James Baroud Tents
Supporting Sponsor / Approved Vendor
Dear Eatsleepwoof,
we are really sorry about that. That's why we had to cut ties with that distributor, because they had business behaviors which are against our service rules.
James Baroud discontinued?
- Thread starter shock81
- Start date
Dear Eatsleepwoof,
we are really sorry about that. That's why we had to cut ties with that distributor, because they had business behaviors which are against our service rules.
1pieceatatime
Observer
I bought a Grand Raid in 2018, and after a month I had a warranty issue. I received excellent customer service to remedy the problem, which ultimately included a replacement tent. The second tent has worked flawlessly for 14 months, and my family really enjoys using it.
I don’t agree with you. If OK4WD was a previous distributor, they could have registered this domain in 2013 for that purpose. It wasnt until after the falling out that the distributor OK4WD used it to wage war against the supplier. So I don’t follow your logic. The date of domain registration doesn’t contradict the official statement from James Baroud.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
ttengineer
Adventurer
Mods,
An we shut this thread down? It’s going no where and just causing more confusion and industry infighting.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
An we shut this thread down? It’s going no where and just causing more confusion and industry infighting.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
rino
Supporting Sponsor - OK4WD
We at OK4WD have found the need to expend valuable resources defending ourselves from an ex-vendor’s false and defamatory social media posts extremely exhausting and inconsistent with our ideals of professionalism. This internal dispute is not one that we feel that you the customer should be subjected to which is why we have had conflicting opinions as to how to respond.
To that end, up until this Monday, our approach has been to try multiple times to resolve the disagreement behind closed doors as professional organizations who had a fruitful relationship until conflicting priorities caused a necessary divorce. Please note that our attempts at a professional remediation included a third attempt on 11/25, after the false statement was posted. The ex-vendors reply to our overture was to demand that we forfeit all the intellectual property belonging to ourselves.
With this reply, we feel the need to officially respond to the misinformation that the ex-vendor has attempted to propagate in what can best be libel. Please see below for a point by point rebuttal to the false claims. Please note that the documentation backing up our assertions is indicated as well.
“For several months, our company has suffered from a misinformation campaign orchestrated by OK 4WD, one of our former distributors, based in Stewartsville, NJ”
We are struggling to understand what misinformation the ex-vendor is referring to with this statement. We discontinued carrying their products due to a difference in business philosophies. The ex-vendor did not choose to buy back their inventory necessitating our need to sell the inventory at a markdown to recoup our investment. As the remaining stock is liquidated and inventory is exhausted, we have marked it accordingly
It is important to note that we have not added any misinformation to the JamesBaroudUSA.com domain as clearly indicated here by utilizing the Wayback Machine:
https://web.archive.org/web/*/http://jamesbaroudusa.com.
“As a matter of fact, we faced the obligation to cut ties with this distributor in 2018, because of business behaviors which were against our quality and service rules.”
This statement is completely untrue, unnecessary to the discussion, and quite honestly upsets us personally. While not germane to the discussion, please note that the partnership was ended by OK4WD due to the following factors:
1. The ex-vendor’s revised retroactive warranty policy launched in 2018. From 2013 until 2018 OK4WD had sold the ex-vendor’s products to our customers and dealer network while promoting the 5 year warranty that we felt necessary to provide to customers when selling a premium product. Though issues with warranty fulfillment were always a normal course of business with the ex-vendor, ultimately we were able to act as effective intermediaries to ensure that customers had the experience that we felt they deserved.
While we cannot speculate as to the reasons behind the decision, in 2018 the ex-vendor abruptly reduced their warranty period retroactively from 5 years to 2 years for all problematic parts per the following URL from their own web site:
https://www.jamesbaroud.com/en/http-www-jamesbaroud-com-2/
Despite being the sole distributor of North America, we nonetheless first learned about the change from a customer who had found it on the ex-vendor’s website. Again, we will not speculate as to the reasoning but at no point did the vendor send the dealer network an official statement, an email or have a discussion beforehand. The discussion was unilaterally made by the ex-vendor, and as such we challenged this decision since we had sold products on the basis of the 5 year warranty.
