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Author Topic: Many brick & mortar photo shops closing. Is this happening around the globe?  (Read 8199 times)

hasselbladfan

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I am not sure if it is a coincidence, but around me, many photo stores (mostly Leica/Canon/Nikon dealers) have closed in the last 6-9 months.

Swizerland (2)
Belgium (3)
US (Calumet)
France (2)

Is this happening around the globe?

I guess after losing the film industry (film & print), the second hand market (to Ebay / forums), the lower margins manufacturers are giving them are not enough to make end meet.

Another end of a era?
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SZRitter

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I think one big problem that is happening is "showrooming". This is where a customer walks in, looks at the gear, decides what they want, then goes online to buy it from a cheaper website. It's good for the consumer, but horrible for the retailers. Same thing is happening in many other market segments. So the B&M dealers, with their increased overhead, can't compete with the cheaper online dealers.

In the case of Calumet, I think they just weren't competitive enough in the online marketplace. Their store didn't function as well, and their prices were a bit higher, so they lost out to the likes of Adorama and B&H. I liked them because they were Chicago based, so I basically got overnight shipping for the price of regular ground, mind you the NY stores are two to three days, so no slouch either.
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Paul Roark

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The disappearance of small photo stores is nothing new.  I enforced the US antitrust laws for the FTC for 25 years and occasionally got involved in various price discrimination (Robinson Patman Act) cases involving the photo industry.  Even before the internet the large NY outfits were getting way better prices than the small local stores.  One defense to the price discrimination was to show that it was cost justified due to volume.  One large importer/seller actually did the study and found such savings were so small he'd be "laughed out of the room" if he tried to rely on that to get into one of the huge and necessary retail accounts. 

Sadly, piecemeal enforcement of that law probably did more damage than good, but the ascendancy of the "Chicago School" of economic philosophy assured that there would never be serious enforcement of that (and many other) laws.  So, from the philosophy that brought you the Wall Street deregulation, meltdown, and world recession, you also probably don't have that local store you used to enjoy visiting.

Paul
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Slobodan Blagojevic

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... Even before the internet the large NY outfits were getting way better prices than the small local stores.  One defense to the price discrimination was to show that it was cost justified due to volume.  One large importer/seller actually did the study and found such savings were so small he'd be "laughed out of the room" if he tried to rely on that to get into one of the huge and necessary retail accounts...

Paul, not sure what you are trying to say here. What savings? Cost-justified to whom?

Rob C

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Paul, not sure what you are trying to say here. What savings? Cost-justified to whom?


My local dealer in Scotland was a Nikon and Hasselblad dealer, and a Leica specialist dealer.

One day, wanting some new 'blad stuff, I walked over to see him, only to be astounded at the discovery that he no longer handled Hasselblad. Why? He couldn't buy from Hasselblad at the price the London and Leeds mega-boyz were selling them to Joe Public!

I have always held that competition in that field should be based on whatever internal advantages of scale the big guys can make, not on the grossly unfair practice of discriminating between dealerships depending on how much buying muscle they flex.

Talk about anti-trust!

Oh, it was about a 50mm Distagon; I ended up buying in another larger Glasgow shop that had what used to be a 'package' in stock: a 'package' was a system then in vogue whereby body and lens came bundled - for some import restriction/customs reason, I believe, and was supposed to be sold as one. However, life being tough, the dealer sold me the lens on its own, making us both, technically, criminals! Anyone think political madness is something new?

Advantage to the buying public? I don't thnk so. I can no longer find anything I am remotely interested in anywhere in Mallorca; my Barcelona wholesaler of yore closed down the Mallorcan branch a few years after digital killed the huge chemicals/paper business they had. So now I have to deal with a company in London, sight unseen... I shudder to think what it'll cost should anything go wrong and I get involved in mailing stuff here, there and everywhere. Seems these giants forget that not everyone lives in a capital city. No, they don't forget: they don't give a shit.

Rob

bjanes

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In the case of Calumet, I think they just weren't competitive enough in the online marketplace. Their store didn't function as well, and their prices were a bit higher, so they lost out to the likes of Adorama and B&H. I liked them because they were Chicago based, so I basically got overnight shipping for the price of regular ground, mind you the NY stores are two to three days, so no slouch either.

You may have gotten faster shipping from Chicago, depending on where you live, but the sales tax in Chicago is 10.25% (highest in the nation). In IL B&H and Adorama charge no sales tax. You are supposed to report out of state purchases on your income tax and pay up, but very few do. With the purchase of a $3000 camera, that's $307.50.

