Festool marketing -Is there a problem?

[Paul G]

when we bought our first home about 15 years ago we had a total of about $5,000 left to fix things up enough to occupy. That included getting tools since I had few living in the apartment.  Had to scrape and smooth all ceilings, paint everything inside and out, buy oven, fridge, dishwasher, microwave, replace kitchen sink and faucets, replace flooring, replace 3 bathroom vanities/faucets/toilets, add window coverings, etc. Among tools needed were a circular saw, sander, vac, screw gun and router. If I went Festool on just those tools alone it would have blown 1/2 my meager budget and not accomplished the work needed in the time I had to get it done. So from my personal experience and also the experience of many of our like minded cash strapped first time home buying friends, the idea of spending $600 on a circular saw, $300 on a sander, $500 on a router, $600 on a vac and $400 on a drill wouldn't even cross our minds no matter how slick the marketing.

There again its education. For the first 2 years in my first place I had no carpet as I couldn't afford a good one so I had building paper on the floor. My appliances were used as was all the furniture. Things got better as I got higher wages. But I either had old used or, when I could afford it good quality new.

You got what you could afford as you could afford it. No HP just save and when you can get good quality then buy. Year end sales helped as did my local auction house.

It's the instant gratification culture and the "we deserve everything now" syndrome that's the problem.

Of course you couldn't afford the tools at that time but you coul rent the ones you needed for a short time and build up as money got more easy.

Let's see, I'm uneducated and am immersed in the instant gratification culture because I didn't buy festool and didn't live on splintery plywood floors for two years? If only we had forgone the solid gold sinks bought at full retail I could have bought Festool instead. Year end sales, closeouts, garage sales, auctions and second hand stores, dang I wish I would have thought of that!  :  You're being terribly presumptuous about me and the condition of the home we bought. It's probably time for me to exit this thread before I say something I regret.

I didn't think Jerome was necessarily targeting you, Paul. I felt he was still writing in general terms.

If not for Jerome saying "you" seven times I'd agree. Hopefully I completely misunderstood what was being said.

We all arrived here through wide and varying circumstances. I think his general point was that it takes a while for many (most?) folks to learn the value of quality, in whatever venue or endeavor. Sure, there are some of us who learn it early; in my case from a friends father who used the very best mechanic's tools and was still upgrading his chain saws in his eighties. There is a difference between knowing the existence of quality tools but still not being able to buy accordingly, at a certain point in time, because of financial constraints. "Someday, I will be able to get what I want in tools because I have what I need in other essentials."

For me, I have spent my career searching out the best and most up-to-date metalcutting tools; drills, taps, endmills, facemills, etc. The search has also resulted in initiating the design of many special, job specific tools, somewhat analogous to dedicated jigs and fixture in the woodworking world. When my interest in woodworking evolved I wound up using the same intellectual muscles to find high quality tools. The point is:  We all arrive here in various manner but there are general similarities within that journey which manifest themselves most often after we have collected some of life's wisdom. The age at which we gain it may vary greatly and it should probably also be recognized that many folks never get there.

I do believe a certain percentage of those younger folks will not get the woodworking bug until they are older, maybe after children are raised and time and money are avilable. That is a path many of us have taken and there is no reason to believe it won't continue to happen. I am willing to bet Festool recognizes they will usually sell to an older crowd.  

In my career I also go for the best simply because it generally gives me a competitive advantage. For me Festools aren't filling that dominant role (working on personal projects around the house and renovating/repairing rentals) which makes me a tougher sell for Festool. For example I'm sure the ETS 125 and 150 are great sanders, no doubt in my mind, but until such time as my other branded 5" and 6" ROs no longer do their job I doubt I'll be getting either ETS whether I have the money or not. Where Festool gets into my toolcrib is when I have a missing functionality (TS, domino, RO90, CT), but when I was starting out my situation was simple: there's a pile of wood that needs cutting and I've got $xx to make it happen. Anything priced $xxx is out of the running.  This is why from my experience the OP's premise that young first time home buyers simply aren't in large part a target market for Festool, simply because they lack the money whether they like the quality of the tool or not. Necessity and budget are the driving force.

But hey, this is ultimately for Festool to decide, the only reason I find this interesting is there may be something to glean to grow my own business.

 

[leakyroof]

Seems like your 3rd category is mostly folks without the resources to pay premium prices for premium tools. I've done a lot with so called rubbish tools, still do.

