SCREW LOOSE DEAL

Craftsman puzzler

When the venerable Craftsman trademark changes hands later this year, consumers could be in for a bumpy ride.

In a rare retail occurrence, the popular tool brand will be manufactured by two unaffiliated and independent companies, each with its own marketing, pricing and design strategies.

Such a setup, engineered in part by billionaire Eddie Lampert, the owner and chief executive of Sears Holdings, could result in different levels of quality and widely different prices for the same basic tool — whether a $1,299 Craftsman riding mower or a $4.99 utility knife.

“It’s a strange deal where you have two companies selling identically branded products that compete with each other,” said Greg Stefflre, an investment analyst. “This will be highly confusing to customers.”

A unit of Sears sold the 89year-old Craftsman brand to Stanley Black & Decker earlier this month.

SB&D, which has big plans to spruce up the brand and to widen distribution to a myriad of retailers like Home Depot and Lowe’s and even abroad, will pay Sears $525 million up front, plus $250 million in three years.

It will also pay royalty fees of 2.5 percent to 3.5 percent for the next 15 years.

Under the terms of the strange deal, Sears will continue to sell and make its Craftsman merchandise — which is largely sourced abroad — while SB&D will do the same for the items it will sell.

However, SB&D has plans to bring Craftsman manufacturing to the US.

“Sears is allowed to invest, innovate and compete with us with their product,” SB&D spokeswoman Shannon Lapierre confirmed to The Post, adding that “we’ll invest and grow the brand.”

Without disclosing its plans, SB&D top management said during a call with analysts that it will have its own pricing structure.

“There’s nothing in these agreements that says [we] have to follow certain pricing and certain restrictions around product innovation,” said Don Allan, Black & Decker’s chief financial officer, during the call.

Despite the divergent strategies, both companies insist Craftsman products won’t suffer from quality control issues.

“Regardless of whether the product is a Craftsman item sold at Sears or sold via [SB&D], we expect the quality and innovation that Craftsman has been known for since 1927 will continue,” Sears spokesman Howard Riefs told The Post.

But it’s less likely that Sears will be able to keep up with or exceed any of the improvements SB&D might make to the products.

What’s more, Sears shoppers will have one reason fewer to go to the stores if they can get a Craftsman product somewhere closer — possibly for less, experts said.

“I have to believe that the way the deal is structured, with Sears getting a royalty for 15 years, that Eddie Lampert is anticipating that sales at Sears will continue to decline at a rapid pace,” Stefflre said.

After 15 years, Sears is supposed to pay Black & Decker a royalty fee, but “who knows if Sears will be around then,” said brand expert Ray Graj of Graj + Gustavsen. “That’s a long shot.”