No wonder camera shops are closing.

Grockle

Grockle

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It's my birthday today and my partner is buying me a new outfit. So off we trotted to the nearest Calumet.

After wandering around in the store for several minutes wondering how every single tripod in a display could bear absolutely no resemblance to the descriptions printed on them, the crowd of noisy revellers sitting on couches at the far end of the store finally revealed themselves to be shop staff.

For all the wonderful displays and apparently well stocked shelves, it rapidly became apparent that the 40D would have to be ordered specially (and at great risk of exertion) as would the 70-200 f4 L lens - I did'nt even bother asking about the rest of the kit I wanted - so off to Jessops we went.

Ah, yes - they've got the 40D (a totally weatherproof one according to the embryo that pounced on me), they've got the lenses, the 580ex 2, the bag, in fact they've got everything I wanted except the tripod. Things are looking up - well they were until they suddenly realised that they couldn't price match after all, were not interested in negotiating a discount for multiple purchases but they would throw in a generic 512mb cf card to get me started. :bang:

An email will be winging it's way to Kerso later this evening and it looks like Morris's will get the other bits.
 
Out for a wander this afternoon, found an independent camera shop that was doing the Canon G9 for £330.

Would this be the same Canon G9 that amazon.co.uk are doing for £281?

I realise amazon wouldn't give you the same level of service as a bricks'n'mortar shop, plus being able to have a play with the camera before buying... but for £50 more? Ain't gonna happen :wacky:

Sometimes I suspect that high-street stores are preying on people without Internet connections :LOL:

A.
 
its a sad fact of life that shops come with rent and rates, websites dont, cheap little werehouse somewhere, we are all guilty of it, but cant help thinking that in a little while , if you want to see it before you buy it, it will be very hard, its fine if you know what you want, but............jmpov
 
The prices in the stores here in Cambridge are mental.

There was a store called KP Prof who had the most insane prices, a used lens was often more than the New price elsewhere. I don't think they are still going come to think of it....
 
Which Calumet store was it Grockle?

I use the one in Manchester a lot and I find them all to be incredibly helpful. Now they know me by name, I can go in there and try any bit of kit I like!

I needed a new PC port cover for my 1Ds last week and popped in. Not a problem, they did not have one in stock so they called a pro repairer and asked him to send it to my home address. And they made me a coffee while I waited.

They are not the cheapest but I've always found them to be top notch.
 
It's my birthday today and my partner is buying me a new outfit. So off we trotted to the nearest Calumet.
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Well first off, a very happy birthday to you. :D

That was your first big mistake though, for a new outfit I'd be more drawn to a timberland shop, perhaps ted baker. :D

Shop and net prices are going to get further and further apart as time goes on unless we end up with just one camera shop and pass the benefits of bulk buying on to us.

If you think about, not only do shops have massive overheads but as the net spreads, they are selling fewer and fewer units. The has to mean that the margin on each unit has to go up as we all know that overheads aren't going down.

We get great prices on the net and I've had a delivery just today but in this case you can't have your cake and eat it.

Although I did hear the old classic on Ken Bruce today about merging the "house of a Madam" and a bakery so you can eat your cake and have it. :)
 
I recently bought a laptop and couldn't even find the computer locally to view before buying as anyone who stocked it were about £150 more expensive and miles away so not any better than buying from a reputable internet company. (Very happy with it buy the way ;) )

Shops will always get sales from people who don't know what they want and would rather spend extra than buy it online.. I have even seen myself paying more just because I can go collect it.

I would also rather go through a checkout than have a salesperson trying to sell me more than what I actually want.
 
the only camera shop locally , that i know off, is jessops. i'm not their biggest fan for a multitude of reasons.

if i had a good shop in town with really switched on staff and good service, i like to think i'd support them, even if it was a bit more expensive. it is nice to buy stuff online at reduced prices, but it does come at a cost.......
 
Calumet is more of a professional photographers store. I can go in to my local and find it filled with gear that Jessops don't stock. Not a clue if they have the 40D in my local. Its not why I go there.
 