2. The extensive and unpredictable delays in the development of a new model roof top tent. When reviewing warranty data, problematic issues with gel-coat were among the biggest warranty concerns. The new model tent was to be the answer to these quality control issues. While we had some concerns about the product design, we were nonetheless optimistic for a solution to the costly warranty issues; however, after multiple missed launch dates and a lack of transparency it became clear to use that something was awry with the ex-vendor’s production capabilities.
3. In the summer 2018, we were notified secondhand through our dealer network that a representative from the ex-vendor had made a surprise visit to their locations without informing us. On that same trip the representative stopped at our facility to give us an ultimatum: we could sell exclusively James Baroud products or they would start selling direct to our dealer network. The irony of the ultimatum was that the ex-vendor had introduced us to the vendor that was the subject of the ultimatum and the ex-vendor was aware of us selling the product for over three years.
While we were dismayed at the sudden shift in the tenor of the relationship, we did not feel that an exclusive deal with the current manifestation of the ex-vendor’s product would have been consistent with our 40 year mission to provide the best products to the off-road community.
Despite the sudden breakdown in the relationship, we continued to assist with warranty inquiries and any corrective remediation that we could accomplish at our facility. While the liability technically did not fall upon us as a distributer, we felt that we needed to ensure that our customers could rely upon us to resolve their issues even when the vendor had abandoned them. To that end, we continued to make repairs even when it became clear that we would not be receiving payment for warranties much less a response from the ex-vendor. Resolution of these warranty costs would become a sticking point in negotiations to transfer the intellectual property that OK4WD had invested time and effort in creating. The intellectual property included the URLs that we had registered, the website that we had created, the social media accounts that we had built and managed and all photo and marketing assets that we had paid for. We simply asked for a reimbursement for the warranty costs as well as fair market value for these assets. We had incurred a cost to build the brand in North America and simply wanted to be reimbursed for intellectual property that the ex-vendor and its new distributors would benefit from going forward per standard convention in the manufacturer/distributer relationship. While the ex-vendor may feel that the reimbursement of warranty costs is exorbitant, we feel that a vendor delivering a quality product would not have an issue repairing manufacturing flaws with that product.
We subsequently made two more attempts to settle this debt and put the situation with the ex-vendor behind us. It is important to note that our final offer was simply to allow them to negotiate what they felt was a fair price. The response from the vendor to this final offer was “the best solution is to give us the site domain for free, as well as Facebook and Instagram.” It is important to note that marketing done in North America including sponsorships, magazine ads, trade shows, catalogs, website, studio shots, and social media channels were primarily paid for by OK4WD as we introduced and built the brand in North America.
Most of this media is currently in use by the ex-vendors without our consent as legal owners of the media, though it is important to note that until this point, we have not chosen to air our grievances with this intellectual property violation in public.
"After this breach of contract, OK 4WD took over the name of our company to create "jamesbaroudusa.com" with our permission or expressed consent."
As has been pointed out in numerous locations online, the domain was registered in 2013 and the website was created at that point. A current distributor has since admitted on social media that this statement was patently false when presented with evidence.
You can find the domain registration date and information at: http://whois.domaintools.com/jamesbaroudusa.com.
To that end, up until this Monday, our approach has been to try multiple times to resolve the disagreement behind closed doors as professional organizations who had a fruitful relationship until conflicting priorities caused a necessary divorce. Please note that our attempts at a professional remediation included a third attempt on 11/25, after the false statement was posted. The ex-vendors reply to our overture was to demand that we forfeit all the intellectual property belonging to ourselves.
With this reply, we feel the need to officially respond to the misinformation that the ex-vendor has attempted to propagate in what can best be libel. Please see below for a point by point rebuttal to the false claims. Please note that the documentation backing up our assertions is indicated as well.
“For several months, our company has suffered from a misinformation campaign orchestrated by OK 4WD, one of our former distributors, based in Stewartsville, NJ”
We are struggling to understand what misinformation the ex-vendor is referring to with this statement. We discontinued carrying their products due to a difference in business philosophies. The ex-vendor did not choose to buy back their inventory necessitating our need to sell the inventory at a markdown to recoup our investment. As the remaining stock is liquidated and inventory is exhausted, we have marked it accordingly
It is important to note that we have not added any misinformation to the JamesBaroudUSA.com domain as clearly indicated here by utilizing the Wayback Machine:
https://web.archive.org/web/*/http://jamesbaroudusa.com.
