around here.
Lowe’s carries the small line of saws.
There are a couple privately owned Hardware type stores that carry the larger professional saws, but they aren’t what I would call a ‘servicing dealer’, who is really knowledgeable in what they sell such as I described above.
Kinda just another retailer such as Lowe’s in my opinion.
I really hate that Husqvarna did that and forced so many of the ‘good’ dealerships to drop them or worse yet go completely out of business.
I think Husqvarna was simply looking at where and how they could make the most $$$ like all other large corporations, and sometimes forget how they got where they are.
It sucks, but I still like and usually buy Husqvarna, mostly because their parts are so much more easily obtained.