Looking for suplementary brand, How is Canon for Independent Dealers?

bahahaha, "rules of engagement" loopholes!!!  I had them too!!!! Lost a large SMB to Ricoh, and nothing happened to them.

BTW, the Canon Leadership does not listen much to the field. They are considered rather arrogant in that way. They think they know what you need better than you do. Their marketing department constantly blocks options \ solutions from the USA that are currently available in Europe or other markets.

Canon is a great product. Most of the time it sells itself based on the brand awareness. (Technically you could go into RBS accounts with Canon, right?)

If you're going to sell Muratec, I think it's better go get authorized for Konica Minolta instead. Konica and Canon are premium brands that can give your dealership higher status and support. Price isn't everything -- company image plays a huge role in engaging with new customers and showcasing yourself as a "premium" technology provider is a great way to enhance that.

I can go into RBS accounts now but the direct pricing is usually lower than my cost even though my DBM says the direct and dealer cost is the same. I have independent Konica and a lot of direct Konica in my territory already . Sharp has reached out to us a couple of times over the years also but EVERYONE sells sharp around here even the Konica dealer.

Sharp systems are so inexpensive!!

I would look closely at Canon's current hardware and software lineup and programs. The machines are great if you need a larger (segment 4 and above that will last 15 years).  If your business is more SMB based and not enterprise, again  I would look at the Canon lineup very closely.  

Muratec is more expensive than Canon since you have to add the doc feeder. We have been a Muratec dealer for almost a year and have not had much traction. We mainly sell Canon and Samsung. I would pick up the Canon line as the brand awareness will win you plenty of business. It is the same for Samsung. Everyone has a Samsung product in their home or office etc. They know the brand name and will gravitate towards it. You can make good money with Samsung as well. 

I would agree with everything that has been mentioned above from Vince, Czech, and Bill. For Art's comment, Sharp is so cheap but I wouldn't want to be a Sharp dealer or employee at this time.

I will also agree they are stretched very thin and their people cover so many states. I think they do a better job than other manufacturers but it's still not great. You will hardly ever see your wide format rep because they all cover like 15-20 states or something crazy like that. I do see our TSE, or for you Ricoh people, the DSM, but not as often as I like. Their solutions guys are fantastic but they are also stretched so thin it is hard to get them available for deals. I think they do the best they can right now.