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Revere Ware may be gone, but it isn’t forgotten

By on February 10, 2019 in Ebay, History

While the official Revere Ware brand may be gone, it certainly hasn’t been forgotten, as we are reminded this week seeing Google search results for Revere Ware.  It seems that major retailer still see good reasons to try and draw people in using the Revere Ware brand, even though they don’t offer any actual Revere Ware products.

Neither the Bed Bath & Beyond link nor the Wayfair link lead to any actual Revere Ware products.

Interestingly enough, as Google Trends shows, Revere Ware as a search term is actually getting slightly more popular.

Who knows, this may be a second renaissance for the brand now that it is officially dead, which nostalgic interest building, plenty of inventory in the used marketplaces, and prices relatively reasonable still.

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Sales tax armageddon (say goodbye to small online sellers)

By on January 30, 2019 in Small business

TL;DR: Unless the tax madness unleashed by the Supreme Court decision last year is tamed, you will see many small online businesses like ours shut their doors. 

By now, most people have probably heard of South Dakota vs Wayfair, the Supreme Court ruling the upended the decades long precedence of requiring a physical presence in a state or district to require the collection of sales tax.  At this time, something like 2/3 of the states have enacted legislation that requires out of state or out of district sellers to collect sales tax if they exceed a gross revenue or number of transaction limit in a state or district within the state.  Most states are going with greater than $100,000 in sales and greater than 200 transactions to trigger the collection of sales tax.

What exactly does this mean for a business like ours?

First, a little background.  Admittedly, ours is a niche business and one done out of care and concern for the people who love and still use their decades old Revere Ware, like us.  In other words, we aren’t primarily in it for the money.  Having said that, making money off of this venture is a way to justify continuing to put significant effort into it.  We’ve also spent considerable time to streamline the business so that it doesn’t dominate our lives for the small amount of profit it makes each year.

From our perspective, the difference between the two thresholds, $100,000 and 200 transactions, is also a little strange.  Our average transaction total is $12.13; our parts are pretty cheap, and people tend to buy one or two.  That means, 200 transaction is only $2,476, a long, long way from $100,000.  It means that if we are unlucky, we just might pass that threshold in a few states or tax districts.  (BTW, a tax district is any area that has it’s own special tax, like a state, city, or county.)

So when we look at the cost of compliance of the new tax regime, our main concern is simply whether attempting to be sales tax compliant will become incredibly burdensome, and there seems to be every indication that it likely will, unless things change.

Consider that there are more than 10,000 ta districts in the US.  Assuming that every state adopts some kind of post-Wayfair decision sales tax regime, that means that we have to be aware of each and every sales tax jurisdiction and whether or not we have breached the threshold.  In California, the moment you breach the threshold, you are supposed to register to collect sales tax THE VERY NEXT DAY, and collect tax from that point on.  Can you imagine what it would take to pay attention to this and be prepared to register and collect taxes for 10,000 tax districts every single day.

Furthermore, there really aren’t any good methods to do this.  Our sales data comes from two places, our sales as a third party through large retailers, and sales from our own website, which comes from our e-commerce platform.  Neither has any good tools for dealing with this issue. That means we have to develop those tools ourselves.  The data for our third party sales are very limited, so it isn’t clear if this is even possible.

Then comes the compliance burden of filing sales tax returns in every district in which we determine we have had to collect sales tax.  Given that we may have only had to collect sales tax for a particular district for part of the year, starting at some arbitrary date, this makes it particularly onerous.

It currently takes us between 3-6 hours each year to prepare our single sales tax return.  If it turns out we have to file 10 such return a year, that is 30-60 hours, or 3/4 to 1 1/2 weeks of work.

One justification for throwing open the doors to states collecting sales tax now, vs 1992 when the Supreme Court decision was made that limited this, is that online sales are all digital now and the cost of compliance is minimal.  I can tell you, from the perspective of a small seller, this is not the case.  The tools on the various e-commerce platforms that we’ve used, to just support making it easy to file a single state and district sales tax return, just aren’t there.

