It seems I stirred up quite the hornet's nest.
For all you "undisclosed" people who think I am trying to undermine your income....why don't you have the courage to put your name with your thoughts?.....
Due the nature of some of the most recent comments, I must counter. That being said, if John H wants to delete this entire discussion, I'm fine with that. Its turning into a bit of a mudfest. I found two or three contacts and I am thankful for that.
In reply to Jon:
Thank you for posting with your real name. I respect your opinion.
Jon: "sometimes we run into incompatibilities with certain mounts or wall brackets. It's nice to have someone like Sean there for help."
I agree. If I was looking for a turnkey solution, that is correct. You might ask Sean, whom I contacted over one month ago with specific part numbers.
Jon: "The other major issue is it doesn't sound like you are in the importing business, so you are over your head there".
Were you born speaking fluent English and with a complete career skill set? Yes its a challenge. No, I do not expect a mfr's rep to work with me an my smaller quantities. But I do find there are honest sellers, and less than honest, in the US, China or whereever you are.
"Basically, the very reason why this isn't working out for you is exactly why no one does it."
Who says it is not working out? Its a hassle, I agree, yes my time is worth something and I have already stated I would be willing to pay a reasonable markup for a reliable US source. Double or triple the price is not reasonable, especially since I assume full responsibility for support.
"Do you think you have some novel idea that sourcing from Ali is the golden goose?"
Of course not. My experience with their Trade Assurance program was a total failure. So no Ali for me.
"I don't understand why you would place so much trust into that Ali vendor half way around the world instead of a great guy like Sean who actually has inventory,""
Sean does not appear to have the inventory I want. He appears to be a nice guy. I have bought two cameras from Ali suppliers before, several more from US sources, the US cameras were no better than genuine product I did receive from China. Of couse the counterfeit one I received was poorly made.
"If this were my scenario and I couldn't afford the U.S. price of these given models, I would rethink my solution"
Spoken with your viewpoint, I am certain, of someone who is in the systems integration or resale business.
To Undisclosed:
"This whole discussion seems like a staged dialog for undermining the sales channel"
This is pure BS. Should I post the sales invoices from the source I do buy from?
To another Undisclosed:
"If money is as critical as you say, you wouldn't risk it so easily"
False logic. I would agree if I did not have the skills to support these projects. If I wanted to carelessly risk my money, I would have wired overseas money to the first supplier who responded.
"you say you want "real" Dahua product instead of OEM labeled" "who is to say that the China dealer isn't going to slap a Dahua logo on an OEM unit? You have absolutely ZERO control over what they sell you. At least with a U.S. OEM you have a reliable source that isn't motivated to scam you"
I agree. That is why I am doing my homework. I have found sometimes I am equally disappointed in the quality of tech products, whether I buy from a US source or from China.
"This whole scenario screams of alterior motives..."
Since you think that, please tell what they may be.............
In response to a post which just appeared as I am writing this:
Yes, I do look at thia as a learning experience, I may, indeed pursue this as a part time career. There is no Dahua dristributor in our rural northern state, I have been providing IT consulting for a while and yes I probably use my experience with this for future projects.
**********I want to thank John H, Louis, Matthew and Chris. Your time and thoughts are appreciated. **************
My opinion, which will probably be countered:
The counterfeit market in IP cameras, and the US situation for genuine Dahua... reminds me much of software.....Many software packages are overpriced (my opinion) and there is a lot of piracy. Like the gray market for Dahua. You can buy an app from Apple or Google for 2 to 15 dollars, (often free if you don't mind ads, I would rather pay) and for the
most part, they are making huge money and there is little piracy.
I agree, the distribution of the Dahua brand is a mess.. They should stick to making cameras, set a fair markup, and quit trying to control their market by manipulating price and crippling firmware by market (if they do as Hik does).
If they want to have distributors, or integrators sell their product with value-added services, fine. I am sure they
discount for large quantities. Those people can resell at a higher price, bundles with their services. If someone like me is looking for the hardware and not the service, I should be able to buy at a lower price. Do you hire a chef to cook all your meals or eat at a restaurant seven days a week? Of course not, you go the to the grocery store. If this was done, whether you are buying in the US, in China, or wherever, the grey market incentive would be gone. The entire practice of market segmentation in today's global economy is simply wrong, from a buyer's standpoint.