My Life With Reps: Memoirs From the Darkside.

[kinjomusashi]

I'm still new here, but been around RWI and RepGeek for the past few months. Anyway, I've already posted this little autobiography about myself on those forums so think it only appropriate so share it with the fine folks here.

I’ve always had lots of apprehensions publishing this story. Primarily because I’ve always been a very private guy. In all honesty, I don’t really know why I’m doing this…I guess part of the reason is because my health has been pretty bad the past couple of years and corny as it may sound, maybe this could be a way for me to “live-on” so to speak after the inevitable finally comes.

Whether we admit it or not, reps have affected every forum member’s life in some way. So much so that we find ourselves on an internet forum, solely dedicated to the subject of reps, reading a story about a lunatic (me lol) with a long, life history laden with reps. Please allow me to regale you with my story…

If anything, I hope you will be somewhat entertained

Please take note that this is a little long, so I’ve broken it up in 4 parts.

Part 1: Where it all began…

I can still remember the first time I was exposed to reps back in the 80’s while travelling to an undisclosed south-east Asian country where my parents were originally from. For those who’ve never travelled to China or South-East Asia, most public markets openly sell reps along-side gens (but usually not luxury brands, mostly Casio’s and Seiko’s). I guess the mentality is that why would I, the buyer, buy a Casio when I can get a decent quality Rolex rep for the same price? Especially when the average person has to save up money for months or even years just to buy a watch… Most locals (dealers and buyers) don’t even know that selling reps is illegal. Hell, even some police buy and purchase reps as I’ve witnessed many times. Anyway, the first time I saw reps my eyes lit up like it was Christmas morning and I absolutely had to have one. The feeling I had was like getting drunk for the first time, except without the nasty hangover the next morning. My cousins from over-seas always got a kick out of seeing how excited I got when shopping for reps. You gotta remember, they grew up see seeing reps on a daily basis so it doesn’t excite them at all. For a young American lad who grew up in the Midwest, myself, seeing high-end brand watches at dirt-cheap prices was like being able to buy a Ferrari, but at the price of a Ford. And a new one at that. Now keep in mind, after converting from US dollars to local currency it felt like I was getting every rep I wanted for free. Granted, the airplane ticket wasn’t that cheap, but what the hell, you’re already there so might as well make the best of it. I have no regrets to this day…You’ll find out why if you decide to keep reading…

The first rep I ever owned, in the paragraph above, was the biggest piece of crap watch I’ve ever had. A free watch from a cereal box kept better time. The movement was 17j and choppy as hell. After about a month or so of daily use, the case started to get discolored and polishing just made it worse. Getting even a splash of water on it made it stop. It was a rep Rolex Oyster Perpetual Datejust of which I have never found it’s matching gen counterpart, not even pictures…Why? Because, well…it probably never existed. All of those with a long history with Rolex reps know what I’m talking about lol. Unfortunately, I never took pics of the thing and last time I saw it, I think it was at my ex in-law’s house. So I hope they have fun with it… ;p

Now I know what you must be thinking right now…Dude, calm down they’re just reps man! Sure they are, but so what? I own plenty of gens. I’ve been fortunate enough to own more gens than reps, but treasure my reps just as much. Some even more than my gens because the memories I’ve had through years whilst wearing them make them truly priceless.

But for me it goes even much deeper than that. It’s always been about “the game.” Doing your research, finding the rep, finding the dealer, developing a trusting relationship, then you strike; big score!

Part II: Older, maybe wiser…

In one of the noob guides it says something to the effect, “…you aren’t just buying the rep, you’re buying the dealer as well…” Man-oh-man, is that true…But that’s not necessarily a bad thing as good dealers often treat you better than they would their own family or a good, close personal friend would treat you. Even if they don’t really like you as a person…I mean your relationship is founded and began as purely business afterall…More on this after a bit more history about me.

So let’s jump about a decade and half in to the 90’s…A LOT happened during these times, but I won’t go in to too much detail as there are some things in a person’s life that should just remain in the past.

