Able to point to a sales channel where one might be picked up? The last time I reached out to Cavium directly, they made it seem they weren't interested in a sale that wouldn't lead to volume later.
I'd talk to Gigabyte. They build systems to spec. If you want to go to Cavium directly then you're right that you have to convince them you have a solid business plan to move some thousands of units a month, in which case they will bend over backwards to help you do so.