Jessops are little better than Dixons - occassionally you do find some store staff that actually have an interest in cameras - i was pleasantly surprised by a young lady assistant in their Warrington store when i was looking for a Crumpler bag. They didn't have the bag i wanted but she went out of her way to find a smaller one in the store room and was very informative about what i could get in the bigger versions.

I tend to use one independent store in Chester for bodies and lenses - they aren't cheap on paper but will price match where possible, and often quote the lowest prices on the net when you ask for a price. The 3 guys in there also really know their stuff :thumb:

Online shopping is easy and cheap, but i still like the personal touch and being able to handle and test kit before purchase is important. Testing kit on the highstreet and then buying online is all too common nowadays, all to the demise of the local stores.
 
dazzajl said:
Well first off, a very happy birthday to you. :D

That was your first big mistake though, for a new outfit I'd be more drawn to a timberland shop, perhaps ted baker. :D

Shop and net prices are going to get further and further apart as time goes on unless we end up with just one camera shop and pass the benefits of bulk buying on to us.

If you think about, not only do shops have massive overheads but as the net spreads, they are selling fewer and fewer units. The has to mean that the margin on each unit has to go up as we all know that overheads aren't going down.

We get great prices on the net and I've had a delivery just today but in this case you can't have your cake and eat it.

Although I did hear the old classic on Ken Bruce today about merging the "house of a Madam" and a bakery so you can eat your cake and have it. :)
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Dazzajl, I can understand what you are saying, but in reality the margin will be lower as they are selling fewer units the discounts for "bulk buying" will not be there.

Out for a wander this afternoon, found an independent camera shop that was doing the Canon G9 for £330.

Would this be the same Canon G9 that amazon.co.uk are doing for £281?

I realise amazon wouldn't give you the same level of service as a bricks'n'mortar shop, plus being able to have a play with the camera before buying... but for £50 more? Ain't gonna happen

Sometimes I suspect that high-street stores are preying on people without Internet connections

A.
Click to expand...

For me I would rather pay more to deal with someone face to face, The way I look at it is if something goes wrong I can take it back and get it dealt with but if I had brought it mail order I have the hassle of packing it all back up posting it and usually the cost of posting the waiting etc etc. For me the extra paid in a bricks and mortar establishment is well worth it
 
What can I say. I have very mixed views. About 6 months ago I bought a Canon G9 from Amazon. At the time it was about £50 less than local shops and that was a bit too much to ignore. A few weeks ago, about 6 months after I got it, it developed a fault. Amazon's response was amazing - they simply asked me what I wanted to do - either exchange it for a new one or get a full refund. As I really like and use the camera, I asked for an exchange. They immediately sent me a new one and gave me 30 days to get the old one back to them and they paid me the cost of the return postage. I could not ask for fairer than that and no wonder that their like for like sales this year are up 100% on last year.
On another note, when I was buying my DSLR kit, I went to Photo Optix in Guidlford and they were brilliant. I could obviously handle the camera and try it out and their helpful knowledge was excellent. Rather cheekily I went into the shop clutching a photographic magazine and compared their prices with that of the mail order companies and the shop prices were cheaper for everything other than bits and bobs like memory cards and filters. Anyway, I bought the stuff from them. However, a few weeks later they went into liquidation - perhaps very competitive prices and high street shop costs do not make a good business model.
Then I wanted to get a posh 70-200 Canon lens and I went to LCE in Southampton. They were very helpful, let me play with the lens and a few alternatives. On price they were slightly higher than mail order and I did have to travel to them but I did get a chance to try out the lens and some alternatives before making my choice. They also did me a little deal on the lens with a filter. They also said that they have stock (as they are a Canon Pro Centre) so they could give me a new lens straight away. Additionally, they said that they would look after me if I ever had any problem with the lens eg. a loan lens if I had an event coming up - again excellent customer service.
I have been looking at a tripod and have contacted LCE and again they have offered excellent help and knowledge and are only a few pounds more than mail order companies.
So where does that leave me and what will I do next? I am not sure but I do appreciate the help and advice that I can get from a shop.
No help whatsoever so sorry about that.
 
