What gives?

[Coen]

Well, Festool could do more to market some stuff. I get emails about all kinds of new stuff from them... but some new items are never promoted. Plus would appreciate a 'soon to go out of production' notice.

 

[DeformedTree]

There must be some kind of market for this business model, because it is apparently working? It's just not for me.

Yes, the market is hobbiests with means. People who do woodworking for fun and like to leaf through catalogs. Limited time gives a sense of exclusivity. Nothing wrong with that, different things make us happy. Similar niches exist in automotive, photo, etc. industries.

Yeah, there is always a market for those with money to burn. Different hobbies and interest of mine all have the same basic patterns. I don't blame these companies. There is a market for it, and some folks enjoy these sorts of bits.  Where the disconnects come from is when people buying it think you have to have these things, or that they are somehow massively more accurate than other solutions, or somehow work way better.  In the end, far cheaper and less fancy options exist that to it just as well, maybe better. But if having/using these items makes a person feel better about it, have at it. 

I'm like probably the majority of Festool owners (at least in the US market) and don't make a living from my tools, Could I do with much cheaper options, sure. And for a long time I did use basic tools, cheap tools, minimal tools.  But like probably most folks on this board, I can afford the stuff, I appreciate various aspects of it. But I'm also not insane to think Festool and similar brands are the only way, and I won't buy something just because. It's always good to think about how you can do something well, with no or minimal tools.

 

[Crazyraceguy]

DeformedTree, do you really think that the majority of US users don't make their living with their Festool equipment?  Why? is there some statistical evidence of this? or is it just the feeling you get from people you know or even from here on the forum?

I'm not disagreeing, just wondering, because I actually do. Also, several guys I work with either now or in the past do too. At least two subcontractors/installers have bought DF500s, RO150s and one got a TS55 based on my experiences and recommendations. Maybe because of my involvement in the trade, but I don't personally know any hobbyist woodworkers.
Certainly, in my retirement, I will keep them and use them. This would make me a hobbyist at that point, but I will still have acquired them as a professional?
Maybe this is why so many people complain about the cost? But even then, I see pros who do not see the value or have the willingness to invest in themselves.

 

[mino]

[member=58857]Crazyraceguy[/member]

I believe the point is that Festool addresses both markets and that they have different dynamics. As in, I right now the shortages are DYI-generated while normally during an economic crisis the DIY market would be bad while the professional one would be more steady.

As for volume, I would dare to say it is easy to underestimate the size of the Festool DYI sales. Most folks who buy Festool for DYI use would not be advertising it. If anything to avoid being "former owners" ...
Also, I would expect the folks who get Festool kit for home use to not be the folks who casually hang out with folks from the trades. Think more of the Lawyers/IT crowd/Doctors/Engineering folks etc. Basically folks for whom $1000 for a Domino is monthly pocket change. Give or take.

If you wanted to "size" this market, just look at the amount of top model iPhone sales ... I would guess that would be a way bigger demographic than the trades folks. And much more profitable one at that - these folks would rarely run a tool down, so likely very little RMA costs. Ideal customers for a tool maker, basically.

 

[DeformedTree]

DeformedTree, do you really think that the majority of US users don't make their living with their Festool equipment?  Why? is there some statistical evidence of this? or is it just the feeling you get from people you know or even from here on the forum?

I'm not disagreeing, just wondering, because I actually do. Also, several guys I work with either now or in the past do too. At least two subcontractors/installers have bought DF500s, RO150s and one got a TS55 based on my experiences and recommendations. Maybe because of my involvement in the trade, but I don't personally know any hobbyist woodworkers.
Certainly, in my retirement, I will keep them and use them. This would make me a hobbyist at that point, but I will still have acquired them as a professional?
Maybe this is why so many people complain about the cost? But even then, I see pros who do not see the value or have the willingness to invest in themselves.

Obvious I, like anyone else has no idea what the market split is. But I 100% expect it to be like other similar markets. Where the products are designed for pro's but mainly bought by hobbyist.  Like Mino hits on. The prime market for stuff like Festool sells are folks with disposable income. Or as you also will find, the people who think they need this stuff, or don't want to be seen not having it. The later are the folks who complain about the cost the most. They convince themselves they need some 3000 dollar tools, computer, thing, etc, and then complain about the price.

