Please note- scrappers are not what one would think of as "seconds". They are trash- their quality had been deemed by Disney to be unacceptable, and they've literally been thrown away. Disney doesn't sell them at all, especially not in their outlets.
The only reason they see the light of day is because dishonest workers in the factories pick them up and sell them for a 100% profit- AGAINST Disney's wishes. Basically? They're stealing and selling to uninformed consumers.
Why I don't put up with it? Basically, it offends me as:
A consumer (they're trying to pull a fast one on me)
An artist (none of this money goes to the copyright holder)
A collector (I'm not getting the intended quality for the product I want)
In addition, when one purchases directly from China in bulk, you're not just buying scrappers...sometimes you ARE purchasing straight-up bootlegs. There are a lot of pin factories over there. They get their hands on molds, then run off massive and cheaply made runs.
And the problem isn't as simple as "people collect what they want"- it's that the vast majority don't know what's going on...they think they're getting legit pins for cheap (but, really, common sense should come in to play there). But even worse...they're putting these pins on cast lanyards, and then they get passed on to other unsuspecting traders at the parks.
It's an ongoing problem that doesn't have an easy solution, except to avoid buying in bulk from China, or any seller that may seem as if they bought lots in China themselves, and is passing them off over here.
And no, Disney won't do anything about it- not sure why (probably too hard to battle for the amount of money involved). And no, I don't feel the solution is to "train" cast members to spot fakes, either- that's a can of customer service worms they don't want to open.
Oh, and as a side-note...Disney's outlets only carry clearance merchandise (i.e. stuff that's not selling, or has run its course in the stores). If they've ever carried damaged merchandise, it's happened once released. They have quality control for ALL their merchandise, so they wouldn't release what you consider 'seconds" on the outlet levels. As I stated earlier...that stuff goes to the trash, so what I assume you mean by "seconds" (clothes that come out with flaws, for example?) don't exist for Disney. That stuff goes in the trash.
No one has issue with buying pins from the outlets...they're Disney's outlets, why would that be a bad thing? Disney sets the price, Disney sells them. I'm there all the time.
In the end, you're going to believe whatever you want...but it's always good to listen to traders who have been around for a while and know what they're talking about. Once you have all the info, you can make whatever decision you want. But I think it's a major mistake to assume what's going on in China is in ANY way legit.
Every trader has to decide for his/herself as to what kind of moral code they want to carry. Do they want to be the kind of trader who supports thieves, and China's thriving counterfeit black market? Do they care about the people who end up with their fakes? Or are they just out for getting what they want, no matter what the ethical cost?
please...please please please please don't take advantage of the fact that CMs are required to accept a trade as long as it has the logo...please don't play on the fact that there are no rules in place about this because Disney wants to keep the dreams of the children that visit the parks intact...please...
