For me it's all about value. You get far better value for money from the smaller makers. If I were to walk into a shop and find the shelves stacked with offerings from GM, GN, Puma, SS etc and alongside them bats from SAF, H4l, RPC, CF, Helios, Vulcan, Bulldog, BB etc I'm sure I would end up buying a bat from one of the smaller companies.
When you see the big brands bats side by side with the smaller brands offerings and then you take into account the price differential it becomes a no brainer. For me at least!