“As a matter of fact, we faced the obligation to cut ties with this distributor in 2018, because of business behaviors which were against our quality and service rules.”
This statement is completely untrue, unnecessary to the discussion, and quite honestly upsets us personally. While not germane to the discussion, please note that the partnership was ended by OK4WD due to the following factors:
1. The ex-vendor’s revised retroactive warranty policy launched in 2018. From 2013 until 2018 OK4WD had sold the ex-vendor’s products to our customers and dealer network while promoting the 5 year warranty that we felt necessary to provide to customers when selling a premium product. Though issues with warranty fulfillment were always a normal course of business with the ex-vendor, ultimately we were able to act as effective intermediaries to ensure that customers had the experience that we felt they deserved.
While we cannot speculate as to the reasons behind the decision, in 2018 the ex-vendor abruptly reduced their warranty period retroactively from 5 years to 2 years for all problematic parts per the following URL from their own web site:
https://www.jamesbaroud.com/en/http-www-jamesbaroud-com-2/
Despite being the sole distributor of North America, we nonetheless first learned about the change from a customer who had found it on the ex-vendor’s website. Again, we will not speculate as to the reasoning but at no point did the vendor send the dealer network an official statement, an email or have a discussion beforehand. The discussion was unilaterally made by the ex-vendor, and as such we challenged this decision since we had sold products on the basis of the 5 year warranty.
2. The extensive and unpredictable delays in the development of a new model roof top tent. When reviewing warranty data, problematic issues with gel-coat were among the biggest warranty concerns. The new model tent was to be the answer to these quality control issues. While we had some concerns about the product design, we were nonetheless optimistic for a solution to the costly warranty issues; however, after multiple missed launch dates and a lack of transparency it became clear to use that something was awry with the ex-vendor’s production capabilities.
3. In the summer 2018, we were notified secondhand through our dealer network that a representative from the ex-vendor had made a surprise visit to their locations without informing us. On that same trip the representative stopped at our facility to give us an ultimatum: we could sell exclusively James Baroud products or they would start selling direct to our dealer network. The irony of the ultimatum was that the ex-vendor had introduced us to the vendor that was the subject of the ultimatum and the ex-vendor was aware of us selling the product for over three years.
While we were dismayed at the sudden shift in the tenor of the relationship, we did not feel that an exclusive deal with the current manifestation of the ex-vendor’s product would have been consistent with our 40 year mission to provide the best products to the off-road community.
Despite the sudden breakdown in the relationship, we continued to assist with warranty inquiries and any corrective remediation that we could accomplish at our facility. While the liability technically did not fall upon us as a distributer, we felt that we needed to ensure that our customers could rely upon us to resolve their issues even when the vendor had abandoned them. To that end, we continued to make repairs even when it became clear that we would not be receiving payment for warranties much less a response from the ex-vendor. Resolution of these warranty costs would become a sticking point in negotiations to transfer the intellectual property that OK4WD had invested time and effort in creating. The intellectual property included the URLs that we had registered, the website that we had created, the social media accounts that we had built and managed and all photo and marketing assets that we had paid for. We simply asked for a reimbursement for the warranty costs as well as fair market value for these assets. We had incurred a cost to build the brand in North America and simply wanted to be reimbursed for intellectual property that the ex-vendor and its new distributors would benefit from going forward per standard convention in the manufacturer/distributer relationship. While the ex-vendor may feel that the reimbursement of warranty costs is exorbitant, we feel that a vendor delivering a quality product would not have an issue repairing manufacturing flaws with that product.
We subsequently made two more attempts to settle this debt and put the situation with the ex-vendor behind us. It is important to note that our final offer was simply to allow them to negotiate what they felt was a fair price. The response from the vendor to this final offer was “the best solution is to give us the site domain for free, as well as Facebook and Instagram.” It is important to note that marketing done in North America including sponsorships, magazine ads, trade shows, catalogs, website, studio shots, and social media channels were primarily paid for by OK4WD as we introduced and built the brand in North America.
