The company I work for has surplus equipment due to cancelled projects, etc.

Some months ago a company enquired about some surplus equipment we had. They sought technical info, came and looked at the kit. That advised they may consider engineering into a potential project. They were guided that a previous offer of X had been rejected but if they submitted a formal offer and agreed to the terms of a sales agreement then all offers would be considered. Nothing more heard from them.

Fast forward 6 months. An email received today stating that their client wish to buy the kit and they have invoiced their client for it.

Eh?

I called to explain that this was news to me as no offer had ever been received to accept and no legal agreement in place.

They seemed surprised and said they could not provide a firm offer until they had received contract and payment from their client and seemed genuinely aggrieved that they could not immediately get the kit at a price which has never been contractually agreed.

Their MD calls my boss and now a meeting on Monday to discuss.

I believe that as no verbal or written offer, acceptance or contract then no issues apart from this company making assumptions which may be commercially naive of them.

Hope your boss says he will sell at 2X and leave it at that… Can they get the kit elsewhere in the timeframe ?

Sounds like stupidity, not naivety.

How opportunistic do you feel and is there any other relationship with them you can exploit.

Sounds like someone in their business has ballsed up and can’t admit their error.

Don’t take the piss, but equally do make yourself a bit of upside to roll into this year’s numbers. And then remind your boss you need a decent bonus.

stating that their client wish to buy the kit

think the clue is in “their client” – which makes me think that the party that has “sold” your kit is acting as a broker, either that is their main business or just chancing their arm

– in years gone by I’d regularly get surplus industrial equipment catalogues in the post and some of the kit was pretty unique and known to me to not actually be in the ownership of the brokers – though the owning party may have had some sort of vague interest in selling it at some future point in time

should be an interesting negotiation depending on how they feel about their contractual obligations and how interested your co’ is in releasing the kit

suspect will find not commercially naive but experienced at negotiating from this type of position

Typical story of an incompetent used equipment broker. There are lots of these people who knock around on the fringes of industry looking for opportunities to make a quick buck. Currently I’m about to sue one for the return of £28,000 that my agent and friend in Pakistan paid him for some production equipment that he hasn’t been able to supply because the seller withdrew an important piece of the equipment from the sale. He’s probably spent the money so he’s refusing the refund.

Is this broker an African or an Arab by any chance? This is typical naivety. In Africa and the Middle East most deals are done on a handshake and a verbal promise.