I bought my sony a200 from an independant shop. it cost me £300 including the kit lens, which I consider a good price. I think its possible to get the sony for a bit less on the net , but with all the disadvatages of doing so. The shop gave me an independant 2 year guarantee, plus I know I can return for help and advice if needed.
 
I think some may be mistaking my intentions. I really wanted to buy locally in Glasgow but the lack of customer service and apparent staff knowledge left me feeling pretty despondent. The price matching request was with locally advertised "in stock" shop prices not internet sellers.
 
percymon said:
Jessops are little better than Dixons - occassionally you do find some store staff that actually have an interest in cameras.
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Assuming you mean Currys (as Dixons are now only online or 'Tax Free' at airports), they are currently changing the way they are staffed and intend to have 'specialists' and 'experts' in store (depending on what the exact job role entails) and whilst there are many 'departments' within the larger stores, Imaging (cameras and camcorders) seems to be a fairly likely candidate for specialism as the need for detailed product knowledge is required.

Obviously this will take a while, but its certainly a step in the right direction.
 
I buy from the cheapest source possible I dont want advice and nicetys from a shop I want more money left in my pocket than in other peoples
 
Calumet website = crap

Ordered 70-200 VR 3 weeks ago on the understanding it would be here in the quoted "6-8 days". Calumet rep emails me and says it will be here on the 14th (6 days), do I want it? I email back, yes, of course I do.

It's the 24th now and it seems they've "lost" my order and the website is back to quoting "6-8 days", although a couple of days ago it said "8-15 days" :thinking:

No doubt when it finally does arrive they'll find my order again and expect me to still be interested in doing business with them :nono:
 
I think that another problem for the high street shops is that the level of advice they can offer may be great, but, probably no better than the 'independant' and therefore more reliable advice someone can get from TP and other forums.
 
I've been to calumet in liverpool, and i thought it was really good.

they couldn't help me with what i wanted, so they said XXXXX camera shop in town stocks that item definately.

i left happy.

might pop down there tomorrow and get a hotshoe cable connector for my 580EXII
 
Grockle said:
It's my birthday today and my partner is buying me a new outfit. So off we trotted to the nearest Calumet.

After wandering around in the store for several minutes wondering how every single tripod in a display could bear absolutely no resemblance to the descriptions printed on them, the crowd of noisy revellers sitting on couches at the far end of the store finally revealed themselves to be shop staff.

For all the wonderful displays and apparently well stocked shelves, it rapidly became apparent that the 40D would have to be ordered specially (and at great risk of exertion) as would the 70-200 f4 L lens - I did'nt even bother asking about the rest of the kit I wanted - so off to Jessops we went.

Ah, yes - they've got the 40D (a totally weatherproof one according to the embryo that pounced on me), they've got the lenses, the 580ex 2, the bag, in fact they've got everything I wanted except the tripod. Things are looking up - well they were until they suddenly realised that they couldn't price match after all, were not interested in negotiating a discount for multiple purchases but they would throw in a generic 512mb cf card to get me started. :bang:

An email will be winging it's way to Kerso later this evening and it looks like Morris's will get the other bits.
Click to expand...

The main Jessops store in Sauchiehall Street have a "pro" department downstairs with a selection of Manfrotto tripods. The prices can vary wildly though, sometimes they are cheaper or the same as Morris' other times they are miles more expensive. Still worth a look though....
 
I bought my D300 body from Jessops, and got it cheaper than anywhere (obvious, and UK-tax paid) online.... But in general, t'internet is just another tool I can use to get me a good deal:)
 
Grockle said:
Ah, yes - they've got the 40D (a totally weatherproof one according to the embryo that pounced on me), they've got the lenses, the 580ex 2, the bag, in fact they've got everything I wanted except the tripod. Things are looking up - well they were until they suddenly realised that they couldn't price match after all, were not interested in negotiating a discount for multiple purchases but they would throw in a generic 512mb cf card to get me started. :bang:

An email will be winging it's way to Kerso later this evening and it looks like Morris's will get the other bits.
Click to expand...

This too is the same response I got from jessops in Norwich, I was enquiring at the time about a 580exII and the 50mm 1.4.