I'm not sure that that is true. I was taught to get good tools, and to take care of them and have done so. I still use the Elu circular saw and router in their custom built table they are still going strong at about 38 years old each. I also have an inca band saw of about the same age. And since good tools live a bit longer than dog years that makes them centenarians at least.

If festool products had been around then I would have invested in them. It is the poor education that let's people think that you can get cheep and good.

Improve the education teach the benifit of buying good and looking after the tools and you might even get most trades people to respect their tools.

I feel that it's education all the way. Advertising isn't bad but education is better.

when we bought our first home about 15 years ago we had a total of about $5,000 left to fix things up enough to occupy. That included getting tools since I had few living in the apartment.  Had to scrape and smooth all ceilings, paint everything inside and out, buy oven, fridge, dishwasher, microwave, replace kitchen sink and faucets, replace flooring, replace 3 bathroom vanities/faucets/toilets, add window coverings, etc. Among tools needed were a circular saw, sander, vac, screw gun and router. If I went Festool on just those tools alone it would have blown 1/2 my meager budget and not accomplished the work needed in the time I had to get it done. So from my personal experience and also the experience of many of our like minded cash strapped first time home buying friends, the idea of spending $600 on a circular saw, $300 on a sander, $500 on a router, $600 on a vac and $400 on a drill wouldn't even cross our minds no matter how slick the marketing.

  I see your point Paul, and price on ANY good quality tool is a problem when someone just doesn't have the money.
The point that I was trying to make, and someone else confirmed with talking to some Manuf. Reps, is this. You have to educate someone on the value of the tool, what it does, what it can do better than a similar tool and HOW/WHY it's able to do that.
When I started out working, I jumped from food service/restaurants to metal fabrication. That's where I saw my first high quality tools and machinery. Milwaukee drills that were used until they were hot, and then left hanging in front of a fan to cool off.
Suhner Flexible shaft finishing machines, and small grinders and polishers from them as well. The list goes on.
My rambling point is all this was an education to me, even if I couldn't afford a Milwaukee Electric Drill for a number of years afterwards. I got to see and use all of this stuff on a daily basis, and to learn how to provide maint. and repair when the tools got broken, dropped off a tall tank, or just worn out from usage.
 I owned cheap stuff because that's all I could afford. Socket sets from K-Mart, the odd wrench from S/K.
The ability to buy on time through Mac Tool and Snap-On was probably what set me on the course to buying better than average across all my tool purchases even if it meant it took years to pay it off in full. I think the poster from the UK who brought up lease options for someone just starting out could be on to something.  [unsure]

 

[leakyroof]

Firmly in the skilled hobbyist/DIY category myself.  [big grin]

I buy Festool because I appreciate quality in both the tools I use and the output I produce. I'm lucky that my "real" job affords me the *capital* to do this, and I think this is an important point.

I researched Festool extensively before my first dip in the green waters. What I found was that the resale value of Festool was *significantly* higher than other comparable and lesser brands, and that there was a ready market for second hand tools, especially little used and in good condition. So when I pulled the trigger on a substantial Festool purchase this year, the initial capital outlay was expensive, but the whole-life costs are comparable to stocking up with Dewalt, Makita or similar.

This leads me to an interesting point for the underserved third category that may well want and desire the tools, but cannot maybe afford them in terms of *capital* outlay.

The car and van industry has long provided effective lease purchase schemes based on the residual value over a particular period. Perhaps Festool should consider something similar for tool leases, building in their excellent service options into the lifetime costs, and tailor it for budding apprentices in various trades.

Then again, maybe they already do but the marketing hasn't made it to me...  [wink]

  well said. You really might be onto something. Snap-On works with apprentice programs and trade schools all over the US , providing a discount for someone in training to buy their tools.

 

[Paul G]

when we bought our first home about 15 years ago we had a total of about $5,000 left to fix things up enough to occupy. That included getting tools since I had few living in the apartment.  Had to scrape and smooth all ceilings, paint everything inside and out, buy oven, fridge, dishwasher, microwave, replace kitchen sink and faucets, replace flooring, replace 3 bathroom vanities/faucets/toilets, add window coverings, etc. Among tools needed were a circular saw, sander, vac, screw gun and router. If I went Festool on just those tools alone it would have blown 1/2 my meager budget and not accomplished the work needed in the time I had to get it done. So from my personal experience and also the experience of many of our like minded cash strapped first time home buying friends, the idea of spending $600 on a circular saw, $300 on a sander, $500 on a router, $600 on a vac and $400 on a drill wouldn't even cross our minds no matter how slick the marketing.