Bill
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SZRitter

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You may have gotten faster shipping from Chicago, depending on where you live, but the sales tax in Chicago is 10.25% (highest in the nation). In IL B&H and Adorama charge no sales tax. You are supposed to report out of state purchases on your income tax and pay up, but very few do. With the purchase of a $3000 camera, that's $307.50.

Bill

I'm in Michigan. So yeah, it was a location thing. I did shop there in person also though, although usually at Oak Brook, which I think has cheaper sales tax than Chicago.
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NancyP

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I buy at the brick and mortar store if they have it, and I use the old-fashioned technology of .... the phone ... to check if they have the item before I drive there, not that it is a big trip (7 miles). I order oddities (those Sigma Merrills; 82mm lens hood and cap) and a few odds and ends (card reader, step rings and adapters, etc) from the internet.
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TonyVentourisPhotography

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Unfortunately our brick and mortar stores were just never had stock of things I would ever need.  Why wait a week or so to order something from them, pay more, and pay local sales tax if I need something for a photo shoot two days out.  It was still cheaper to order from B&H and being on their shipping route, I have everything the next day anyways. 

Plus the local stores always pushed their own name branded, or no-name brand gear.  I often tried to support but its just not the same.  I have Calumet lighting cases that are falling apart after just 3 years of use.  They won't last me another year.  I have think tank bags much older that get daily use (I shoot for a living) that are no different than day 1.  Same goes for light stands, etc...   The local stores would never have the name brand I wanted since they catered more to general public than to the higher end gear. 

That being said...here in the states I always new I could get a pro level camera on release from the local Ritz store before online retailers.  They would always receive one or two cameras and no one would ever buy them.  You could just walk in and two three days after release day they would have one.  Its how I got both my 5D and 5DmkII when no one else could get me a copy of one.

That being said...after Ritz was rebought the opened a local store again.  They actually have a nice selection of all the new mirrorless brands and lenses, as well as the bigger name stuff.  Surprising. 

I love having local camera shops.  I can grab last minute essentials or backups, or who knows what on my way to a shoot for example.  Our local master print shop started carrying inventory of key essentials too for all their pros to quick grab.  Gaffers tape, BW filters, sensor and lens cleaning fluids, pocket wizards, batteries, etc...  It helps a lot!

Its a shame to see them all close.
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Tony
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kencameron

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Virtually every dealer I buy from has a bricks & mortar presence but do the majority of their business through online sales.
That certainly seems to be one way things are heading, at least here in Australia, the intention being to have people thinking that they are getting the best of both worlds. Several successful on-line retailers have opened bricks and mortar outlets, and some of the major Hong Kong Ebay sellers have tried some kind of virtual local presence by way of local phone numbers and/or mailing addresses.
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Ken Cameron

dwswager

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I am not sure if it is a coincidence, but around me, many photo stores (mostly Leica/Canon/Nikon dealers) have closed in the last 6-9 months.

Swizerland (2)
Belgium (3)
US (Calumet)
France (2)

Is this happening around the globe?

I guess after losing the film industry (film & print), the second hand market (to Ebay / forums), the lower margins manufacturers are giving them are not enough to make end meet.

Another end of a era?

Huh?  This has been going on for years and not just in cameras.  I guess it might be catching up in high population centers, but most smaller cities don't have much in the way of camera shops.  My local one is mostly services with not much selection or inventory for actual equipment.  I'm 2.5 hours drive from the nearest decent shop and even they don't have all that much.

Between the selection, convienience and price available online and the loss of low end stuff to box stores like Best Buy, it is somewhat impossible to compete.  I buy most of my stuff online at B&H or Amazon.  And it's not all price driven.  The D500 has a price floor of $1999 in the US.  It is price fixed.
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LesPalenik

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Quote
I am not sure if it is a coincidence, but around me, many photo stores (mostly Leica/Canon/Nikon dealers) have closed in the last 6-9 months.

Swizerland (2)
Belgium (3)
US (Calumet)
France (2)

Is this happening around the globe?

I guess after losing the film industry (film & print), the second hand market (to Ebay / forums), the lower margins manufacturers are giving them are not enough to make end meet.

Another end of a era?

I don't know about other countries, but unfortunately, here in Canada similar phenomenon happened also in other industries, indirectly affecting most retail channels for photographers selling their work. For example, most independent book stores that carried and sold local interest photography books were forced out of business and most art galleries that used to showcase paintings and photographs by local artists, can survive now only as custom framing shops or reselling mass produced prints.


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Robert DeCandido PhD

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I buy used equipment as often as possible...if I have to buy new, I purchase from Canada (Camera Canada) or via Ebay from Hong Kong or thereabouts...less expensive because of the exchange rate (Canada), or just overall better price (Ebay via Hong Kong).
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Paulo Bizarro

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Here in Portugal, there a couple of B&M shops in the two big cities (Lisbon and Porto). Both of them have been on the business for 2 or 3 decades by now. One of them typically is the point of contact for pros, the other one is the representative of ZEISS, and stocks some more difficult to find stuff (e.g. Novoflex); they do not carry a big number of Canikon products.

