It's only a few minutes outside of Charlotte. I went there today to check out a James Baroud, but they carry other brands. I spoke with both owners while I was there and they are extremely helpful/knowledgeable.
A good friend of mine had a Tepui. During Expo East '15 when there were torrential rains, his tent leaked. He called Tepui and their customer service was great and he worked out a deal for a ruggedized tent. He's had some issues with the ruggedized tent as well (I don't remember exactly what they were), but now he's moved on to a hard shell. Maybe he just got a couple of exceptions to the rule....