Most of this media is currently in use by the ex-vendors without our consent as legal owners of the media, though it is important to note that until this point, we have not chosen to air our grievances with this intellectual property violation in public.
"After this breach of contract, OK 4WD took over the name of our company to create "jamesbaroudusa.com" with our permission or expressed consent."
As has been pointed out in numerous locations online, the domain was registered in 2013 and the website was created at that point. A current distributor has since admitted on social media that this statement was patently false when presented with evidence.
You can find the domain registration date and information at: http://whois.domaintools.com/jamesbaroudusa.com.
rino
Supporting Sponsor - OK4WD
"This website allows OK 4WD to systemically and unequivocally discredit with our brand image and values with false consumer reviews, suggesting that our company does not provide any after-sales service"
The website has only had a few changes since early 2018, which included removing the James Baroud logo and updating products to show the new warranty policy (5 Year/2 Year).
We are unclear as to what reviews the ex-vendor is referencing as the website only contains extremely positive reviews from the original manifestation of the product. We purposely did not address the quality control issues with the product or warranty service issues out of professional courtesy on the JamesBaroudUSA.com website.
You can use the Wayback Machine to see changes and revisions done to JamesBaroudUSA.com since 2013 at: https://web.archive.org/web/*/http://jamesbaroudusa.com.
"It also allows OK 4WD to drive potential customers toward one of two other brands with which he is in partnership today"
Customers are still able to purchase the remaining stock that the ex-vendor did not want to repurchase per conventional vendor distributer relationship. In the event that customers do inquire about a tent that is no longer available, we present them with other options. If none of these options suit their needs, customers clearly have the option to purchase the ex-vendors products elsewhere.
We would also like to clear up any misconceptions regarding our motivations for not taking down the site that we funded, built, and managed as the primary distributer for the ex-vendor.
With the ex-vendor refusing to buy back the inventory we had purchased per the standard manufacturer/distributer convention, we were forced to maintain our primary sales channel to ensure that we would be able to recoup some of our outlay for product inventory.
The intention always was (and still is) to take down the site as soon as we have sold the remaining inventory. Any effort to discredit or damage the ex-vendors brand on our part would have hurt us by compounding our losses on inventory that was already increasingly difficult to liquidate. On the other side of the coin, investing time and resources into updating a webpage for a brand we were no longer carrying and could not stand behind would have had the same effect.
As a result of being caught in the lose/lose situation created by the ex-vendor, we made the decision to keep the site as is with the exception of updating product availability as inventory becomes depleted.
Final Thoughts from OK4WD
Despite dissolving our business relationship over a year ago, the ex-vendor has continued to distribute “alternative facts” via social media that have been continually discredited as false. We undoubtedly find these actions unprofessional, however we would still like to resolve this and meet with our ex-vendor privately to discuss. We at OK4WD would prefer to focus on providing quality products to the customer that we can stand behind as we have for 40 years rather than have conflict.
That being said, we hope that it has given you, the customer, some insight as to the lengths to which we will go to ensure that customers can depend on OK4WD for the unparalleled customer service and support that we have built our reputation upon.
The website has only had a few changes since early 2018, which included removing the James Baroud logo and updating products to show the new warranty policy (5 Year/2 Year).
We are unclear as to what reviews the ex-vendor is referencing as the website only contains extremely positive reviews from the original manifestation of the product. We purposely did not address the quality control issues with the product or warranty service issues out of professional courtesy on the JamesBaroudUSA.com website.
You can use the Wayback Machine to see changes and revisions done to JamesBaroudUSA.com since 2013 at: https://web.archive.org/web/*/http://jamesbaroudusa.com.
"It also allows OK 4WD to drive potential customers toward one of two other brands with which he is in partnership today"
Customers are still able to purchase the remaining stock that the ex-vendor did not want to repurchase per conventional vendor distributer relationship. In the event that customers do inquire about a tent that is no longer available, we present them with other options. If none of these options suit their needs, customers clearly have the option to purchase the ex-vendors products elsewhere.
We would also like to clear up any misconceptions regarding our motivations for not taking down the site that we funded, built, and managed as the primary distributer for the ex-vendor.