  I see your point Paul, and price on ANY good quality tool is a problem when someone just doesn't have the money.
The point that I was trying to make, and someone else confirmed with talking to some Manuf. Reps, is this. You have to educate someone on the value of the tool, what it does, what it can do better than a similar tool and HOW/WHY it's able to do that.
When I started out working, I jumped from food service/restaurants to metal fabrication. That's where I saw my first high quality tools and machinery. Milwaukee drills that were used until they were hot, and then left hanging in front of a fan to cool off.
Suhner Flexible shaft finishing machines, and small grinders and polishers from them as well. The list goes on.
My rambling point is all this was an education to me, even if I couldn't afford a Milwaukee Electric Drill for a number of years afterwards. I got to see and use all of this stuff on a daily basis, and to learn how to provide maint. and repair when the tools got broken, dropped off a tall tank, or just worn out from usage.
 I owned cheap stuff because that's all I could afford. Socket sets from K-Mart, the odd wrench from S/K.
The ability to buy on time through Mac Tool and Snap-On was probably what set me on the course to buying better than average across all my tool purchases even if it meant it took years to pay it off in full. I think the poster from the UK who brought up lease options for someone just starting out could be on to something.  [unsure]

Using your example, do you think that education could be provided by Milwaukee through marketing in a manner remotely similar to that on the job experience of hard core abuse? Probably the closest I've seen to that is the "Will it Blend" video series by Blendtec. http://www.willitblend.com/ When my current blender dies I wouldn't be surprised if I buy one of these lol.

As for financing/leasing Festools, that may be a fit for a beginner tradesperson, but being the DIY homeowner type user, debt for an infrequently used tool isn't the best financial choice, though I suspect many people do just that using their plastic but don't look at it that way.

 

[tbellemare]

I think the audience for higher end tools is naturally older than for lower quality ones. It's the same for cars, housing, furnishings, etc...

The first cordless drill I owned was a Black and Decker that I got free for filling up my tank a couple of times at the same gas station. I had not even considered buying one prior to that because I barely had enough money to buy the gas. I lived in a cheapo 4-plex and had furniture picked up from the side of the road that someone else considered junk. I drove an old car that I worked on a lot. I was happy with all of that.

Now, I have a nice house full of nice stuff and just about every Festool AINA. I'm still happy.

I can elucidate the benefits of quality tools, from software to people and their training to hardware/tools and on and on. I've spent a lot of my life writing ROI analyses with hard numbers and know that those numbers work because I've also implemented the same solutions and seen them work.

The bottom line, in my opinion, is that not everyone is in a position to invest in quality for various reasons. I think everyone should be striving for it - at least in the area of their life that brings them the most joy.

If you're in business using tools, you should always try to be doing a cost/benefit analysis of your tools and processes.

Tom

 

[sancho57]

Hey Tom

>>The first cordless drill I owned was a Black and Decker that I got free for filling up my tank a couple of times at the same gas station. I had not even considered buying one prior to that because I barely had enough money to buy the gas. I lived in a cheapo 4-plex and had furniture picked up from the side of the road that someone else considered junk. I drove an old car that I worked on a lot. I was happy with all of that.

 

[bkharman]

Maybe i am making a 5th category?  People who know and trust quality.  But then again, I am not just drinking the black and green kool-aid, but really the Black, Red and Gold kool-aid...

I think this falls into the same category of Junk vs. quality and the ability and drive to afford it.  As a long time Mercedes and Porsche owner, I really enjoy Z German design and commitment to make things "hervorragend".  Have i had to take my cars to the shop unexpectedly... yes.  Did it stop me from heading back into a Kraut... never. 

I have spent a lot of money on German built things, but I have thoroughly enjoyed them.  I have owned a lot of vehicles in my 40 years on Earth (don't ask about before then  [wink]) and have had all makes, Japanese, American, Yugoslavian, Korean, German, Italian, and alike.  German cars are my thing.  Kind of like the age old argument, Redheads vs. whatever else there is out there.

