Tales & Trails of a Traveling Wiseguy

Yes, Kenmore appliances are/were white-labeled Whirlpools. White-labeling, when name brand manufacturers make goods in the same factories but put them in different boxes with different labels, is a common way private label goods are made. For example, Kirkland household batteries (D, C, AA, AAA, 9v) are made by Duracell. They sell for about 25% less than Duracell-branded batteries. Perhaps most notoriously it's widely suspected that Kirkland French vodka is made by Grey Goose. The French are notoriously tight lipped on that one.