Never seen a contractor or such around with any Festool stuff.  But I do know there are people around working in their garage with Festool gear in there.

I think most contractor just are not keen on buying very expensive gear, they buy stuff where it if gets destroyed that day, they can run to the big box store and be back in business.

If you are custom cabinet/trim person working in homes. I can see that person having Festool gear. There just is not a lot of those people. But there is a whole lot of folks who do woodworking as a hobby. Folks who will buy 1000s of dollars of gear just to make a few things.

I would guess most pro's in the US with Festool gear are shop based people who use tools like Dominos a lot, the routers, a CT. I'd wager if you asked a dealer, how much is sold to Professionals, they would tell you it's not much. A Pro needs to make a business case or a cost justification for the tools. A hobbyist does not.

 

[squall_line]

I think most contractor just are not keen on buying very expensive gear, they buy stuff where it if gets destroyed that day, they can run to the big box store and be back in business.

snip

A Pro needs to make a business case or a cost justification for the tools. A hobbyist does not.

Many hobbyists on a budget make cost justifications, too, especially if the original tool is a project-based purchase.  Hire out the job or buy the tool that will allow you to do the job yourself?  If you can justify using it for more than just that project, the case makes itself.

The irony is that the mindset of "I'll just buy the cheapest thing I can get my hands on and if it breaks, I'll buy another one" lives on in the hobbyist world just as much as the professional world.  If it didn't, places like Harbor Freight wouldn't sell through as much as they do.

I think that there are at least a few people on here who have a Festool tool because they were tired of replacing their mass-market Black Friday Special halfway through jobs.  For that matter, there are at least a few people on here who have a mass-market version of something that Festool makes because their Festool tool failed too many times or at the least-opportune time, or they tried a few options and found the added benefit of the Festool version wasn't worth the price differential.

If you're in a trade where you get into the specialty tools or some of the specialized ways that the Festool "system" works, the time and hassle difference may start to make up for the price difference.

 

[DeformedTree]

I think most contractor just are not keen on buying very expensive gear, they buy stuff where it if gets destroyed that day, they can run to the big box store and be back in business.

snip

A Pro needs to make a business case or a cost justification for the tools. A hobbyist does not.

Many hobbyists on a budget make cost justifications, too, especially if the original tool is a project-based purchase.  Hire out the job or buy the tool that will allow you to do the job yourself?  If you can justify using it for more than just that project, the case makes itself.

Yup, it's not hard at all to justify the cost of a lot of tools even with one project if it means you are not hiring someone for it and don't put a cost to your time.

The irony is that the mindset of "I'll just buy the cheapest thing I can get my hands on and if it breaks, I'll buy another one" lives on in the hobbyist world just as much as the professional world.  If it didn't, places like Harbor Freight wouldn't sell through as much as they do.

Harbor Freight has it's place, I'm sure many folks with lots of Festool stuff also buy some HF stuff, sometimes you just need something cheap for one task once.

If you're in a trade where you get into the specialty tools or some of the specialized ways that the Festool "system" works, the time and hassle difference may start to make up for the price difference.

Yeah, I think some tools make a lot of sense, but a lot is a hard sell. The vehicle the pro uses to get around is very important to their livelihood. But clearly the majority of them do not want to put any money into their van/truck. If it rust in half on the way to a job, they just buy another vehicle that has 1-2 years before it fails state inspection.

 

[AlexThePalex]

Over here Festool is 98% bought by professionals.

On this forum I see a lot of theorising by people who hardly see any Festools around them.

 

[Joebuck]

Over here Festool is 98% bought by professionals.

On this forum I see a lot of theorising by people who hardly see any Festools around them.

Over here in the States (Southern California at least), the Festool brand seems to be entirely geared towards woodworkers (furniture makers, cabinet makers etc,) which by its very nature is an area in which a lot of “hobbyists” occupy the space. I can’t claim to have been in many professional cabinet shops lately, so I don’t know how much penetration the Festool brand has in these settings, though I suspect it’s pretty substantial. Track saws and Dominoes would be attractive to any professional who calls him/herself a woodworker by trade. In the construction trades, seems every pickup or van is filled with red or yellow “Max Volt/Fuel” cordless tools of the variety you buy in bundles.

