Craig,
That's interesting. HI says they have their own "shop" in Nepal, so that categorizes them as a manufacturer (as pointed out above), and you have a partnership with Lalit in Nepal who (from what I gather) contracts khuks to be made by self-employed kamis, so you basically are the US Importer for Lalit's khuks. Did I get that right?
Personally, I have no problem at all with that, and I really don't think there's that big of a difference either way. I understand Bill Martino's relationship (both literally and figuratively) with his kami(s) in Nepal, and that's great that they have adopted him into their family, but the net results are the same: both Bill and Craig send specific requests, or orders, to Nepal, and the blades are made and shipped back to them here in the States. If Craig has an honest, quality-minded man like Lalit in Nepal as his partner or "go-between", then it really doesn't matter whether Craig or Lalit "owns" the shop and hires all the kamis as employees, or whether they are contracted--that's really just a matter of payment structure, which has nothing to do with the quality. If Lalit or someone he trusts is ensuring that these blades are high quality, and Craig is the final QC inspector, Then ultimately, how is that any different from how it's done at HI?
I don't see any great advantage to owning your own shop with your own kami employees. In fact, it could be worse because if they're your employees using your materials, when they mess up, you're stuck with a reject--you've already incurred all the expense of making it, so what'll you do with it now? If they're contracted, and you don't like what they're producing, you simply don't accept it, and the kami incurs the cost of his own failure, usually meaning he'll try harder to make a better product and not screw up. Also, if the kamis are your employees, that could mean that they were basically hired off the street and have little experience, never mind actually apprenticing for years under a master kami, learning all the fine nuances of the trade. Alternatively, if the kamis making your blades for you are contracted and self-employed, then that means they were probably in business before you ever came along, so if you folded, they'd still be in business, which is because this kami already has a reputation for excellent khuks with the locals.
Just my opinionated viewpoint. Of course, I'm on the outside looking in. I admit I don't know the whole picture and could be way off. Hang on a minute, let me get my flamesuit.
X-Head
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"Live Free Or Die"