I love my Festools and plan on getting more... but right now I have my sights on a 2014 GT3... which i believe can hold one Sys II.

cheers

Bryan

 

[NYC Tiny Shop]

Festool Marketing  to three broad categories of Festool User

Looking at photographs of attendance at woodwork shows and demonstrations in Australia, UK and North America in recent months one could get the impression that many Festool users are post 50 if not 60 years of age. My impression is that these men (I have not seen many women) are either retired from other professions and woodworking is now a major interest, are semi retired wood workers, trade and crafts persons , or are managers owners of building related companies.
R
Reading the FOG reinforces this view, ...

Scott, maybe you're right?  But, maybe all the young guys are out working? ...or, maybe they would rather be home with their young families, then hang out with a bunch of old guys. Maybe, they're not on FOG, because they're too tired from working all day and want to think about something other than tools? What do I know, I'm just an old guy who does woodworking all day!  [doh]

 

[Birdhunter]

I've been doing woodworking as a serious hobby for nearly 30 years. I was fortunate in my work that the cost of tools wasn't a factor in my buying decisions. Delta, DeWalt, etc were my brands. I didn't buy my first Festool until 2 years ago, a Domino.

Until I started using the Domino did I really start to look at Festool as a brand. Now, I've got lots of green and gray boxes throughout my shop.

If I had been introduced to Festool earlier, I'd have a lot fewer  other branded tools to get rid of.

I don't think Festool marketing knows how to reach American potential buyers with the funds to buy Festool products. I don't often see Festool products in the magazine tool comparison articles or any place else. I bought the Domino and a TS55 as a direct result of a Festool team being in my local woodworking store.

Basically, you have to be a Festool fan to even know about the brand.

 

[ShawnRussell]

I think there are more than 3 categories.. but if we stick with just those 3, the third group gets the marketing from word of mouth.

My foster kids learn about Festool from me. The mid career cube drone who dreads going into the office and worries about the growing beer belly from sitting all day. I am fairly certain none of these kids will be able to afford Festool once they graduate high school or a trade school. But, the knowledge will be stuck in the back of their minds. It is done in the same way that Apple has worked. We are an all Mac house. The kids use Ipads at school. They will buy whatever technology they want, but in the back of their minds they always want an Ipad or an Iphone no matter what gadget they have. Thus, marketing to this group is done by the folks who are part of group 1 and 2 and the information is spread via a trickle down method.

I am not sure how much Festool donates. But I could see them going the Apple route by donating their tools to vocational programs across the US. The kids will us Festool and become familiar with them. When they leave they might can only afford big box brands but always know there is a better tool out there.

 

[Administrator_JSVN]

I think the topic of marketing varies from country to country. The OP, for instance, is in Australia. In the U.S., there isn't apprenticeships like there are in Europe and Australia. Someone goes and buys some tools and starts a business.

Festool offices in most countries, if not all, have educational programs that work with schools of various levels and types.

As for Festool being a known brand. I can tell you that the question of "who is Festool" is rarely heard nowadays, unlike several years ago where we were an unknown brand in North America relatively speaking.

As for magazine reviews, we do participate in review articles with certain publications. Often what is written is something like this: "while Festool offered the best solution with the best features, the outrageous price means that we did not pick it as the best". Of course, I'm paraphrasing. There's no mention of value, efficiency, longevity, the system approach, customer service, etc. Only price. And even with price, no mention that our tools are not made in Asia.

We will not be as well known as other popular tool brands in the U.S. overnight. From the inside looking out, I'm proud of what's been accomplished in such a short period of time. That doesn't mean that there's still much more to do.

I think our most important marketing is done by folks just like you. Those who have experienced what Festool represents and share it with their peers, colleagues, friends, etc. Those who are unbiased and unpaid advocates for the brand. Someone who has experienced first hand the value of our tools and what, in my opinion, is the pinnacle of customer service in the industry.

For those who are advocates for us, a sincere thank you.

Shane

 

[JeromeM]

I didn't think Jerome was necessarily targeting you, Paul. I felt he was still writing in general terms.

If not for Jerome saying "you" seven times I'd agree. Hopefully I completely misunderstood what was being said.

Paul, Greg is correct I was not meaning you in the sense of "you Paul" but in the sense "you people like me with the same ideas" I can see the phrasing was open to misinterpretation and apologise for that. I could have used "one" with the same intended meaning.

My target is the general culture and philosophy. My parents went through the 2nd world war and the years of rationing of goods following it. That is a very different background to any in the USA where AFIK rationing never existed. It is likely that that difference has an effect on the different attitudes of people.