We are surrounded by big box lumber yards, which is the main tool source for many in the construction trades, and none of them sell Festool. Here in Orange County, we have a pretty decently sized Professional lumber yard that carries Festool, though even before the pandemic, their inventory was pretty lacking which probably indicates lack of sales. It’s the Woodcraft stores and now Rockler that remain the only reliable source for buying these tools off the shelf.

I think Alex is right, here in the states, we don’t see Kapex’s and HKC’s on the trucks of the “Pros”.

 

[DeformedTree]

Over here in the States (Southern California at least), the Festool brand seems to be entirely geared towards woodworkers (furniture makers, cabinet makers etc,) which by its very nature is an area in which a lot of “hobbyists” occupy the space. I can’t claim to have been in many professional cabinet shops lately, so I don’t know how much penetration the Festool brand has in these settings, though I suspect it’s pretty substantial. Track saws and Dominoes would be attractive to any professional who calls him/herself a woodworker by trade. In the construction trades, seems every pickup or van is filled with red or yellow “Max Volt/Fuel” cordless tools of the variety you buy in bundles.

Agreed, and soon as you are doing that of any size/scale, you probably are not using a track saw but have bigger machinery. I think there is a small size window for a business that would be all Festool stuff, but not yet shifted to bigger panel saws, cnc routers, etc.  Thus why the domino is probably one of the tools that does work across all groups (hobbyist, small shops, big shops).

Just looking at folks here who do stuff for a living, they all look to be small (1 person) outfits.

We are surrounded by big box lumber yards, which is the main tool source for many in the construction trades, and none of them sell Festool. Here in Orange County, we have a pretty decently sized Professional lumber yard that carries Festool, though even before the pandemic, their inventory was pretty lacking which probably indicates lack of sales. It’s the Woodcraft stores and now Rockler that remain the only reliable source for buying these tools off the shelf.

Right, far as in person sales, the places that carry festool are places that are for hobbyist. I'm sure there are shops that are for pro's out there, and dedicated tool shops, but not a lot of those around.

Mean while, most trades general have little money, the fancy fitted out van is a real rarity here. There are always a few "high end" guys around in areas, maybe even with some form of shop. But the bulk of people are the rusted truck/van with a bunch of tools from the big box store tossed in the back rolling around. If they work for a bigger company like the plumbing and hvac trades, they will have a nicer van, but everything inside is just tossed in.

 

[mino]

I do not understand the conflict here folks.

Does Festool TARGET both demographics (unlike Maffel)? ABSOLUTELY!TM

You only need to look at the Festool offering - the "Set" bundles are a prime example of targeting the hobby market. It is shooting for the opportunistic buyer with a disposable income. I.e. shooting for "can buy even what do not really need". That is the prime anti-thesis of a commercial buyer.

Now, what is the split ? No one (even Festool) does precisely know. And it will change in time as well as in location.

Some countries it can be 80/20 even, some 20/80. Some part of year it can be 90/10, other 10/90. E.g. x-mass sales are almost pure hobby while feb/march would be heavily in the pro direction. Some will buy while hobby and then get into the trade. Etc. But the strong statements "here it is 98% that or that" are just that - strong statements.

Just get on with the fact both demographics are interesting for Festool. And as for profit, a hobby user is always more profitable per given sales volume, so even if it was 30% sales it can easily tie-in 50% profits. That should not be forgotten.

Cheers.

 

[Crazyraceguy]

