Why Sears signed Ted Williams—as a playing manager

As a Sears, Roebuck and Co. consultant, Ted Williams brings to his new job the same keen eye and straight talk that set him apart as a ballplayer. Read how he helps Sears field-test and improve its sports equipment—in order to give you more for your money.

Why did Sears sign Ted Williams? For one simple reason. To add a cold, professional viewpoint on the quality of every piece of Sears sports equipment before it gets into the Sears catalog or any one of the 740 Sears department stores.

Williams is a working consultant. He helps Sears select the sports items it sells. He personally field-tests them. And he suggests improvements in order to keep Sears a stride ahead in the sporting goods field.

He may recommend putting bigger, stronger wheels on a camp trailer. Lighter soles on a pair of hunting boots. Softer leather in the liner of a fielder's glove—to create the proper "feel." Making sure its products really work has always been a main concern of Sears. That's the reason behind the $50,000,000 Sears testing laboratory.

And that's the reason for signing Ted Williams. If the legendary Williams batting eye can't detect a flaw, Sears knows the item is absolutely first-rate.

Ted Williams' name on any sports equipment you buy at Sears is not just an empty endorsement.

It means that your judgment in choosing this product is backed by a man who would never lend his name to anything he wouldn't use himself.

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Ted Williams' name is no longer in the box scores. But you'll find it on a wide range of sports items that are available only at Sears.