 

[RDMuller]

I spent many years in technical capacities at pharmaceutical companies where I had heavy interaction with marketing.   One of the biggest challenges in marketing is to define who the customer is.  Segmenting markets like you have done here is very useful in understanding the  dynamics of the buying process.

Regardless of the segment, any member of the 3 segments you identified has to see the value to him/her in making the purchase, or they will not buy.

I was wearing a Festool hat at a very high-end art fair last Sunday.  A gentleman selling gorgeous expensive ($6,000) slab hallway tables told me that his tools have to make money for him and he could not see the value of Festool in doing that.  My reaction was to say silently to myself, how can you not afford to use Festool?  He stated his tools paid his salary and Festool was just too expensive.

Remember a very large segment of the market is "buying holes, not buying a drill" when they purchase a drill.  They are not realistic  candidates for Festool.

All in all, I would say Festool does a very good job of marketing.  The emphasis is on the professional that works with his tools to make a living.  Along the way, they pickup a lot of interest from serious hobbyists who do not make their living with their tools.  Their goal has to be expanding the appeal of Festool to that middle group to emphasize value return per dollar invested.  Look at the recent ads with the TS55 REQ and the Carvex --- professional craftsmen doing there thing.

One serious challenge in reaching these people, how on earth do you identify them and get the message to them.  Most do not go to professional meetings, most probably do not read in their field, most are too busy going from one job to the next, most do not use the internet extensively and most have many Lowes, Menards and Home Depot's that they drive by every day and can easily frequent for tool purchases.  

 

[tbellemare]

I think the appreciation for quality goods and quality engineering "that will last" is potentially fading with the pace of technological improvement. The currently emerging crowd commonly doesn't expect anything to last more than half a decade, most things not 6 months.

My father was a WWII Vet and he taught me to fix everything, straighten all nails for reuse, etc... After many years of observing the reduction in quality of fasteners commonly available in North America, the old nails looked pretty good. Fortunately, we can recently find some decent fasteners that really work.

I have always thought that buying a Festool should be considered seriously, which means access to accurate advice is important. In any serious purchasing decision process, one must separate the wheat from the chaff. If the advice about "orbital" makes one think it's "circular", perhaps the advisory communication isn't clear or accurate.

It's tough to replace hands-on experience and the FOG is an excellent resource for experts that generously communicate their knowledge and experience.

I was lucky enough to grow up and mature around guys (my relatives) that really knew their crafts. In today's world, a curious person can learn stuff that took me a lot of manual labor to learn in the past - I had to pay my dues for lessons. I strongly encourage all easy learning.

Tom

 

[Paul G]

I didn't think Jerome was necessarily targeting you, Paul. I felt he was still writing in general terms.

If not for Jerome saying "you" seven times I'd agree. Hopefully I completely misunderstood what was being said.

Paul, Greg is correct I was not meaning you in the sense of "you Paul" but in the sense "you people like me with the same ideas" I can see the phrasing was open to misinterpretation and apologise for that. I could have used "one" with the same intended meaning.

My target is the general culture and philosophy. My parents went through the 2nd world war and the years of rationing of goods following it. That is a very different background to any in the USA where AFIK rationing never existed. It is likely that that difference has an effect on the different attitudes of people.

Thanks for clarifying and I apologize for misunderstanding.

Interestingly my parents were children in EU during WW2, living under the roar of air raid sirens and trying to rest behind blacked out windows at night. So I have no family experience of things here in the US then but my understanding is there was a lot of rationing going on, an entire country supporting the war effort with everything from food to car tires to various household metal items being collected to fuel the effort. The concept of a Victory Garden was widespread to grow food in your own yard so the ag production would go to the troops. And let's not forget that just before was the great depression where hardship was no stranger to America. So I think your perception of the history in America at that time is a bit off.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_home_front_during_World_War_II#Rationing

 

[JeromeM]

Well rationing ended in the USA in 1944 with the ending of the war. While in the UK it intensified and was only abolished in 1954. Thus there was a very different experience.
Wartime rationing is easily understood and as easily forgotten when the war and rationing finish. However with the continuance of rationing for many years after the end of the war the attitudes it instilled were not so easily changed.
It is changing now as those of us who were brought up by parents with direct knowledge are going.