This has accidentally turned into a quite interesting discussion.
For me, if I was a hobbyist DIY person, I would really struggle to see the value. But as a pro who builds reception desks, bars and things like that for a living, the speed/simplicity of the system make a big difference.
With most forms of woodworking, there are several ways to do things. Of course there are exceptions like turning and scrollsaw work, but for most tasks you have choices. Most of those choices are based on the tools available and one's skill with them (experience) and imagination.
The main factor I see in this is speed. Pros need to get things done efficiently to make money and move on to the next job. The end product is what matters.
Hopefully, for a hobbyist, the journey is as important as the destination. So speed is not necessarily a goal, or at least a top factor.
Certainly money plays a role here too. It doesn't matter how important that speed factor is to you if you don't have the money to buy the tools that will get the job done faster. I would think that this is the point of up-grading over a period of time. You deal with what you can afford and move up as needed when the money is there.
That is what I have done over the last 17 years. I started with the bare minimum to get the job done. I up-graded to Makita LXT when the Lithium Ion battery concept was just getting going. Then I added the things which would be the most helpful as I went. I was 10 years in before I ever bought any Festool gear.  The Domino was a game changer for me and after using it for just a few minutes, I wished I had done it much sooner. RO90 came next and I used them both with a cheap shop-vac and a tool triggered switch. This served my needs for quite a while. A devastating fire and moving to a new building gave me the opportunity to go down the rabbit hole. It is a whole lot easier to justify up-grading when you "have to" buy something, because you lost it, than it is when you still have something functional in your hand.

 

[mino]

For me, if I was a hobbyist DIY person, I would really struggle to see the value. But as a pro who builds reception desks, bars and things like that for a living, the speed/simplicity of the system make a big difference.

For me, being a hobby user, it is actually the opposite.

With little experience depth, the problem is I usually *do not know* what is a "good-enough" tool for the task at the quality I need (at my skill of using the tool).

In the end, there are two strategies I used which I find also quite common:
1) If I need a new tool-type, get a cheapo version then once a bit familiar, buy better depending on need.
-------------
The problem with this strategy is that with little experience it can provide false information. A cheap circular saw with a crappy included blade can be near useless for furniture cutting. But in reality, the issue was with the particular saw + blade combination, NOT with the fact circular saws are crap for the task.

Result: I wasted money on tool AND wasted money on (destroyed) material AND was not able to do the project AND my girlfriend was pissed what a useless guy I am. Thanks, but no thanks!

IF I was a pro, I would KNOW I need a quality blade and KNOW how to use even the crappy saw. So the cheapo piece would be the optimal choice for that one job actually.
But as a hobby user, I would have been much better set getting a HK55 at the time. And it would be cheaper that the $150 I wasted on saw + material AND I would still have a GF ... Slam dunk deal for me here.

In other words, sometimes it is cheaper to pay for the tool INSTEAD of paying for the skill (either by hire, by paying a course, or by paying by hours on youtube, none are for free).

2) If I need a new tool type, consider if I can justify a Top-of-the-line tool AND the project(s) will still be worth it OR simply do not go along with the project/approach that would require the tool.
-------------
This means that at times I over-pay, relatively speaking if someone from the trades was judging the buy. BUT I paid as much INSTEAD of having to invest man-weeks which I do not have (and if had are worth $ thousands) so that I can complete the task with confidence of the result.

Are there people who buy high-end tools just for posh? ABSOLUTELY. But the cost/benefit calculus for a hobby user is very different to a pro as a higher-quality tool can compensate (partially, of course) for a lower skill level. And it may not be economically viable for the hobbyist to actually go the other path of improving the skill - as it will not repay itself in most cases.

 

[DeformedTree]

I would add to the points be made with a few more things, and I suspect many of those here fit in with some of these in some ways.

A lot of folks are working thru gradual improvements in tools, this drives home to people that it's cheaper to just buy the good tool from the start, but that just always isn't practical/possible. And sometimes you want to have something before going all in.

Some of this cycle for many folks may be one that started with a parent, who they watched tool evolution, so then they carried on from there. They learned not to buy the cheap crappy tool, they started with better quality tools. Still big box offerings, but they bought the Milwaukee saw, not the ryobi.  Now they continue to work up this path. And of course many of those red tools are not what they were 30 years ago, they went mass market as everyone learned those were good tools to buy.

I find most tools are easy to justify the cost simply because I'm the labor. Of course no tool buying is even cheaper. But I know how long and frustrating trying to do work without the right tool is.

Like other "hobbies" you have the resale factor. If you buy high quality stuff, you know you can always sell it and get a large chunk of the cost back. You can't do that with cheap tools. Maybe you plan to buy a tool just for a job, then re-sell it.

