Plastic Legend Alegria Staunton Chess Set has been made in Pro Line Ebony and Boxwood

All you're doing is dancing around making excuses for your behavior based on others' behavior.  Pathetic.  

Enjoy all

According to Guarav, Dennis already rejected the knight shown on the TCE website? Who knows? This is why it is so dangerous to draw conclusions about a dispute over the internet with incomplete information and why I asked above if anyone had bought the set on TCE website, and if so are the knights those rejected by Dennis or a new improved knight? I do know that if you wanted to recreate a set in the US or Europe you would have to shell out $€£ just to get a prototype made. There is no way you could get an exact copy of a moulded plastic set made for $349, maybe $1000?

I began this project and pictured the work being done in this forum from the start. I developed the Alegria in wood first posted the pictures of the plastic Alegria knight and wood Alegria Knight side by side. I was happy with it. I then proceeded with the rest of the pieces. I was happy with those. I developed advertising with it, does it make any sense to anyone I would pre sell 20 sets with the promotional pictures and reject the knight as Gaurav has suggested. I may have suggested ways to improve the nostrils or other aspects but I think what has happened was Gaurav got frustrated and misunderstood me and took it as rejecting the knight but I can tell you it's crazy. 

The next thing I know I requested the finished set be sent to me for further picture updates and the substandard knights arrived. By which time 20 sets had nearly been reserved.  Then an odyssey of a year long trys to get something which matched or improve the first prototype. I never again saw an Alegria Knight even remotely close to what I first posted till Rishi posted it on his web site.

At being informed it was on their web site, I contacted Gaurav immediately, he said it is impossible it was on his web site as the Alegria Knights had only just become available. Which leads me to believe they went back to the carving I first posted, as I again requested from him in the last two months. Start with page 1 and follow it through it is all there for the world to see and follow.

Dennis,
Just my two cents.

You have relationship with this family for almost last three decades, even before they met Frank Camaratta and it seems to be an interaction which was based on a win/win symbiotic approach.

Why not just forgive and patch up.

This latest picture of the Alegria knight is just breathtakingly beautiful. The latest picture, looks completely different and more perfect than all the variations before, it completely captures the beauty of your Alegria set. There are very few knight designs, which can compare with the Alegria Knight.

Why even limit it to twenty sets.

1. List it on the Legend Product website, which is the only place to list it.

2. Ship it directly from Amritsar.

3. Free Shipping Worldwide !!! (wish you did something like that with the Plastic Alegria as well.)

^^^

Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you Gaurav Sharma of The Chess Empire. I am so glad Gaurav Sharma does not have a penny of my money. And never will.

Unless things are made right to Dennis Petersen's satisfaction, I will never recommend a Chess Empire product here or anywhere else. In fact, I will bookmark this thread for future reference in case someone is thinking of purchasing a Chess Empire product. I mean, I'm sure most future customers will want to know the type of unethical, immoral company they will be dealing with.

PS... And that "Frank of HOS" comment just casually thrown in there by Gaurav Sharma? Yeesh.

Dennis , This is not a bad idea by Rishi9 ,  what had put me of buying from you was the shipping & import tax for Europe from the USA prices are crazy , Also you would have alot more buyers for this beautiful chess set ,  Was going to buy this set from chess empire, till I realized it was your Alegria  chess set up for sale . 

This disagreement screams for an amicable resolution between the parties. I have no doubt that forum members do not have all the facts and note that both parties indicate there have been misunderstandings, and that there has been a long and good relationship between them. Perhaps the parties need to step back, take a deep breath, think about their long and beneficial relationship and then begin a dialogue. @Rishi9's idea is one of many approaches that might lead to a successful resolution. A public forum, where no one has all the facts, everyone comes with their own biases and opinions, and no one has the same interests at stake as the parties themselves,  is simply not conducive to the parties reaching an agreement. 

Well, this is certainly a mess.

Dennis has a long history of providing great products with excellent service.  This is what we, the public, see and know.  We have also not seen his products copied or reproduced other places, before this instance.

