Originally posted by Raffwal I have been checking the Pentax DSLR prices and availability here in my native Finland again. It seems that most of the stores that used to sell Pentax have zero or almost zero cameras on stock
You still have "camera stores" in the plural in Finland? That's good; I'm not sure there will be any left in the UK soon. I think there is now only one in my nearest big city (one of the biggest 10 in the UK), and with the combined effect of the virus, Amazon, and the collapsing camera market, we will probably end up with just one, and that would be in London, 200 miles from here.
When there were still a few remaining shops around here, I did not see Pentax in them for at least 10 years, other than collecting stuff that they order in specially for me. The staff look at the boxes with curiosity as if they have never seen the Pentax logo before. Either camera makers pay for shelf space (and Ricoh/Pentax don't) or the shops only stock what sells most, which has a self-perpetuating negative effect of course. If I were buying a camera for the first time I certainly would not buy one I could not see and handle first, so Pentax are now mainly selling to existing customers. OTOH, last time I went into my nearest Jessops (UK chain) there was a Canon rep out on the floor to help sell their stuff. I chatted to him briefly and the word "Pentax" did not seem to mean anything to him.
I don't want to buy new photo gear by mail order. I do have a large mail box, but half the time the postman leaves parcels behind the gate post, even in the rain, to save fiddling with the combination lock, or they rip the box apart trying to stuff it in, if it is a bit too big.