OTW,
Please allow me to explain the significance of SEI for both you and I.
You want customers for your shop and possibly for your future product line. Now, by calling SEI a fringe agency, and minimizing SEI's impact on diving, you've done a pretty decent job of possibly alienating every SEI diver or instructor who reads this thread. In fact, I have lots of personal respect for the SEI program and I educate my instructor candidates about the quality of diver that they should expect when looking at a potential student's or customer's C-card. GUE and SEI certs top my list. Basically, yes, people, be surprised if they suck rather than expect SEI divers to suck.
Personally, I have a lot of respect for JimLap, Walter, and Dan Marelli who post to SB and other boards. They are SEI instructors. Dan represented Y Scuba at the RSTC meetings. Guess what position he holds in SEI? Jim and Walter are quite active as participants and you can't participate as much as they do without learning a lot as well. I'm also a YMCA lifeguard instructor with deep personal ties to the Y Scuba and SEI program. My PDIC instructor trainer was also a YMCA instructor at one time. Which means I have some negative feelings about you, your store and your future product line because you've insulted my friends and my kindred spirit agency.
Now, instructors whom I've certified and friends of mine in the industry are probably not going to want to support your store or product line because I'm unhappy.
Note: If you are one of my guys, be advised, I am unhappy with the SEI comment!
OTW, at first, I was thinking about working with you and seeing if you needed any freediving, trimix, wreck penetration, or cave instruction added to your business as these posts developed. Now, I'm like, dude, insulting Y Scuba or SEI is like ragging on MOM! What's next? L.A. County?
Okay, so we've got the SEI guys, their guys, me, my guys, and our friends thinking, "What's with OTW? Isn't he a dive shop owner? Doesn't he want people to shop at his store? Well, he doesn't want SEI guys for sure!" This hurts your vendors because you'll sell less of their products our group. This hurts your agency because our students will be discouraged from going to your store where you can seduce them into training with your brand. And, it hurts you, me, and all of us because we can't all network together positively. Whoever wins this argument wins a Pyrrhic victory.
C-card brand recognition by dive centers is why the dive industry is so immature and ghetto. This is exactly why dive retailers should be retailers, sales people and business people. A business person would say, "Oh! SEI was formerly Y Scuba? Good program. Is there some way I can help you? I have a dive center."
Where did SEI come from... UDT announced they were taking over the YMCA... at least that's what I've read everywhere. So is UDT now SEI? If so, could you please pick a name and stick with it? Regardless... neither is significant anywhere in the country or the world. They are at best fringe agencies. YMCA went away because it's program was archaic and no one wanted to do it... it was outdated. This is why all the YMCA's in Maryland are now and always have been (in my 14 years in diving) run by dive shops - be them SSI, PADI or NAUI.