With the ex-vendor refusing to buy back the inventory we had purchased per the standard manufacturer/distributer convention, we were forced to maintain our primary sales channel to ensure that we would be able to recoup some of our outlay for product inventory.
The intention always was (and still is) to take down the site as soon as we have sold the remaining inventory. Any effort to discredit or damage the ex-vendors brand on our part would have hurt us by compounding our losses on inventory that was already increasingly difficult to liquidate. On the other side of the coin, investing time and resources into updating a webpage for a brand we were no longer carrying and could not stand behind would have had the same effect.
As a result of being caught in the lose/lose situation created by the ex-vendor, we made the decision to keep the site as is with the exception of updating product availability as inventory becomes depleted.
Final Thoughts from OK4WD
Despite dissolving our business relationship over a year ago, the ex-vendor has continued to distribute “alternative facts” via social media that have been continually discredited as false. We undoubtedly find these actions unprofessional, however we would still like to resolve this and meet with our ex-vendor privately to discuss. We at OK4WD would prefer to focus on providing quality products to the customer that we can stand behind as we have for 40 years rather than have conflict.
That being said, we hope that it has given you, the customer, some insight as to the lengths to which we will go to ensure that customers can depend on OK4WD for the unparalleled customer service and support that we have built our reputation upon.
AbleGuy
Officious Intermeddler
Rino, OK4WD, is properly listed here as a “sponsoring member.” (Thx for your support, guys)
JB Tents, while actively participating in this forum and seemingly promoting its products, isn’t listed as a sponsor here, but only as a “new member.”
That kind of tells me something important ...
JB Tents, while actively participating in this forum and seemingly promoting its products, isn’t listed as a sponsor here, but only as a “new member.”
That kind of tells me something important ...
shade
Well-known member
Let That Be Your Last Battlefield - Wikipedia
I figure both threads need the same link.
Scout Dave
Observer
Would OK sell the remaining stock at cost as well as the domain to a current distributor? Costs would be recouped and the sale of the website would turn a profit as well turning your lose/lose situation to a win/win. Just a thought.
jadmt
ignore button user
I bet distributors have a contract that prevents them from doing that as it basically takes money out of James Baroud's pocket. maybe offer them at cost to customers as is no warranty. let the customer decide if it is worth taking a chance on one...
Scout Dave
Observer
Contracts are easily modified when all parties agree. Bad publicity can cost more in the long run than an inventory buyout/shift..... for both parties in this case. I guess at the end of the day there are several things that could be done in this situation that are not currently being done. Of course, I am sure none of us have the entire truth and are looking at it from an outside perspective.
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Adventure Ready
Observer
Wow, I hate to wade even further into this insanity but I was just made aware of the lengthiness of this thread, and to say there are misleading statements here is an understatement. These are outright lies. It’s sad to see a shop be so incredibly - and purposefully- harmful to another company simply out of childish vindictiveness. I thought the Overland community was better than this.
I have been dealing with and trying to repair the harm that OK4WD has purposefully caused the James Baroud brand for over a year - ever since they lost their distribution rights and it was offered to us (trust me, that is what happened; this nonsense about OK4WD making the decision to leave James Baroud is a complete and utter lie). Here are the facts:
1) James Baroud parted ways with OK4WD due to their conflict of interest with importing and distributing Alu-Cab tents. OK4WD was given numerous warnings over the course of over a year that this was an issue for James Baroud, however they opted to carry on with inserting Alu-Cab into the James Baroud distribution channel and misleading James Baroud about it. I know this because I was one of those shops, and I only became aware of the issues James Baroud had with this during a surprise visit to our shop by their international sales manager who clued me in to all of this (this was over a year and a half ago).
2) OK4WD owns and continues to operate the www.jamesbaroudusa.com website even though they have not carried James Baroud products for over a year. They have demanded $100,000+ from James Baroud to remove the site, which understandably James Baroud has balked at. This is outright blackmail as anyone can tell, but it’s difficult to pursue as James Baroud is a foreign company. OK4WD uses the site to actively discredit the James Baroud brand and promote other products. How?
A) they list all products as discontinued to imply James Baroud is no longer making things and importing to the US. I cannot tell you how many times per week because of this that we are forced to convince confused customers that James Baroud is alive and well. I can’t even imagine how many people just see that on the site and believe it, and we never hear from them again. Probably thousands at this point.
