I have found alot of Reps will say whatever it takes to get them off the hook.
Usually they're covering up for seasonal short-sightedness, inacurate
inventory systems and just blatent screw-ups. (Our Sam rep ran out of Samual
Adams Octoberfest in EARLY October). In my experience it helps to have at
least two reps/sources for each line or product. It's not a good idea to play
them off each other all the time, but every now and then a gentle hint of
"other sources" can produce wonders from previously hesitant reps. Just a
thought. Cheers.
-Z