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There are very few "discount" vendors that actually stock items. Most of them use one of the major distributors that do not sell to the public (Ingram Micro, Tech Data, Merisel, etc.) for a "back room". When you order something, your order is entered into the distributor's system as a "drop ship". Most of the time, this works just fine. However, if there is a problem, the vendor you are dealing with has no direct information or control over the process. All they can do is try to deal with the warehousing distributor, which can be a painful process.
I am a small reseller - and we do have an Ingram Micro and Tech Data account. If something is on back order, all I have is their "guess" when it will be in. When it gets busy, there are shipping delays, with no communication. When I need a RMA, I get it when I get it. When I need *service* I deal with a local independent distributor.
Don't hammer the vendor so hard - a lot of these problems are beyond their control. If you don't like doing business this way, spend a little more money and deal with someone locally, or at least a vendor that does their own warehousing and distribution. You get what you pay for!
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