There is one more thing to consider, which could be much, much worse, than anything else related to what we’ve considered so far; some states will no-doubt be overly aggressive at pursuing online retailers for sales taxes.  I’ve seen this happen in particular with California; they often will make assumptions and send out demand letters that then have to be meticulously defended to prove you don’t actually have a tax liability.  This is potential more time consuming and costly than the compliance.

In short, I am very worried for the viability of small, online businesses if this sales tax trap is not fixed. 

One possible solution is a streamlined sales tax system, where the same tax rules and rates apply within every jurisdiction across a state.  This typically goes under the name SSUTA, or Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement.  While this would be an improvement over the current landscape, I still can’t imaging having to file 10 state sales tax returns every year.

Unless this is solved, I suspect that many small sellers, especially of niche products like ours, will simply close up shop.  Some products will no longer be available, and sales will be consolidated among larger retailers that can handle the cost of compliance.  Consumer choices will decline.

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RevereWare.org is now mobile friendly

By on January 22, 2019 in Ebay

In 2010, we created revereware.org to make it easier for people to find Revere Ware cookware on eBay.  The site downloads and categorizes all Revere Ware listings on eBay every 30 minutes, making it easier to find the exact item and size you need.

In 2013, we updated the site to be prettier and work better.

Since then, mobile devices have become much more prevalent and our site didn’t work particularly well on smaller screens.

We are happy to announce a complete overhaul of the site which is now, in the language of web technology, fully responsive. This means that it will display well no matter what size screen you are using.  Here are some screen shots of the new design.  You can find the site here.

Desktop layout

Mobile layout

The site has a handy grid view as well, in addition to the default list view.

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It’s our birthday – 10 years of replacement parts

By on January 11, 2019 in History, RevereWareParts.com

Image result for vintage 10th birthday

10 years ago today, we listed our first set of Revere Ware replacement parts for sale. Prior to the availability of our parts, there was a 20 year period where new parts were not available at all, as Revere Ware stopped selling any replacement parts in 1989, after being bought by Corning in 1988 (more company history here).

Prior to our parts, the only option for someone looking for the like new look, or to fix a piece that was no longer functional, was a complicated Bakelite refurbishment process that involved repeated sanding with progressively finer sandpaper; very labor intensive, and expensive.

So wish us a happy 10th birthday, and enjoy your Revere Ware for another few decades.

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RIP Revere Ware 1939 – 2018

By on January 7, 2019 in Interesting

We wrote last summer that it appears that World Kitchen / Corelle Brands, the owner of the Revere Ware brand, was preparing to ditch the brand altogether.  This is after coming out with a new line or Revere Ware branded cookware back in 2016.

We got a tip off this week from a customer that tried to contact Revere Ware support:

I contacted by phone World Kitchens and talked to a rep about revere ware warranty replacement of a knob on my 3 quart sauce pan.  She said her company no longer represents revere ware or their warranties anymore.  I am interested in the knob replacement you show for the saucepan as that is the exact knob that will no stay on the screw of my saucepan.

If you go to revereware.com, this is what you see:

There is no mention of Revere Ware anywhere on the site anymore.

The Corelle Brands corporate site also no longer has any mention of Revere Ware.

This seems a very unceremonious end to the Revere Ware brand, to be silently disappeared without any public contemplation, explanation, or appreciation.  The Revere Brand was once the most popular cookware brand in the US.

It would appear that we are the last place you can go for any type of Revere Ware support and replacement.

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Large pressure cooker sauce pan

By on January 3, 2019 in Interesting

Customer Lenora found this oddity at an estate sale.  It looks like the bottom of a pressure cooker, but without the rim to hold the lid on.

My first thought is that someone got frustrated on not being able to use their pressure cooker for lack of replacement parts, and removed the rim, but Lenora says there are no signs of the rim having been worked by hand.