In the case of Festool, there are other factors too. I found them because they were metric, so they have that going. But also things like dust collection. More tools are getting there, but for the most part they have nothing. That is a huge aspect. Some aspects like being a track saw just don't have much competition. Want a track saw in the US?  Festool or Mafell.  Some options exist now I. A Kapex may have nice features, but the only thing that ever attracted me to it at all is it possibly being the one miter saw with working dust collection.

I don't know that I have found Festool stuff any easier or faster to use. But when it comes to dust collection or features that don't exist on other tools, or the ones that to are as expensive or more.

Also coming in systainers is a big benefit to people who may not have full time shop, they work in their garage on the weekend, and then they need a way to put it all away.

In a different thread, the foam cutter not being for sale in N.A. came up. Best reason I can see is that is really a specialty pro tool with almost no market for hobbyist, thus they don't sell it here. Hard to see any other reason for not selling it.

The Mafell examples show what things would be if Festool was only targeting pro's and only selling to pro's.

 

[Crazyraceguy]

The idea that better tools will somehow make a beginner DIY person automatically better, I just don't see. There may be some validity to junk tools leading to bad results, but it can't be that big of a deal, can it?
Since I lost the old one in the fire, I have not replaced my circular saw. Personally I find them to be very crude, somewhat like a reciprocating saw (sawzall). There are guys who use them every day. framers, carpenters, etc. but not me.
A track saw is a totally different thing. A guy could very well get by with a TS55 when working with sheet goods and never need a table saw.
I see so many Youtubers use the track saw to break down material into smaller pieces, yet leave them over-sized and run them through the table saw after? This makes absolutely no sense to me. You can easily cut parts to exact size with the TS55, straight from the saw.
The DF500 definitely speeds up joinery and I'm sure sanding is faster than any other way too. Once you are into the track "system" it only makes sense to have the ability to use a router with them. That is faster than the way I did it before too.
Sure, there are things that can't really do anything any faster than any other way. Drills, jig saw, impact driver, are in that category. But even if it is just the superior dust collection, the routers are faster because of the clean-up factor.
It may just be me, but if I was a DIYer, I could never justify any of it. There are other ways, they just might be slower, which wouldn't necessarily matter to me. Then the lower amount of use factor would enter into it.
I don't use every one of my Festool tools every single day, but many of them see that much work. Some can go several days between uses, but those are usually the most unique, which makes them the most valuable when they are needed.
As I have said before, I am in a large cabinet shop that has pretty much every way to cut material available. Everything from a computer-driven beam saw, 2 different 5' x 12' cnc routers, 3 vertical panel saws, a sliding table saw, and 2 52" Sawstop table saws, but I still use a TS55 frequently. First because it is sometimes just better to take the saw to the work. Other times it is just because it is closer. I have a 4' x 9' cutting station just 5 feet away from my main assembly table. Cutting lists and cnc cut parts are all well and good, but often "cut to fit" comes into play. The TS 55 solves that issue, which is also why I have the Woodpeckers track square. It makes random angles easy.

 

[Dr. P. Venkman]

It may just be me, but if I was a DIYer, I could never justify any of it. There are other ways, they just might be slower, which wouldn't necessarily matter to me.

Replace “DIYer” with “hobbyist”, and you’re more in Festool’s non-pro market. These aren’t people whose goal is to fix or build something in their house as economically as possible. These are people that enjoy the process and enjoy using nice tools.

You sang the praises of the track saw very well, and I do think a DIYer (non-hobbyist division) could make a pretty good case for one of those being worthwhile, but by and large, the non-pros that would visit a place called Festool Owner’s Group do this for fun.

 

[DeformedTree]

It may just be me, but if I was a DIYer, I could never justify any of it. There are other ways, they just might be slower, which wouldn't necessarily matter to me.

Replace “DIYer” with “hobbyist”, and you’re more in Festool’s non-pro market. These aren’t people whose goal is to fix or build something in their house as economically as possible. These are people that enjoy the process and enjoy using nice tools.

Correct,  when it comes to non-pros, there are many versions of these people, from the standard idea of a DIY'er who has decided to attempt a project themselves instead of hiring someone, often fairly simple task, repairs, basic projects that are basically supported with everything the need in the local big box store.  Then you get more into hobbyist (woodworkers), who could do basic stuff to work that is beyond anything a pro ever does. And then you also have people that just do all their stuff, it's just how they are. The build/rebuild their own homes, they build everything on their property, they only hire people for stuff they just can't do. These folks tend to come from families where the whole family is that way. Also where you live is a big indicator, get more rural, get more folks who do everything themselves, not for any reason on than that is how they do things.

