Received a Cease and Desist letter from Vorys for products being sold. Anyone Else in the same situation?
I am reaching out to online re-sellers on Amazon and other marketplaces that have worked tirelessly to make a living and provide for their families and that have spent years building suppliers networks to fulfill inventory to resale on the online marketplaces.
We are now under threat from Big Manufacturers trying to restrict our ability to resale on the online marketplaces especially Amazon. Some manufacturers are using the warranty clause for their products to restrict us from reselling and enter a settlement agreement based on their terms. They state that the product is materially different as we cannot honor the warranty for their products as we have to be an authorized reseller.
They are hiring top law firms to represent them and trying to drain small online sellers financial resources into submitting us to settle or sue in an attempt to eliminate them from reselling online.
The Problem is that if we allow one Manufacturer to do this then others will follow suit and where do we put a stop to this anti competitive behavior. Eventually if this continues then selling premium products on Amazon will be left for big retail players themselves.
I have therefore decided to fight them via litigation and it has become a huge financial burden in an attempt to do the right thing.
We have a strong legal case and I believe the law firm representing these Warranty clause cases dont want to test there theory in court. If they lose this case this will become a landmark case for all Amazon sellers and will benefit us all on pursing a business based on the right to resale in a free and open marketplace.
I have spoken to many Amazon seller who have been going through a stressful time trying to take on these big law firms and some have settled despite sourcing legitimate products and having verified invoices.
I want to reach out to all Amazon sellers to show that we are stronger together and cannot afford to be taken out one by one. We need to make a stand together and counter challenge these companies.
I have setup a whatsapp group and have a law firm representing me. If we collaborate our resources and expertise I am sure we will Win this case in our favor and set a precedent for future online sellers to come !!!
379 replies
Seller_3N7yVnTXPzLkL
I hope you have a lot of money in you bank account to pay for this action.
Otterbox has been very successful in protecting their IP for quite a few years,
Seller_1yqCSp7wxEUMi
If you manufactured a product, wouldn’t you want control?
Seller_6OMUOUOVkLhf5
Moderator edit: SEAmod removed post that was a personal attack
Sellers, Please refer to our forum guidelines. Including personal attacks in your posts is not allowed. Amazon reserves the right to remove any post at its discretion without notice. Further posts containing inappropriate content may be removed, and discussion forum posting privileges may be revoked.
Thank you for your cooperation.
Seller_2cosGaI3Iit2o
comply with the letter and stop selling the product so you wont be suspended. If you arent authorized to sell their products then you wont win. you got lucky they sent a message most just do tests buys and kick you out.
Seller_eKJ8kVo8nkewR
Sadly, there is no case here, you are committing retail arbitrage which is strictly against Amazons TOS. Goodluck.
Seller_H4eARu3DA8ZDK
None of this make since. If its your product, then keep it at the retail stores. but will your product move…NO since products are made every second the ideal decision for any company no mattter big or small is AWARENESS. If we resellers, or what i liked to call us deal finders, are being held with bringing awareness to products, your company will suffer. You have to make and produce to many products as a big company to even have a chance at making a profit. what they should be worried about is creating more products or innovating more strategies to get there products in customers hand and working with the resellers. In my opinion we are the frontline workers, doing the work. Why do you think companys came out with the 99 cent products over 20 years ago because resellers have been giving analytics to these big companies for free just so that some people can live the the dream of “working from home”. This may not be about otterbox but its the principal of all products and companies attempting to detour a great business.
Push come to shove just do garage sales and you should still make about $1400 a /week w/o the e-commerce.
Seller_dy0iaamuixQa3
This is not bullying. This is someone protecting their property. If you’re not authorized to sell their product is like me setting up a tent and living your backyard without your permission. You are in the wrong and you should not do this anymore. If you are an authorized seller then you are in the right and should defend yourself.
Seller_3jDkaLAT3oClu
I am small manufacturer. I sell government regulated items. We work REALLY hard to have a wholesale business. However, “fake” Amazon sellers who damage our brand and every brand if they attempt to sell items they do not have an authorized wholesale account with.
It is against Amazon policy to claim to resell and item and then purchase it through another website - if someone purchases it on Amazon. If you are a true “Retail” business and you purchase the product through the proper channels - you should have no problem selling it as “new”.
However, as someone who has everything on the line for MY business - I do not appreciate someone purchasing an item - either through product “returns” or a sale price somewhere and then attempt to resell it as “new”. How is my company and customers protected if the item is damaged or tampered with? If a seller attempts to resell an item and an unrealistically inflated price who will get a bad product review stating “not worth the price”.
There are millions of counterfeit items and unauthorized “resellers” on Amazon. We need to protect our brands and our reputations.
Seller_BsuiLF83Jz9xM
As a manufacturer I can tell you point blank that you will lose. We as manufacturers can not warranty products that fall outside our distribution chain. We have no idea what you, the unauthorized reseller, do to /with the product before you sell it as new! Manufacturers do not want to be liable for your improper storage, handling, etc. My company will not offer warranty service for grey market/ counterfeit products.
