Article: How Black & Decker's wrench stole Christmas-and what else was hot; Adjustable cool tool in short supply, along with Wii, TMX Elmo, HDTV.(News)

Byline: MYA FRAZIER

mfrazier@crain.com

Who could have guessed one of the most sought-after gifts this holiday would be a wrench?

Well, when Jeremy Wheeler, director-sales at Black & Decker on the Home Depot account, saw the prototype for the 8-inch, battery-operated wrench nearly a year before Christmas, he had a good feeling. "You could just tell it could have a lot of appeal.''

He and his crew decided on a national push for the cool adjustable tool at the holidays. The big-box chains jumped on board, and Home Depot committed to supplement the product's national TV spot with heavy print ads. "We just knew that we were going to have a ...

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