She says:

From what i can see, The rim doesn’t look manipulated at all and we thought perhaps it was a modified pressure cooker too except that the inside bottoms of this pot does not look anything like the bottoms of the pressure cook.  I’d also like to note we live about 15 minutes from Rome, NY and my dad thought perhaps this was a custom piece a worker may have made just on a whim for themselves?? We’ve scoured the internet and really can’t find anything else like it?

And then there is this auction she found for an identical piece.

Perhaps it was a prototype that never made it to production.  This wouldn’t be the first time we’ve seen oddities like this that appear to be one of few of a kind.

Both of them have something extra  on the process patent stamp, a “U” on one and a “G” on the other.

I’ve always thought that pressure cookers would make a pretty good sauce pan or stock pot overall, as have pretty thick walls to handle the pressure, so they spread the heat well, and the bottom tend to stay very flat, but the rim is a bit annoying if all you want is a pan as it gets in the way of a lid.  This seems like the best of both worlds.

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Inferences from a wooden handle

By on December 18, 2018 in Amazon, Ebay, Parts, Small business

A customer pointed out this listing for a vintage Revere Ware skillet with a wooden handle

It’s a beautiful handle, which gives the skillet a very pleasing and unique appearance.

You can see from the handle detail that this is a very old skillet, made within the first few years of Revere Ware production.

The spline, rather than being a straight piece on those handles, was the same shape as the actual handle.  This was the style that had two screws close to the pot, and a third screw in the center of the end, where the hook went through.  It appears as if this customization used the two screws for near the pot end, to hold the handle, forgoing the hook.  Here is a blurb on adapting our newer style handles to that older style spline.

Everything about this handle, including the workmanship, tells me this is something that would not have been offered by Revere Ware, but was custom made by someone who probably could not get a replacement handle.

Before we started selling our parts, we saw a lot of funky attempts to continue using Revere Ware pots despite handle issues.

  • At least one other home made wooden handle
  • People attempting to epoxy broken handles together using high temperature epoxy
  • Holding the metal spline on a pot that has lost its handle with pliers or oven mitts
  • A complex polishing and restoration process that involved 5 different grits of sandpaper

Because of this, when we first opened our shop for replacement Revere Ware parts, we got a lot of appreciation emails from customers.  While we still get one now and again, dealing with customers on Amazon.com has turned into a very different experience.  People are quick to pull the trigger on negative feedback over any issue, no matter how small, without even contacting us first for assistance, and then rarely respond when we follow with an offer to help after seeing their feedback.

We sell somewhere in the neighborhood of 10,000 parts a year these days across about 6,500 customers.  In our mind, that is 6,500 people we’ve had the opportunity to help continue to use their cherished piece of cookware.  We also answer somewhere between 500 and 1000 questions each year for people, whether they are customers or not.  The nature of a business like ours is service more than product.  Service to help people find the right part, service to answer questions and sometimes solve a historical mystery, and service to solve problems when they arise.

Retailing used to be about service.  Consider this bit from an article today in the Wall Street Journal:

Long before internet shopping, when a personal touch and pride of proprietorship were essential to successful local merchandising, Robert Lazarus Sr. was the president of the largest department store in Columbus, Ohio, my hometown. His name was on the building: the F&R Lazarus Co., among the most prestigious stores in the Midwest.

A dignified, respected man, he lived in a grand and tastefully decorated house. He kept his home number listed in the phone book.

Here is something his son told me, years after Robert Lazarus had died, and the store had disappeared.

One evening when the son was growing up, the telephone in their home rang. The caller, with nervousness in his voice, asked for Robert Lazarus, who came to the phone.

The man, almost apologetically, said he and his wife had purchased a tea set at Lazarus. They had never owned one before, but saw it on display and decided it was something they would like to have in their home.

Robert Lazarus waited to hear what was coming next. Was there a flaw? Was a cup or saucer broken?

That wasn’t it. The man said he and his wife did not know the proper way to serve tea—how to make use of the tea set when company came over. They sensed there was an etiquette to it, but no one had ever told them what it was.

