Had a very
limited relationship with them many years ago before they moved locations a whole 4 miles in the other direction, kind of like a friendly neighbor thing. Never on their payroll, so the short answer is, no. I like it that way, because it allows me to be a critic.
We all know you're not a big fan of the 'wheelouttaboxes' thing, but HED has some of the finest, and most experienced wheelbuilders in the country working for them, and they actually ride and race the products they build. Reed Stellijus is the master wheelbuilder there, and he's spun up upwards of around 30k wheels in his lifetime. They're in good hands.
From a marketing standpoint, I don't know that 5 different versions of the same wheel is very wise, and I predict they'll be dropping some in the next couple years. Ardennes C2 FR, Ardennes C2, Bastogne C2, Kermesse C2, Flanders C2. It's overkill, and I think they could have made their point with 2 or 3 max IMHO.