The business known as Chess Empire and Ivory Works, has a long history of producing very high quality Chess sets.  The company is now being operated by two sons of the original owner.

This company, along with a few others from the country if not that area, have turned to direct selling their products as retail as well as supplying sets as wholesale to retailers.  It is from these, now direct, sellers we have seen a lot more complaints.

In my opinion, none of these problems would have occurred if they would have stayed as wholesalers, only.

In this instance there was a confusion and mixing of wholesale and retail by the manufacturer. Realize this certainly would not nor could not have happened if they did not have their retail presence.

I am not saying these companies should not have gone retail.  I am saying that they have not operated their retail arm or department correctly at all.

Unless I read from Dennis Petersen that it is alright, I will no longer be able to buy from or refer people to buy from this company.

Dennis did nothing wrong.  He was the buyer.  They admittedly betrayed him in a business sense.  The reasons they give are nothing more than hollow justifications.

Out of Dennis 's relation with my Father,  I finally decided to give first 5 sets to Legend Products of same design knight in my website and it will be ready by a month . If he is interested in it . He can tlk to me . We need to fix some terms and conditions before starting this project for him .

Tce is oldest and finest chess company and there is no issue between us .he is like our family member.  Issue should not be stretched any more ,thanks 

Where are the sets you (or your "brother") had ready to ship when they were posted for sale on your web site?  You shipped at least one - where are the others?  You've strung him along for a ridiculous amount of time and now yet another month to get the knight right?  Any "terms and conditions before starting this project" - you started the project long ago, strung him along, and finally made his design available for sale without his knowledge or permission.

You, sir, define scum.

Lets take a pause here and return this discussion to developments of production and sale "Plastic Legend Alegria Staunton Chess Set has been made in Pro Line Ebony and Boxwood" and use it for that discussion before @lighthouse made his announcement of the infringement by Chess Empire and Rishi. I would be perfectly happy to begin with production of the Alegria Knight exactly as carved on page one of this posting or the one that appears the same Rishi posted on his web site. Someone else started a forum on Ethics etc. I hope to work things out with Rishi and Guarav or I will continue to use this forum to inform you of the progress with development of the Alegria with a different company.  I have dealt with this family to long to throw it away on one indisgression on Rishi"s part. I had accepted Guarav's apology the day this occured and they did take this off the Chess Empire a day later as Guarav said he would. Let me try to work this all out with them and not add fuel to this fire.

+1

None of us really know enough to make a definitive judgement based on a few post. Let's hope this all turns out for the best and you can offer the set you want to your customers.

It is interesting that the Alegria, Hastings and even the original 1849 Jaques have a moulded appearance. The first two presumably because they are moulded plastic and the Jaques (?), I've no idea. But the lack of rough edges and gouges contributes enormously to the visuals of these sets. I have yet to see any modern carvers get this right, on either the Hastings or 1849 sets, so it must be very difficult to do.

+1 A thousand times.

+1

I am the one that started the Ethics and Morals topic.  This was a long time before this issue came to light.

This issue falls in the same topic of morals and ethics.  

I have said, a number of times, that I will wait and rely on Dennis and his statement how and when this is resolved.

Amen! 

I guess the elephant in the room (which no one has brought up directly) is Dennis was selling them for $349 and still making a profit, and TCE was selling them for $499. All prices have gone up about 25% to 50% and more for many of the sets made in India since the QG. 

My guess is Dennis's wholesale price will now rise when and if they go forward and then the retail price will rise.  Dennis will have no choice. 

I do not think I am far off with my assumptions but I may be wrong. We shall see shortly if the project goes ahead under different terms. 

I know Dennis is an honorable vendor and always had top-notch sets and always inspected every piece himself so he had no problems or pieces to replace. It's very hard to find a vendor like that. That is why he would not want a supplier from India to ship directly to you because he has no way of knowing what product he is selling, no QUALITY CONTROL, you do get it?