Wow, I don't think I've seen this much bile being spewn since...oh wait, it was almost exactly the same topic, only a year ago! I guess we can't blame it on the crummy Vancouver weather, could we?
There really has been a lot of hearsay going on about A3U and Spencer in the past while. While there may have been a few problems with the online store, he ran a pretty good physical location, and went out of his way to do some things for the local community that no other local dealer has done, such as hosting Parts Nights in-store, actually going to Botcon to get exclusives for people, making a "loose" display case for fans looking for deals, and generally taking the time to keep up-to-date with what's going on in the collecting world.
Having known the guy for the better part of a decade, I can say that, like anyone, he has his faults, and has made some questionable decisions in the past. A lot of people I talk to seem to accept as fact a lot of rumors & hearsay about the whole ordeal. There are things being said about this guy (even above and beyond what's been said here) that would make most people cringe, and it's unfortunate that a lot more of that kind of thing has been spread around than actual interactions, both on and offline.
Just a theoretical, here: Might it be possible that, due to his reputation, he got jerked around on at least one occasion, either by suppliers, partners or employees, because they knew that he would get stuck with the blame?
Boris: I've only briefly stopped by Urban Samurai once, but now that I know you're there, I look forward to going back and meeting you in person.
I can appreciate your situation. Have you gotten any difficulty from Japanese suppliers due to the A3U name? I know the value of "face" in that culture, and if they have been burned in the past it may be a concern. I hope that your A3U doesn't prove to be more trouble than it's worth.
-BT
