Just because a brand has a good reputation for its track record in the past doesn’t mean it’s still a good product today. I’m aware of several brand names that have worsened over the years and are relying on their past reputation as a good product to sell their stuff.  Conversely, I’ve come to respect and appreciate brands that have gone from mediocre to very good as they’ve evolved over the years. 

One local brand was recently acquired by a huge investment group that has zero interest in the hot tub business – their sole concern is profits and their shareholders’ ROI.  As efficiency experts, they’ve fired the highest-paid employees and “re-staffed”, and have begun to cut corners in the manufacturing process to reduce costs while maintaining the same “look”.  The average person would never know the difference at a glance, but what they’re making nowadays is not nearly the same quality as how they used to make them before they were taken over. They’d shamelessly milk what used to be a good company for all its worth then run it into the ground and move on when it’s no longer profitable.

Nothing in this industry is static, and it takes some doing to keep current as to what’s happening out there, which may affect the quality of any given product.