The young lady in the shop was quite abrupt and rude and was not prepared to drop down even a pound, when I asked why, her reply was "well you pay for the convienence don't you!" Yeah the convenience of driving 30 odd miles to be ripped off and talked down to by an arrogant little bitch, I don't think so.

So I bought them from Kerso and saved a packet.
 
as stores go, the independent mifsuds at brixham for instance,have a mailorder/website as well as the shop, they know their stuff and the prices are pretty good, just that bit too far away for me
 
Never been in the Notts branch of Calumet, but my better half went in there for my birthday present and was full of praise for them.
 
Don't you think the poor guy's and gal's at jessops deserve a break? I mean this year alone there have been store closures galore and the loss of every Assistant Managers job!
As mentioned previously, they are a bricks and morter store where you can walk into and play with all of the cameras and recieve impartial advise.
We've all heard about how the credit crunch is hitting our high st retailers hard, bearing in mind the stores have rents and wages to pay for as well, the profit they actually make from selling a camera is indeed very little.
 
smithphoto said:
Don't you think the poor guy's and gal's at jessops deserve a break? I mean this year alone there have been store closures galore and the loss of every Assistant Managers job!
As mentioned previously, they are a bricks and morter store where you can walk into and play with all of the cameras and recieve impartial advise.
We've all heard about how the credit crunch is hitting our high st retailers hard, bearing in mind the stores have rents and wages to pay for as well, the profit they actually make from selling a camera is indeed very little.
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The problem with Jessops is they simply don't require their staff to have any photographic knowledge or train them properly. I stood in one branch (now closed) and listened to a salesgirl tell a customer that a 55-200mm lens meant that it could focus on subjects that were between those distances from the camera :bonk:

It's the same in most big stores. In my youth I worked for another camera retailer and I know I received zero training, day one I was on the shop floor selling stuff I had no idea about. My job title then? Photography Department manager :wacky:
 
Yeah the only reason i use the shops is to get a look at the item, for example Jessops want £860 for a 40D + lens Kit.

I got 40D + Lens kit, 4GB CF Card & an Extra Battery from digital rev for less than £800, and that included the import tax.
 
I bought my 400d from my local wilding, they were really helpful and took the cameras out into town for me to try. They are not always the best price on lens and bags, but did manage to get me a replacement rear lens cap for £2 (cheaper than ebay).
 
smithphoto said:
Don't you think the poor guy's and gal's at jessops deserve a break?
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Not really, no. With a few notable exceptions they're salespeople, and not photographers. They can sell to an average punter, but some of the advice I've heard them dispense is terrible. I'm not blaming the shop staff, but I do blame the company who've employed and trained them.
 
For Jessops stores, the one in Leeds is terrible, possibly the worst I have been to. Yet the one in Halifax, the staff are freindly and the one's I have spoken too quite knowledgable.
 
scott1979 said:
Yeah the only reason i use the shops is to get a look at the item, for example Jessops want £860 for a 40D + lens Kit.

I got 40D + Lens kit, 4GB CF Card & an Extra Battery from digital rev for less than £800, and that included the import tax.
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So, you saved, what......£90? :thinking:

Not worth the hassle imho. Different if it's £200 or more. I'd rather have bought it from Jessops or another UK retailer (wasn't there a £50 cashback deal on the 40D?). At least that way if it goes Error99 straight out the box you can get a replacement without all the hassle of either returning it or having to send it in for a warranty claim....
 
Hi i have a 400D and there are a lot of lenses for this model, i fell on mine buy accident i was searching the web for a canon my friend had a eos film type and that was great and fell on this site Cash Converters
i have heard of them anyway there portsmouth branch was selling a

Canon 400D with 18-55 canon lens BNIB instructions
Sigma 28-300 DG Macro lens BNIB Instruction with flower hood
all the gear that came with them everything apart from the strap and usb connection lead,(i use a card reader)

they posted it off FOC royal mail special recorded delivery and i received it next day @ 09.00.

it was brand new as i registered it on the canon website and have a years warranty as well, it had only taken 4 pictures, did i chance my arm i paid £249.00 with free delivery they paid £20.70 . so that how i chose a canon and a bloody good camera as well very happy. all though there are end of line not many left in shops.

is this a good deal

regards Mark
 
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