Originally Posted by
msu2001la
Authentic Shimano cleats retail for around $20, so the wholesale cost is probably about $10. Why would someone bother making fake versions?
It seems like the cost of buying generic cleats from a wholesaler, then developing fake labels and packaging, and listing on Amazon + storing and shipping wouldn't be worth it for such a low-cost item with already razor thin margins.
It's probably less to do with fakes, than it is Dishonest factory workers selling Rejects in quality Control.
In manufacturing there are always rejects. Machine malfunctions. Temperatures of fusing plastic, or glues being wrong. No different than Back in the day when Television tubes had aluminum rim bands around them. In a Panasonic production facility, In spec production they were Panasonic brand, out of spec, they became RCA brand. (there were other differences too) way out of spec they became rejects. Had the Production plant been in China then they would have been selling the rejects on Amazon in Panasonic packaging.
Tighter tolerances means higher quality, and slower production. So the workers speed things up a bit, lowering the quality, making their own pile to sell on Amazon, after sending the original work order amount to Shimano to distribute. Not exactly fakes, just rogue production with zero quality control.
We also have to understand "culture" to scam is HONOR! Production plant bosses scamming the people they do production for is Honor!