If Pimax sells to a distributor, they have little to no control of where their product is sold afterwards unless they place restrictions on the purchase of their product to those that violate their sales agreements, if they had one, it sounds like they do not. That is not necessarily a bad thing.
Likewise, if Pimax is selling to distributors, they WILL have the items in stock before their own store, because they buy headsets by the dozens, or hundreds per order. In a small company, this can be a logistical nightmare as you try to keep track of/prioritize product delivery between individuals, and bulk purchasers. This is especially true, if you do not place in stock restrictions on your retailers, allowing them to sale product they do not yet have on their shelves, in anticipation of the next order/delivery.
Just because someone has Pimax products in stock, is not a direct link to Pimax the company/retailer. Pimax is not going to talk about their business with a distro to the public. Iām sure individual sales are important, but the fact remains, distro buys are way more profitable, and way less of a headache.
I apologize if anyone in retail is here reading this part, but I hope to explain some things to those who are not. (this is oversimplified, please donāt rake me over the coals) The retail food chain starts with the factory. The factory just makes the product normally. Itās rare that a factory directly sells to the public, if if it is under the same brand, usually the store is itās own entity under the corporate umbrella. The next buyer in line, is the Distributor. The distributor usually warehouses items they buy in the thousands. The bulk purchase keeps the price low enough for the next buyer to make a profit. The next buyer is either a Wholesaler, or a very large retailer (think chain stores). The wholesaler and large retailer canāt buy quantities that will net them a profitable discount, so they buy from the Distributor, who passes some of that large buy discount to them. The next buyer, is either the small retailer, or you, the consumer. The small retailer is at the mercy of the factory direct, and large retail sales. You are at the mercy of all of them, and what the market price will bare.
If Pimax says they are not directly affiliated with any Alibaba store, they probably are not. Furthermore, unless the retailer is violating the MAP price, or regional restrictions of sales, of their item, Pimax is unlikely to seek out the source of the retailer selling their product.
This wide distribution through the chain, allows people to purchase items at a much lower price, as the volume of products production can be higher, lowering costs to make the item, and made available to a much larger customer base, keeping sales volumes high.
The last thing to talk about is authorized retailers. If Pimax does not restrict after sale support, to only authorized retailers, there isnāt a whole lot of reason for a customer not to buy from another source. I.E. an Alibaba e-store.
Drop shipping items one by one from a factory is never a recipe for success, unless that retailer is selling large single item, think boats, trailers, mattresses, etcā¦ If I had known that was what was happening, and my item was not being fulfilled by Amazon as stated on the website, I may have purchased from an unaffiliated party retailer myself.
Also @anon57422158 Being affiliated with an Alibaba retailer like RYKKZ is not a negative if the storeās customers are satisfied. I can understand your frustration with hearing about it in comparison the the Pimax retail store, but, man, that was a harsh reply lolā¦
If a USA distro could or would buy a run from Pimax, it would cause a shortage in the short run, but once the supply chain is established, it would make for many more happy customers. Unfortunately, I think tariffs and low production numbers may be a likely roadblock to Pimaxās establishment of retail sales outside of China.
My purchase experience is being documented here:https://community.openmr.ai/t/check-chinese-holiday-calendar-before-ordering/27532/27
It is a perfect example of why drop shipping is a terrible idea. There is no way the $160.00+ is going to cover the multiple couriers, and multiple packages being imported factory direct from china.