Some of Lazarus’s customers had very modest incomes; to them, that downtown store was almost a palace, a place of aspiration, even if they were only looking. The tea set had represented a step up, a significant expenditure for this man and his wife. And they weren’t quite sure how it was intended to be used.

So the husband called the man whose name was on the store—at home, at night—for advice.

Robert Lazarus, his son said, stayed on the phone with his customer and, with great care, walked him through the steps of having a tea party, of using an elegant tea set. He told the man stories about tea receptions he and his own wife had given; he answered every question.

Then, before hanging up, he thanked the man profusely for having shopped at Lazarus.

I asked the son—by then an elderly man himself—if his dad had seemed at all bothered to have received the call in the middle of an evening with his family.

“Bothered?” the son said. “He couldn’t have been more pleased. He talked about it with great fondness for the rest of the night.”

I imagine the man who had placed the call did, too: The man who, in a time before customer service meant algorithm-generated email responses and endless waits for offshore call centers to answer, had taken a deep breath and dialed the phone, not knowing if he was making a mistake by imposing.

And who had been greeted, by the president of the F&R Lazarus Co., like an old friend.

Sometimes, dealing with customers on Amazon.com almost makes me want to quite the business.  I got in this business because I wanted to help people in a way that I wanted help myself years ago when I was looking for replacement parts for my Revere Ware.  With less business going to our website, where we have very few returns, almost no complaints, and the occasional praise, and more business going to Amazon.com, where we constantly struggle against abrupt and inconsiderate negative feedback and rarely a kind word, it is more of a burden and less of a joy these days.

While I love the convenience of ordering online and the benefit of being able to find things that used to be impossible to find, I had the impersonality of it all.  Perhaps this is what can save the malls and local businesses against the onslaught of  online shopping, good customer service and a very personal experience.

I’m trying to do my little part to keep business more personal.  While you can’t call me at home, I do answer every question, no matter how stupid you might think it is, frequently even during evenings and on weekends, and I try to make every customer happy if I can.

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3D trigger for the 3 quart kettle is now available from Shapeways

By on December 13, 2018 in 3D printed replacement parts

Since our successful test of the 3D printed trigger using the “Black Professional Plastic” material (it didn’t soften during use on the stove) we have made it available for anyone to purchase on Shapways.

You can click on the buy now button above to order one.  These have not been extensively tested, so if you purchase one, you will be beta testing them for us.  Please let us know if you have any issues with the fit or the material.

This is the kettle that it is made to fit, the model 3501-C on the left.

The one on the right is the more common 2 1/3 quart model, for which we already sell a cap + trigger set. Some people call the capacity of this kettle 3 1/2 quarts, but it is listed as only 3 quart.  Note the distinctive shape of the handle versus the other kettle.

Note that these triggers are being sold on Shapeways with no markup.  As more people order them, the price should go down.

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Removing stuck 2-screw handle screws

By on December 11, 2018 in Tips

After decades of use, Revere Ware pan handles can get pretty gunked up.  And the screws inside can rust together, or get bound together with greasy gunk.  Our to-to method for removing old handles was to hit them with a hammer to break them, and then pry the pieces out, to expose the screw and nut, which could then be removed with pliers.  This of course assumes you don’t want to save the old handle.

Reader Tyler offers a quite brilliant non-descructive alternative.

I found a really simple way that won’t damage the handle and is pretty quick and easy. I turn the pot or skillet sideways in the freezer and place the handle on a box so it will rest horizontally. I then put a few drops of water over the female end of the screw assembly (end without a screw slot) making sure the water pools over the head of the screw and doesn’t run off. Then I allow the water to freeze completely solid (about 15-20 mins). After the water is frozen just turn the other end of the screw and if the ice holds the female end of the screw in place it will allow you to turn the screw. This has worked for me on several occasions for screws that will turn freely but both sides turn together, if your screw won’t turn at all then this won’t work. You should also be careful with the handle right after taking it out of the freezer as I would imagine the severe cold may make the Bakelite more brittle, it also would probably not be a good idea to shock it with hot water.

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