B) They know that the USA website ranks first on google and that it is the first and sometimes only portal that customers find when they need warranty support. They even have (or at least had until recently) a contact form on the site for contacting customer support. What happens when customers do need warranty support and fall for this site? NOTHING. These messages are ignored and these existing James Baroud customers are left to rant online about how poor customer care is because they can’t get anyone to return their messages or calls, without knowing they’ve been duped by OK4WD‘s fake website. Again, we are fighting this CONSTANTLY. It has damaged the James Baroud brand incredibly badly as you have likely seen all over the Internet. This is the one and only reason for all of these complaints about James Baroud. Once we actually do hear from customers we fix problems as rapidly as humanly possible, you can believe that.
C) All email contacts from interested customers that are sent through the USA website go to OK4WD and they use the opportunity to respond to those customers with the most outrageous email full of lies and slander that I’ve ever personally encountered professionally. Claims of James Baroud’s poor quality, lack of support, further pushing of the “discontinued” lie, etc. And on top of that they actively push other brands of tents that they do still carry. I have about a dozen of these emails that customers have sent me, asking for clarification. And so there’s no confusion about who is behind it, these emails were sent and signed by the owner of OK4WD himself. I’m not going to post them publicly but I’m sure happy to DM them to people who need proof and who care.
D) Neither James Baroud nor the new US distributors or dealers have any interest in this website. We all simply want it taken down and for the lies to stop. Ask yourself why OK4WD would continue to lose money keeping a website online when they don’t sell the products represented. That should be all the proof you need.
3) For 5 years OK4WD presented to the US, with my very involved help (I designed for them their print advertising, the James Baroud catalog each year, supported them at every show, etc), that the James Baroud tents are the absolute highest quality in the world. And now since they lost their distribution rights the competitor they spent countless hours slamming (the new hardshell brand OK4WD has recently begun carrying) is all of a sudden the best and James Baroud is junk. I hope people are smart enough to see through this, it’s absurd. It’s business, I get it, but it’s so insanely incredulous I’m blown away people are even listening.
I will wrap this up with a couple of final personal beliefs based upon my fairly lengthy experience in the US Overland market. I have seen, handled, and have had first hand experience with nearly every brand of tent out there, and these are my true beliefs:
1) James Baroud absolutely is the best rooftop tent you can buy. They have shown the most innovation, most attention to quality, and most willingness to invest in improvements even if they makes less money per tent. The materials, parts, and workmanship in these tents far surpasses anything out there. Period.
2) They are incredibly good people. This is not some “overseas manufacturer”. The parent company of James Baroud is a family owned business based on Portugal that has been around for over 25 years. They are genuine, sincere, hard working folks. I have visited them and their factory in the Porto area multiple times and each time have been invited to lunch at the small restaurant on a river that they all eat at together every single day. Not joking.
3) Every single piece of these tents is hand made at their facilities in Portugal (with the exception of the ventilation fan which has caused periodic issues but has been resolved). This is not a lie. There are 20 seamstresses each day creating the fabric for each tent by hand, some of which have worked there for 20+ years. There are rooms full of people drilling, mounting parts, sealing bolts, riveting brackets, and boxing product for shipment. All by hand. This is not some automated Chinese factory, these people truly care.
I can’t spend any more of my time on this here suffice to say that I fully believe in Karma, and eventually it will find it’s way to evening this out.
I have been dealing with and trying to repair the harm that OK4WD has purposefully caused the James Baroud brand for over a year - ever since they lost their distribution rights and it was offered to us (trust me, that is what happened; this nonsense about OK4WD making the decision to leave James Baroud is a complete and utter lie). Here are the facts:
1) James Baroud parted ways with OK4WD due to their conflict of interest with importing and distributing Alu-Cab tents. OK4WD was given numerous warnings over the course of over a year that this was an issue for James Baroud, however they opted to carry on with inserting Alu-Cab into the James Baroud distribution channel and misleading James Baroud about it. I know this because I was one of those shops, and I only became aware of the issues James Baroud had with this during a surprise visit to our shop by their international sales manager who clued me in to all of this (this was over a year and a half ago).
