I usually don't get involved in anything. I keep myself to myself and fight my battles by offering the best service I possibly can. I never throw personal insults and i'd help any vendor if I could. But what annoys me most about this, is he was willing to offload these chargers onto me (I obviously declined). And if he knew (not saying he did) that they were fake at the time - that's some totally underhanded shit. You don't run a business like this, you respect each other as me and
@18650UK do.
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Then after this, to have the nerve - to ask me for help - to get you out of this shit storm you've caused.
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The right thing? You had your chance to do the right thing. And now you've pissed me off.
Unbelievable.
As you have probably all realised,
@Ben fogstar and i also talk. A lot.
We have watched this unfold since it started and i knew from the outset where it was going. The attitude he came to market with was never going to bode well. Through a series of conversations with NBD's owner after they angered me by trash talking Ben and I from the very outset, accusing us of hiding extra margin in postage prices, i tried to warn him of it too. Like
@Ben fogstar says, him and I have a mutual respect for each other. I slid into the market quietly, didn't horrifically savage the prices and was mindful of his customers and efforts. He still has a nicer website. I hate him for it and he secretly knows and loves it.
I was also offered the Nitecore i4 stock. As early as the 2nd August. I have a very good supplier we've used for years to supply our other business (high street vape stores) and have never had an issue. I'm quietly aware of the counterfeits in the market which is i why i only buy from the same single source. I make almost no margin on Nitecore because of this, but our customers get a quality product. I did however take on XTAR on Ben's kinds advice (personally i like them more, they look flashy!)
The issue here isnt that bad stock was sold. Its not the first and wont be the last time it happens in the vape industry. The issue, is the way it was
handled, and its been shocking at best. At worst, its truly terrifying. Some of things ive seen said by the owner of this business on social media in the last 48 hours are literally unbelievable. Thinking these things is bad enough. To say them publicly in front of past and future customers looking for answers and guidance is out of this world. In 12 years of business management/ownership ive never seen anything like it.
Had there been some kind of mailshot/social media release along the lines of "Its been identified we have had some counterfeit chargers through our supplier, if you have purchased an i4 in the last 90 days and the plug looks like this please stop using it and get in touch for a refund/replacement, we're very sorry, we'll chuck in a pair of cells for the inconvenience" then none of this would have been an issue. Instead, the route to remedy was to post pictures on social media claiming that no fakes have ever been sold and then publicly attack anyone who suggested otherwise. This is no "ongoing attack" on the company. There is a collection of people angry at the initial refusal of liability, and then a wider response from those who are upset that an industry already in the spotlight and getting bad press are being lambasted on social media. This is all
your own making.
Again, mirroring Bens points above, aside from chatting to Ben about new things/sources, our daily struggles etc and helping each other when we've run short of things, in a business sense i also mostly keep myself to myself.
None of this needed to be this way. In fact, Ben and I didnt talk until the repeated bashing of our brands prompted me to message him back in April this year to see what we could do
together to keep ourselves above it all. Im thankful i did though. I think that despite being competitors, while others fight we've both worked harder, helped each other and diversified in ways we probably hadn't previously considered.
Being competitors doesn't mean you have to hate each other, work against each other or not appreciate the others efforts. But when it matters, those that do work together will do so for the good of the industry and its customers, and thats where i like to think that Ben and I stand out. Customers first. Everything else after...
Ben @ 18650UK
