Here I’ll lay it out with you as best as I can without using crayons and paper to help the others understand.
If a OEM does the r and d and produces the sample part themselves this is work that has been done and the manufacturer overseas most likely has no idea about the technology or what it took to get there.
They typically have a domestic agent they hire to hold the IP and to stand in the factory to ensure no corners are cut. And the right materials are used while the tolerances are you spec.
This means say a 55 dollar ratchet wrench has all the appropriate technology and ip and materials being used for production. These say-american companies- invest the time and knowledge to provide a quality product as well as ensuring it’s certified for consumer use while also having a insurance policy and similar protections in place for consumers. (Here’s where china’s actual barrier is-lack of funding and intelligence). This also consists of planting seeds for purchase to customers in the first pre year and post year of sales. This is the largest barrier that prevents overseas companies in entering said industry since they don’t spend money where it counts.
Now let’s say you go to the “original factory”, what you will find is something maybe similar. However the way it works is…
Oem may pay 25 dollars for a 55 dollar retail item(29-32 wholesale) It may actually cost the factory 18-19 dollars of that 22 dollar cost to the oem to produce said “ratchet wrench” especially in those volumes.
When you find a copy, the things to remember is typically the insides or technology is not the same even if the outside looks the same. This also goes for materials. So the way it works…
China may resell the item for 30-40 dollars to come under the oem. However they will spend (with margins) approx 4 dollars to build the part. Maybe 6. Overall china is scamming and making more from the customer (on the backs of American funding and engineering) while providing a false sense of “original manufacturer” components to the customer inturn making a huge risk and liability for the sellers with the fact that cheaper and unsafe components are used. Typically garbage potted metals or recycled metals. The shit rip off of what the consumer is getting is all profits to china. In America this is criminal and felonious behavior that relates to breaking consumer trust laws and business anti trust regulations.
When the jig is up they usually get itc complaints filed and bc they aren’t citizens here, we as Americans cant do anything except ban it… …china’s next move is to rebrand as another company(due to unethical conduct to begin with) and then re release the product in 20 variations with 20 boxes that are different in 20 different registered names to help ensure thier fradulent sales in America to try and confuse and delay the next itc complaint. Typically it complaints are containing within sort of quality and injury related complaints.
Sellers who do Thier own work In USA and protected by liability related laws and case law that has taken a hundred years to get to where we are today. Sellers who sell counterfeit copies in markets(like a USA entity selling china crap that isn’t safe) like a domestic market here are not protected by liability laws and insurance policies bc they willfully took the risk-conduct to unjustly enrich themselves while knowing they endangered consumers. A great example is a while ago we used to see floating arm chairs and overhead cantalever umbrellas flood the market. Can you guess why 2/3of those companies/brands currently aren’t on Amazon and so forth? Can you guess why those sellers who aren’t in business anymore due to floods of injury lawsuits from dozens of lawyers came in and they folded over it maybe? How many people were injured from falling from “properly” assembled “original factory” products…
I’d rather spend 55 dollars on a ratchet wrench and have quality sockets than buying a 30-40 dollar ratchet and bust my knuckles 2/3 times when I really don’t want it to slip off. My two cents.
This is why the oxymoron exists about the “original factory” since what you are getting is purposely neglectfully constructed/quality of a product to unjustly enrich unethical sellers in china.