Anyway, I went to college, continued on to graduate school as I didn’t really know what to do after graduation...And was even in the Air Force (ROTC), but lucky enough to have never been deployed on active duty. I eventually got married, got a job, moved from different cities and states, yadda yadda yadda…You get the general picture.

Luckily I never had kids.

Why do I say “luckily?” Because things suddenly took a turn for the worst. It’s now early in the new millennia (2000’s I mean), and I just learned that my wife had been cheating on me 6 of the 7 years we had been married. Come home one day and she was gone along with all her things. A year or so later, I filed and was granted a divorce.

Like I said above, some things in a person’s life should remain right where they belong; in the past.

Part III: Light at the End of the Tunnel.

So when asked, “did reps save your life?” LOL, hell no! But they did help change my life in a way I would never have expected…

This will be made more and more clearer as the remaining events in my story unfold…

After the divorce, I took some time off, did a lot of re-assessment of where my life was going, and finally refocusing myself towards my career and spending more time with family and friends.

I can’t remember exactly who gave me this advice, but to keep my mind occupied from the past, they had suggested that maybe I should take up a hobby…

At the time, eBay and PP were not at stringent as they are now. I had recently ordered, just for [censored]’s ‘n giggles, some rep Chinese cell phones off of a guy (for anonymity’s sake, we will call him “Jun”) on eBay. Keep in mind, this is before the release of the iPhone and anything even resembling an Android device or smart phone. Nokia’s were all the rage back then and anything that came close to a smartphone was the Blackberry. Anyway, I ended up emailing and chatting to Jun a lot and soon became friends. Above that, I was pleased with the quality of the rep phones I bought from him along with various other Chinese rep electronics which he sold. I decided that there might be a market for such “goods” here in the US and started a small start-up company strictly as a “hobby” with Jun being my primary supplier.

I had officially become part of the “Shanzhai” or Chinese electronics rep world. The thing was, the electronics being sold, though obvious and sometimes blatant copies of major brands, were mostly unbranded or had some Chinese “name-brand” on them. Hell, for a minimum order of 1000 pieces or more, I even had the option of having my own logo stamped on all the goods I sold by the manufacturer. The phones I sold were always unlocked (as basically all phones made in China were), could store and play mp3’s and video, record video and take decent pictures, and guaranteed to work here in the US or anywhere else in the world (multi-band). I figured out how to get them to work on basically all US GSM carriers regardless of contract and offered full customer support to all customers. Again, keep in mind that your average Nokia or Blackberry at the time was always locked to a specific carrier and didn’t even have a quarter of the features of the phones I sold…and on average, at half the price.

Needless to say, business was VERY good.

Part IV: And They Lived Happily Ever After…

Business was so good, in fact, that I decided to take a 1.5-2 month vacation in China and also visit family in South-East Asia. Jun along with other business contacts and friends had been begging me to visit them in China for almost 2 years so I finally accepted their offer. Keep in mind now that this is mainland China, Sichuan to be exact, and is VERY different from Hong Kong or Shanghai which have a pretty heavy western influence.

My close friends here in the US thought I was nuts for going and meeting people I’ve never, physically, seen. Some buddies I had from when I was in the Air Force even suggested the possibility of planning a “covert mission” in the event I was kidnapped overseas. They were dead serious. They made me promise to call them every week to ensure I was safe…

After all I’d been through already in my life, it’s really good to know I still had friends like that.

Now, on to the trip…

Jun picked me up from the Airport. Like I said, this was mainland China and I had been travelling from the Midwest USA (an almost 30 hour trip). Man was I exhausted. I arrived late that night and Jun took me to one of the only restaurants still open. They were actually closing, but Jun talked to the owner and they served us. The owner even ended up joining us…What can I say, Jun was an awesome salesman.

Jun dropped me off at my hotel and would pick me up every morning and show me the sights. We also visited some of the factories which made our products and often dined with the company bosses and managers. We also often had dinner with Jun’s wife, daughter, and parents. I was the first American they had ever met, as well as, almost everybody I met in China so having Jun as my friend, translator, and guide went well beyond just business in my opinion.