Both shops have an online store, one can not live without it these days, and it is very helpful for folks living outside of these two major cities.

synn

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I don't really need a brick and mortar store to buy camera gear. How much can you actually test in a store, really?
I prefer to rent the gear I am interested in for a few days, see if it is worth it and then buy online*.


MF gear is a bit different, online availability outside the US is not on the same level as the smaller formats and the dealers (At least the ones I have dealt with) are far more willing to let you do extended tests outside the confines of their store. It is also important to build a good working relationship with an MF dealer for aftersales support, IMO.
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dwswager

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Before going into full out lament mode, consider that online sales and big shops with online/mail order are the reason smaller companies can still generate enough sales to stay in business and new products are introduced.  Pentax and Olympus would probably not be selling much in the US otherwise.  And mirror-less would have taken a lot longer to get going.  Like a publishing house in that business, camera shops were to a great extent the gatekeeper that selected what products would be sold and what wouldn't.

And if you don't understand the power of online sales and direct marketing, study the Nest Thermostat.  Honeywell developed all the same capabilities, but never really brought it to market.  They sell their thermostats through installers and the installers didn't want them.  They chose for the consumer not to have them.  Nest went over their heads direct and both the installers and Honeywell have paid dearly.
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John Koerner

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I just went through ordering, receiving, using, and ultimately returning 2 of 3 $2000+ lenses by ordering through B&H.

Each lens came with free shipping.
I used the first 2 lenses for a few weeks apiece, ultimately returning them, and finally received, and kept, the 3rd ($5700) lens, again with free shipping.

Other than the mere cost of return shipping (less than $25), I was not penalized in any way for the use of the first two 2 lenses.
B&H restocked them for free.
In a mere 3 days, I had a nearly-$6000 lens delivered to my door, again for free.

Time = money.
Driving = time + money.
I would've lost far more out-of-pocket, by physically getting into my car, taking the time to drive to a camera shop, hold the lenses in my hand there, talk with the vendor for X minutes, then pay for lenses, drive back home with lenses, only to find out (later, after actual use on my own camera) that I wanted to return it ... and then lost still more time + money by driving them back to the dealer, "hoping" the small-time vendor would offer full refund after a week of  use, only to go through this process again, twice.

Using B&H takes mere moments online, and I only have to walk to my door when UPS arrives.
If I need to return the item, then a simple phone call to UPS gets the item picked up at my door as well.

In my opinion, B&H Photo as such an impeccable level of service (immediate shipping, free shipping, no-charge return policy w/in 30 days, in unblemished), that I don't know why anyone would even bother with the added/unnecessary expense of "renting" a lens from a lens rental place either.

I also don't know why anyone would miss "not having a local camera store," unless they're retired and they can afford the spare time to physically doodle around driving to stores and browsing through them.

Jack
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Slobodan Blagojevic

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... I don't know why anyone would even bother with the added/unnecessary expense of "renting" a lens from a lens rental place either...

Ethics?

John Koerner

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Ethics?

Since I have a degree in the subject (Philosophy), I feel I am more qualified than you to use and discuss the term.

If my intent is only to borrow, then I agree that it would be unethical to simply use the B&H return policy to "buy" the lens, only with the intent to return it later.

However, if my intent is to purchase, but (upon receiving and using a given lens) I decided it isn't sharp enough to suit me, and if I then send that lens back, afterwards purchasing a new lens (that is actually more than twice as much as the first lens), then there is no ethical issue whatsoever.

That is what B&H's policy is there for, and why they have "Item not as expected" as a reason for return.

Jack
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SZRitter

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Since I have a degree in the subject (Philosophy), I feel I am more qualified than you to use and discuss the term.

If my intent is only to borrow, then I agree that it would be unethical to simply use the B&H return policy to "buy" the lens, only with the intent to return it later.

However, if my intent is to purchase, but (upon receiving and using a given lens) I decided it isn't sharp enough to suit me, and if I then send that lens back, afterwards purchasing a new lens (that is actually more than twice as much as the first lens), then there is no ethical issue whatsoever.

That is what B&H's policy is there for, and why they have "Item not as expected" as a reason for return.

Jack

The first time you described it, you sounded like you were just taking advantage of the policy. This time you sound like you are using the policy in place of being able to test it in the store, very different. Mind you, some companies encourage this exact behavior, as a happy customer is a repeat customer (generally).
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