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01-26-2008, 12:29 PM   #1
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Serious camera stores-always have Pentax DSLR?

I live in a city of about 770,000 people in Western Canada. I've noticed that it's hard to find any Pentax DSLR stuff in the big box electronic stores.

The Big Boxers are usually staffed by know nothing clerks when it comes to DSLRs and I also note that the fact that they don't handle Pentax DSLRs is not great, as the 100D Super is a great competitor for the Nikon D40 and the standard Canon Rebel. Too bad in this way as if they handled the Pentax range those just coming into serious photography would have a chance to enter the Pentax world.

But at the two serious camera stores we have, I note that they have a full line of Canon, Nikon and Pentax as well as others.

01-26-2008, 01:37 PM   #2
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Where do you live, lesmore? I'm in Edmonton myself.

The big box stores are not places to buy photographic equipment. Specialty stores have educated salespeople (in my experience with McBain and Vistek). A good consumer will know this and would buy from a photography store. The masses will probably buy a Rebel anyhow... I'm betting that most Pentax users are more savvy than those from the Rebel/D40X camp.

OTOH Pentax should push to have their cameras for sale in places like Best Buy also, to expand their horizons.
01-26-2008, 01:57 PM   #3
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QuoteOriginally posted by MikeH Quote
Where do you live, lesmore? I'm in Edmonton myself.

The big box stores are not places to buy photographic equipment. Specialty stores have educated salespeople (in my experience with McBain and Vistek). A good consumer will know this and would buy from a photography store. The masses will probably buy a Rebel anyhow... I'm betting that most Pentax users are more savvy than those from the Rebel/D40X camp.

OTOH Pentax should push to have their cameras for sale in places like Best Buy also, to expand their horizons.
I'm convinced that Pentax doesn't see the big box stores as an attractive outlet, for at least two reasons:

1. It takes a tremendous amount of working capital to build up an inventory to stock the large big box chains, working capital that Pentax, as a smaller player, historically didn't have available. Also, Pentax doesn't have the manufacturing volume capability that the larger corporations have.

2. Big boxes are notorious for squeezing supplier prices to the last tenth of a percent, leaving virtually no prospect for profit from the sales. That situation will not set well with Hoya, which has an emphasis on high sales margins.

I am sure there are other reasons as well. Therefore I doubt that we will ever see Pentax DSLR's at Best Buy, etc.
01-26-2008, 02:34 PM   #4
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If you consider FutureShop (now owned by BestBuy) a BigBox store. they do carry Pentax. Not saying the people know anything about Pentax or any of the other brands either.

01-26-2008, 02:49 PM   #5
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Quite frankly, I am GLAD the big box retailers don't often carry high end Pentax cameras. Personally, I think it cheapens the brand, especially considering that Pentax appeals more to people who think and who love photography as an end in and of itself. I like shooting Pentax professionally, and all real photo pros highly respect the brand and the quality of the cameras and especially the lenses.

People who don't know any better will buy the digital Rebel because they have heard of the name "Canon" and think it is synonymous with "professional," or coo when they see the Sony because they recognize the name and suddenly decide they need a DSLR without realizing why they would need one.

Future Shop and Best Buy are not in the business of selling electronics; they are in the business of selling extended warranties. If I want good advice and good products, I go to my local camera retailer. If I want useless extended warranties, I go to the big box stores.

Here in western Canada, we are blessed with some very good camera retailers. Pentax, being 1/100th the size of Nikon and Canon will never have the stock that the big two have ... but then again, that is part of the attraction of owning Pentax.
01-26-2008, 04:39 PM   #6
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QuoteOriginally posted by Chickenhawk Quote
Quite frankly, I am GLAD the big box retailers don't often carry high end Pentax cameras. Personally, I think it cheapens the brand, ...
As the big box stores squeeze the last nickle out of their suppliers what happens? They start stripping features, using cheaper materials, and feel compelled to produce a "new" model every year so they can start at the top of the bargaining curve again. Who needs it??
01-26-2008, 06:18 PM   #7
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If you want to talk serious camera stores I'd go with Glazer's in Seattle. Two stores catty corner from each other on the same street, one for supplies and one for everything else. Multiple cases for Canon and Nikon SLR, 1 for Sony dDSL, and 1 for Pentax dDSL. Point and shoot were mixed together. If they are serious they will have some Pentax. I can buy a Nikon D40X with two lenses in my neck of the woods at Costco.

01-26-2008, 06:22 PM   #8
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I live in a city which houses 2,000,000 people, and I only know of 2 stores which sell Pentax SLR cameras. One of them gets them from the gray market, and the other one are the... official importers
01-27-2008, 10:47 AM   #9
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Another part may be that since you do not have knowledgalbe staff in the big box stores, you have to buy based on reputation (which is typically built by advertising, not real data). Canon, Nikon and Sony will beat Pentax here. At our only good photography shop here, they are quick to point out Pentax to anyone not wanting to spend a huge amount of money.
01-27-2008, 11:00 AM   #10
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I live in Saskatoon and I have found the K10D at Future Shop but no lenses. I find that you can get Pentax lenses at London Drugs at an average price. We have Don's photos here as wll that I think is a type of chain in Western Canada. I still buy most of my "stuff" from B & H or 17th Street Photo. The prices here in Canada are atrocious.
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