2) OK4WD owns and continues to operate the www.jamesbaroudusa.com website even though they have not carried James Baroud products for over a year. They have demanded $100,000+ from James Baroud to remove the site, which understandably James Baroud has balked at. This is outright blackmail as anyone can tell, but it’s difficult to pursue as James Baroud is a foreign company. OK4WD uses the site to actively discredit the James Baroud brand and promote other products. How?
A) they list all products as discontinued to imply James Baroud is no longer making things and importing to the US. I cannot tell you how many times per week because of this that we are forced to convince confused customers that James Baroud is alive and well. I can’t even imagine how many people just see that on the site and believe it, and we never hear from them again. Probably thousands at this point.
B) They know that the USA website ranks first on google and that it is the first and sometimes only portal that customers find when they need warranty support. They even have (or at least had until recently) a contact form on the site for contacting customer support. What happens when customers do need warranty support and fall for this site? NOTHING. These messages are ignored and these existing James Baroud customers are left to rant online about how poor customer care is because they can’t get anyone to return their messages or calls, without knowing they’ve been duped by OK4WD‘s fake website. Again, we are fighting this CONSTANTLY. It has damaged the James Baroud brand incredibly badly as you have likely seen all over the Internet. This is the one and only reason for all of these complaints about James Baroud. Once we actually do hear from customers we fix problems as rapidly as humanly possible, you can believe that.
C) All email contacts from interested customers that are sent through the USA website go to OK4WD and they use the opportunity to respond to those customers with the most outrageous email full of lies and slander that I’ve ever personally encountered professionally. Claims of James Baroud’s poor quality, lack of support, further pushing of the “discontinued” lie, etc. And on top of that they actively push other brands of tents that they do still carry. I have about a dozen of these emails that customers have sent me, asking for clarification. And so there’s no confusion about who is behind it, these emails were sent and signed by the owner of OK4WD himself. I’m not going to post them publicly but I’m sure happy to DM them to people who need proof and who care.
D) Neither James Baroud nor the new US distributors or dealers have any interest in this website. We all simply want it taken down and for the lies to stop. Ask yourself why OK4WD would continue to lose money keeping a website online when they don’t sell the products represented. That should be all the proof you need.
3) For 5 years OK4WD presented to the US, with my very involved help (I designed for them their print advertising, the James Baroud catalog each year, supported them at every show, etc), that the James Baroud tents are the absolute highest quality in the world. And now since they lost their distribution rights the competitor they spent countless hours slamming (the new hardshell brand OK4WD has recently begun carrying) is all of a sudden the best and James Baroud is junk. I hope people are smart enough to see through this, it’s absurd. It’s business, I get it, but it’s so insanely incredulous I’m blown away people are even listening.
I will wrap this up with a couple of final personal beliefs based upon my fairly lengthy experience in the US Overland market. I have seen, handled, and have had first hand experience with nearly every brand of tent out there, and these are my true beliefs:
1) James Baroud absolutely is the best rooftop tent you can buy. They have shown the most innovation, most attention to quality, and most willingness to invest in improvements even if they makes less money per tent. The materials, parts, and workmanship in these tents far surpasses anything out there. Period.
2) They are incredibly good people. This is not some “overseas manufacturer”. The parent company of James Baroud is a family owned business based on Portugal that has been around for over 25 years. They are genuine, sincere, hard working folks. I have visited them and their factory in the Porto area multiple times and each time have been invited to lunch at the small restaurant on a river that they all eat at together every single day. Not joking.
3) Every single piece of these tents is hand made at their facilities in Portugal (with the exception of the ventilation fan which has caused periodic issues but has been resolved). This is not a lie. There are 20 seamstresses each day creating the fabric for each tent by hand, some of which have worked there for 20+ years. There are rooms full of people drilling, mounting parts, sealing bolts, riveting brackets, and boxing product for shipment. All by hand. This is not some automated Chinese factory, these people truly care.
I can’t spend any more of my time on this here suffice to say that I fully believe in Karma, and eventually it will find it’s way to evening this out.
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shade
Well-known member
Setting everything else aside, a video of the production facilities would be welcome.