I wouldn't say Square, Heritage, Kansei, Cosmis, or Stage are particularly innovative. Most of them are using ripped off designs, which I suppose isn't all that uncommon within the JDM wheel world, but still - not a way I'd want to make a name for myself...
Honestly, SSR seems to be the only company continually putting out cool new designs while everyone else is rehashing 30 year old designs to sell at a premium to nostalgic 90's a e s t h e t i c goobers (though they have been doing a bit of the reboot thing as well). Rays has just been coasting on the success of the te37 for 20 years lol
In my mind, reps cover the $300-$1000 price range, the real wheel resale market covers $1000-$2000, and BNIB real wheels cover $2000+. I think that 1-2k market is just super tough. When people see a used set of SP1's for the same price as a BNIB set of 57dr's and they'll take the SP1's all day. There's more perceived value in buying something that was originally over $2k than buying something new that's only $1600, which I figure has something to do with why many reputable brands don't really offer anything in that price range.
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