Knockoff parts from Speedmaster - busted

[DaveInCLT]

Saw this on one of my automotive forums, small auto performance vendor who makes a specialty transmission part gets a warranty call. Through the conversation he asks about purchase and the buyer said he got it at Summit Racing. Except this small vendor only sells direct, not through Summit.

Good read: https://www.ford-trucks.com/article...nding-alleged-counterfeit-parts-in-inventory/

Video that started it all


Looks like both Summit & JEGS pulled all Speedmaster parts off their commerce sites.

 

[Jerzsubbie]

Wow, that’s impressive that big guys like Summit and Jegs got duped by counterfeiters!

Having done a lot of counterfeit detection/research work myself, I’m not surprised that the knock offs are out there but it’s usually very difficult for them to sell to major retailers. Therefore, they usually resort to marketplaces like eBay, fb marketplace, and maybe Amazon (they’ve made things a little more difficult).

 

[BlueGecko]

maybe Amazon (they’ve made things a little more difficult).

How so? I'm still pretty squeamish for buying anything of value on amazon

 

[Jerzsubbie]

How so? I'm still pretty squeamish for buying anything of value on amazon

I am by no means praising Amazon, not even close! However, they have taken steps to allow brand owners (mostly very large corps) to have a lot more control over items listed under one of their brands. It’s based on IP protection, not commercial selling agreements, Amazon doesn’t give 2 craps about agreements a Mfg has with their customers (ie seling out of zone, below MAP, etc). They give you a brand portal where you can basically flag any seller you don’t approve of and easily get them kicked off your listings. This has its flaws both from a free market standpoint and the lack of the brand having to prove the seller is listing counterfeits. It’s more of a “brand gate” because companies like Nike and Apple refused to sell on Amazon without a high level of control. It makes more sense for some brands than others. You, as a consumer, have no way to know if the listing you’re looking at is being monitored/controlled by the brand.

Separate from brand gating, Amazon will also, when prompted, require an invoice from the seller to prove where they got the product. If legitimate, Amazon will allow them to continue to sell and use that pricing info for their own negotiations to compete against the seller, if it’s a product they sell directly.

If you’re concerned about buying a counterfeit on Amazon, make sure it says “sold by: Amazon”. It doesn’t matter if it’s prime, 3rd party can also be prime. You have pay close attention to the seller and ensure it’s Amazon. While Amazon has had counterfeits in their co-mingled stock in my firsthand experience, I’m pretty sure they’re much better about that these days. I haven’t seen this in over 7yr. Co-mingled inventory is another potential issue but I won’t go into that.

 

[Supermatch]

I'd have to assume Summit gets their inventory direct from Speedmaster, so it sounds like Speedmaster is either producing knockoff parts for someone else, or outsourced these parts to one of their subs who were manufacturing counterfeits to sell on their own. Either way, there are a LOT of Speedmaster parts sold because they're easy on the wallet, so this is a fairly significant stand taken by Summit.

 

[Jerzsubbie]

I'd have to assume Summit gets their inventory direct from Speedmaster, so it sounds like Speedmaster is either producing knockoff parts for someone else, or outsourced these parts to one of their subs who were manufacturing counterfeits to sell on their own. Either way, there are a LOT of Speedmaster parts sold because they're easy on the wallet, so this is a fairly significant stand taken by Summit.

I’ve seen counterfeit sellers setup a US business, get an English speaking sales rep to be the primary contact and act as a liquidator. This way they have a believable story of why they’re offering large quantities at low prices. However, there has to be an end to it, otherwise it becomes pretty obvious that something doesn’t add up.

For Jeggs/Summit, they think they’re getting inventory at ~30% less, therefore their blended cost for that product is much lower and it allows them to run more promotions and still make more margin. The real Mfg on the other hand is wondering why their sales are down and how/why a major customer is discounting their product. At least this is what I saw.

Edit: I watched the video and see that this situation is a bit different than my experience. Interesting nonetheless.

 

[ronn47]

From the article in the OPs thread.


According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in a 2019 document titled China: The Risk to Corporate America, “the annual cost to the U.S. economy of counterfeit goods, pirated software, and theft of trade secrets is between $225 billion and $600 billion.” The problem is so vast and widespread that even NASA, an agency known to be stuffed with engineers and scientists, offers a training course to teach its employees and contractors how to avoid counterfeit electronics.

 

[Gator]

I just watched the video after seeing reference to it on another site. Glad they got busted. Won't stop them but hopefully it'll slow them down a bit. Awareness is good.

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[rbell2915]