Since hardly anyone in Jun’s city spoke or understood English, he arranged a dinner with me and the few close friends he had that did speak English.

And that’s when I met her.

I can still remember, vividly, the moment I saw her…literally like it was just 2 seconds ago. For anonymity’s sake, I’ll call her “Lin” in the remainder of this tale. The ironic thing is, it turned out that she was manager of the hotel I was staying in. I noticed because she was still wearing her uniform as she just got off her shift. Anyway, we immediately hit-it-off and got along great (at least that’s how I remember it lol). We both loved animals (which apparently isn’t very common in Chinese women) and we both had been in very bad relationships leading to divorce. The funny thing is that she didn’t even want to go to the dinner, but Jun kept bugging her about it until she finally agreed. We ended up talking the entire night and we were both amazed at how alike we were and how similar our lives were despite the fact that we had grown up literally on opposite sides of the globe.

The remainder of my trip was basically me trying to spend as much time with Lin as possible.

Fast forward to about 1 year later; I went back to China. In between that time, Lin and I talked to each other via phone and mostly through instant messaging. I didn’t tell Lin that I was going back to visit China as I wanted to speak to her father first. Jun arranged it and I asked her father’s permission to propose to his daughter. Keep in mind that Lin’s father didn’t speak a word of English and Jun had to translate back and forth. It has got to be the single most awkward conversations in my life, but Lin’s father gave his blessing. I didn’t get one minute of sleep that night. The next day, I went to Lin’s hotel and proposed to her in front of all her hotel employees and co-workers.

She accepted.

A few months later, I went back to China and we got married. Naturally, Jun was my best man and since Lin has a pretty small family, her hotel employees and co-workers were our bridesmaids and groomsmen. One of Lin’s best friends, who also worked at the hotel, happened to be the hotel’s photographer so he gladly shot our wedding photos.

The following months marked the beginning of the end to my Shanzhai business. The release of the iPhone basically ended it. The first time I held one, I knew the end was near. But at that point, who really cared. I found my life-long partner and it was all due to reps.

I still have the very first phone I bought from Jun. I keep it locked away in safe keeping as it will always be one of my most prized possessions. My Shanzhai business is long gone, but I still keep in touch with Jun and his family. He stayed in the rep business a little longer, but eventually got out as well. Last we spoke, he was in the motorcycle business and trying his luck on real-estate.

Epilogue.

Oh and one last tidbit before I go…It takes more brain power and intelligence to win a game by outsmarting or outwitting your opponent than it does to beat him playing fairly or “by the rules.” The rep business is just that. A game we play where there’s only you and your only ally is your dealer and the world with all it’s people who play “by the rules” are your opponent. This is something we learn through patience and experience. The odds are always against us, but yet we endure and sometimes even win. And who knows, you might even make so

[Legend]

I like your tale of your journey, I really do.

I do hope that your health improves and I am glad you found someone else after your divorce.

Reps are material belongings and we should indulge in them if thats our thing. Am glad you found your priorities in life and I wish you all the best in the next part of your journey, wherever it may take you sir.

[MADRED7]

Hey kinjomusashi,

thank you for posting your story, it made my morning ... read it 2 times with a coffee, relaxed and laid back.

I do hope that your health will improve as your love-life did.

Best wishes and welcome aboard,

Dr. Theo

[sgtguk]

k Welcome to RwG what a fantastic read thanks for sharing your story with us

I sincerely hope your health improves and your love continues to grow with Lin too

[RG31417]

Thanks for sharing your personal life story. Hope your health gets better

[freddy333]

Interesting story. Welcome aboard & I hope your health improves.

[TeeJay]

A fantastic read, thankyou for sharing Here's hoping your health improves

[KB]

Enjoyed your story very much and can really relate to a lot you say.

I do hope your health improves and you spend more time chatting with us here on RWG.

Ken

[HandsUpDontShoot]

Kudos to you, be well.

[Jk1846]

That was a great story about your life thank you


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