What is a Badged Sewing Machine?

A "badged" sewing machine, means that there really isn't a company named (insert here, the name brand on your sewing machine, i.e. American Home, Modern Home, J.C. Penney, Sears Kenmore, Montgomery Ward, Gimbels, Simplicity, etc...), that owned their own factory, and manufactured these sewing machines. Instead, the seller whose brand name is on the machine, actually made a contract with a manufacturing company, to build a specific number of sewing machines, that the seller could then slap their brand name, via a "badge", on the machine, and sell it as if they had a specialty sewing machine shop of their own, just like Singer, Bernina, or Necchi, Elna, or Pfaff.


  

Simplicity is another "badged" sewing machine type.
Morse Superdial is badged, you will find this model with several different brand name badges

Kenmore is the Sears badge, Sears contracted with different companies to manufacture their sewing machines over the years, so the numbers on the Kenmore sewing machines metal nomenclature plates, has a 3 numberal manufacturer identity code, then a decimal, then the model number, and if it has more than 2 to 4 numbers to the right of the decimal, they also indicate which set of accessories, or decor were used on that specific machine. 158.18023 on this Kenmore means it was made by Maruzen, it is model 1802, and it has the 3 accessory set and decor. Sometimes the knobs had slight differences between variations of the same model number, or might have a slightly different bobbin winder.  

Kenmore badged Maruzen factory made sewing machine

Necchi originally had a factory in Italy, which manufactured their machines, but manufacturing later moved overseas, and the company eventually became little more than a badge brand name.

Modern badged sewing machine

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