 

[Brentley]

Interestingly my parents were children in EU during WW2, living under the roar of air raid sirens and trying to rest behind blacked out windows at night. So I have no family experience of things here in the US then but my understanding is there was a lot of rationing going on, an entire country supporting the war effort with everything from food to car tires to various household metal items being collected to fuel the effort. The concept of a Victory Garden was widespread to grow food in your own yard so the ag production would go to the troops. And let's not forget that just before was the great depression where hardship was no stranger to America. So I think your perception of the history in America at that time is a bit off.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_home_front_during_World_War_II#Rationing

Also the years prior to WW2 were the Great Depression in the US.  My Grandparents were all savers, they would always try to find a way to re-use things or save things for later.  The depression taught them to always be ready for the worst, and living in the middle of corn country they felt the depression worse than a lot of people.  My great grandfather (who sold tractors etc. went bankrupt trying to keep his town working in the 30s.  So that generation had a different view on the future.  The victory garden point is very valid.

Never underestimate the trade off between "good enough" and perfect.  For the most part consumers just want good enough and don't care about many of the super high end features.  And if you go to a big box store you can see the varying levels of quality / market segmentation in play.  In the home despot they cater directly to their markets with a varied level of tools (see Ryobi, Ridgid, Milwaukee etc.) which are all fairly functional but segmented by warranty and price, not really features.  You don't really see some of the more exotic tools like track saws etc. and they don't stock some of the super high end gear (like the bosch glide saw).

Price is king, and good enough is usually a compelling argument.

 

[Paul G]

Well rationing ended in the USA in 1944 with the ending of the war. While in the UK it intensified and was only abolished in 1954. Thus there was a very different experience.
Wartime rationing is easily understood and as easily forgotten when the war and rationing finish. However with the continuance of rationing for many years after the end of the war the attitudes it instilled were not so easily changed.
It is changing now as those of us who were brought up by parents with direct knowledge are going.

TBH I'm not seeing the relevancy of this to the topic of the thread, maybe you could try and clarify.

 

[ccarrolladams]

Well rationing ended in the USA in 1944 with the ending of the war. While in the UK it intensified and was only abolished in 1954. Thus there was a very different experience.
Wartime rationing is easily understood and as easily forgotten when the war and rationing finish. However with the continuance of rationing for many years after the end of the war the attitudes it instilled were not so easily changed.
It is changing now as those of us who were brought up by parents with direct knowledge are going.

WWII ended in 1945 when Japan surrendered, not in 1944. Although in the USA rationing was phased out before the end of 1945, many consumer products were in short supply for another year.

Having been a teenager in 1945, fortunately with many woodworking tools given to me by my grandfather, as wood became more available in early 1946 I started building cabinets which sold as fast as I could build them. With the cash from selling those cabinets I bought hand power tools as they became available. The early ones were of surprisingly good quality. None were cheap. It was years before badly made less expensive power tools hit the market, but once I knew what to look for as quality I have never had problems buying high-quality tools that last and fit my work-flow.

Of course I recognized the quality the first time I picked up a TS55 at my dealer and accepted his invitation to use a guide rail to make a cut. Yet at that same time I owned a total of 8 circular saws of 4 brands, all of which worked. One was from early 1959 and two other from 1960. None plunged, none ran of a guide rail and none had dust collection, but they cut well.

Fortunately for me, before I ever saw a print ad for Festool I already owned several and was completely convinced they would be so efficient they would make me big money.

 

[Motown]

This is a really observant and interesting post. I personally fall into the 2nd category, DIY/Hobbiest, who's full time job is actually in marketing. I'd echo some of the previous comments about the younger, or up and coming, guys having budget issues as they start building a collection of tools.

If Festool is interested in targeting younger customers I have a recommendation: Follow Oracle's model. Oracle the software company.

Back when they were starting their business they made a decision to give away (yep, for free) their software to Universities offering database admin programs. Do you know what happened? All of these kids started graduating with these Oracle database certificates and began purchasing Oracle for their companies because they were already familiar with the technology.  

For me, Festool completely changed the way I looked at workflow and makes me look more skilled than I actually am.  There is probably an opportunity for Festool to get younger folks educated on the technology and workflow while they are still in trade school. But like any business, you have to decide if the upside and market is worth the investment.  In my best marketing speak, the lifetime value of a customer, to Festool, will be a lot greater if you get someone in their 20's using the tools versus someone in their late 30's/early 40's ...me.

As for the heavy male representation, I am not saying it is right or wrong but probably more a reflection of the industry as a whole. That holds true Festool and all of their competitors.  My 2 cents....