Seeing folks post here over the years, you see the spectrum.  Some folks come and ask tool questions and explain they have some project they want to do, and they talk about a couple grand worth of tools they are looking to buy. The thing they say they want to do might be something you could buy for far less money. It's not the point, they either just want to do it, or want the tools and need something to justify, etc. It doesn't matter if it makes sense or not. It's what they want to do, so be it.  We clearly have a lot of folks who are full blown artist with wood who just enjoy doing it.  And then there is a lot of folks who are more the later category, they clearly have just done stuff their whole life, they build/rebuild the homes they live in and have often done it a few times.

 

[squall_line]

Replace “DIYer” with “hobbyist”, and you’re more in Festool’s non-pro market. These aren’t people whose goal is to fix or build something in their house as economically as possible. These are people that enjoy the process and enjoy using nice tools.

This meshes (or 'dovetails', if you will) nicely with the "who the heck is buying all of these one-time-tools from Woodpecker" part of the conversation earlier, IMHO.

 

[mino]

The idea that better tools will somehow make a beginner DIY person automatically better, I just don't see. There may be some validity to junk tools leading to bad results, but it can't be that big of a deal, can it?

It is a huge deal in practice.
A Pro CAN get a good result even from a crappy tool in many cases.

A novice generally cannot. He does not have the skill to compensate for the tool limitations. And for a hobby user acquiring the required skill to be able to use a crappy tool effectively is often not economically not viable. Even if you net just $20/hr at your day job, wasting 20 man hours (and this two weekends!) to acquire a skill to be able to use a $50 tool instead of a $300 one just does not compute ...
If you are barely making ends meet, it can be different. But then you will not be the demographic here to begin as then you would not have the budget for the material either.

Example:
I would need to make 20+ carcasses to be able to reliably make one using just a simple $50 drill jig and dowels.

The problem:
Over a 10-year time span I will ONLY ever need to make these 20 or so carcasses.

...

Now, 20 carcasses worth of material is easily $1000, not counting the time (another $1000 or more). This means I will either end up having crappy/not-fitting furniture in the house (bad) or waste $2000 (worse) to save $1000. And counting resale value more like $200 actually). End result: One unhappy hobby user.

Here goes my $1000 budget for Domino right there! End result: One happy hobby user.

Now, if I was a pro, there is no way I could justify the $1000 Domino just for 20 carcasses ... when my *already-paid-for-by-time* skill allows me to make them reasonably fast and precise just with a simple dowel jig and a drill.

I also second the "DIY" /which to me always seems almost derogatory/ versus "hobby" demographies.

Here in Czech republic, we have this term "kutil" which is hard to translate.
The concept came about during the communist times where trades were centralized and hard to get. It assumes a concept of doing/making stuff at a better-or-at-least-equivalent quality than a tradesperson would.

It is not really "DYI" (the goal is not to save money) and neither it is "Hobbyist" (the primary goal is not fun) in the US/West sense. Is kinda an amalgamation of both with a bit of "what-if" lets-learn-some-trade aspect when economy goes really bad.

The itch there is to do stuff as efficiently as possible at as high a quality as feasible (so wife/partner will value the work instead of seeing it as a cheapo alternative). This brings it close to a one-man-band pro use case but not quite. The volume is not there and the time budget neither. But capability-wise many such folks are able to produce stuff of an artisan quality, even if not economically.

 

[Crazyraceguy]

I could have worded that better. I was really meaning hobbyist woodworker when I wrote DYIer, there definitely is a difference.  I guess DIYer seems more like someone who is working on home projects like repairs and maybe remodeling.
As has been discussed above, woodworker is very broad term. It covers everything from marquetry, scroll sawing, chip carving, and turning to cabinet making and furniture and/or built-ins.
Some of these things overlap, some people do more several of them.

The one thing I would add though is about the example of the pro not justifying a $1000 purchase over "only 20 carcases"......why would a pro ever only do 20?