[F-Stop]

I guess like every interest of mine it turns more into an obsession and eventually I think about how I could make a business from it. In either case I'm just wondering what it would take to become a local Pentax Dealer for my area.

I purchased my K100D at the largest of 2 local camera stores and even from day one, while the service was decent, the reaction of buying a Pentax was less than welcome. If it wasn't for the fact I knew what I wanted before walking in I would have had a Canon pushed in my face. Only recently, within the past week, have they even brought in the Pentax Line again since this time last year(Very SAD) - I guess they finally see "Oh, Pentax is starting to make waves again and people are asking about one of the highest MP cameras on the market, I guess we can profit from this".

The other albeit smaller walk in store, well the fact it's family run, the service is less than energetic. It's too low key, I feel out of place being there.


That said, any ideas of what I could do to perhaps start up something myself or who to approach? With a drop in pricing almost monthly for all digital gear (Bodies mainly) the profit margin seems small and I don't want to jump into something and lose my shirt from day one. I understand to really make a go of it I'd need to stock Canikon but I want to start somewhere and I am excited to where Pentax may be heading, I guess we'll really know come Sept.

To give an idea of location - I'm on the East cost of Canada on an Island with no real competition of big box stores or direct ordering affecting much, at least to an extent and anything priced matched is based on Henry's in Ontario.

Obviously contacting Pentax Canada direct is a start, just looking for other feedback besides.

-Greg

[user440]

I have been involved in and have listened to many stories of people wanting to do startups. Most of the time, people vastly underestimate how much it takes to really start a business properly (by factors of magnitudes).

I'm not saying this is the case with you of course, but something I see probably 9 times out of 10. Are you talking about opening a retail store? Independent or licensing a brand such as Ritz?

Given the initial investment, property, inventory, marketing, and the list goes on, I would guess the camera business is extremely hard to make any decent money in. The little guys are competing with the likes of the big chain stores, already established smaller business, chain businesses, and of course the internet. Rough order, I would speculate $250K as a dirt-poor minimum and probably more like 500-750K to start it properly. If you are licensing a brand, that of course is not included nor is the percentage they get.

Disclaimer - This is an extreme over simplification

[F-Stop]

Disclaimer - This is an extreme over simplification

Nonetheless I appreciate the insight.

I'm def. not opening a chain store, honestly can't see it working here as the population base is too small but then again who knows, people in this province flock to everything that is new for weeks.

Predominately going to start as a home based business and then into a small shop, not sure where yet; even if it's to advertise locally and setup an online store. At first I'd be catering more toward established PENTAX owners like myself. I know they exist here through discussions with smaller camera store owner - when asked "have you sold many K10D's and K20D's" the reply was "Oh YES" and figures were often given.

As for a dedicated income I don't expect it to be that right away. I'm just now starting to make money from portrait/wedding work and I've considered moving into commercial/small business to offer something different than just landscape/people shots.

I think I've always been customer service/business oriented and I always wanted to be a small business owner. Taking pictures has been something I'd been interested in since I could remember, perhaps this is the first step to turning it into a career.

[Tom S.]

The impact of the web on small businesses has been very adverse. With few exceptions, people look for the lowest price, and very few stores can compete with web sellers who have little or no overhead. High volume dealers also get high volume discounts, which means they can offer lower prices than a retail seller who only buys items one or two at a time. Even if you start out in web sales, you are going against sellers who can offer lower prices based upon volume sales.

[F-Stop]

Even if you start out in web sales, you are going against sellers who can offer lower prices based upon volume sales.

In theory yes, I agree. From my example though, to walk into the local store and order an FA50mm f/1.4 and wait a week to have it arrive and fact they've only brought Pentax gear back on the shelf a week, that's less than high volume, simply matching Big Box Store pricing like they advertise on the radio. They make their money from Canon/Nikon. There's no Adorama or B&H here in Canada - Henry's or Vistek are the closest thing and even then their prices are jaw dropping.

[christinelandon]

F-Stop, you might consider trying to land a part-time position at one of those local stores for awhile in order to learn the retail, brick-and-mortar camera/photo store business. As Mike wrote, most people considering a start-up tend to underestimate the demands and requirements of a successful small business, which is why something like 95% of them fail within 2-5 years, at least here in the U.S.

Doing what you love is a good approach to a working life, but learning how to do what you love as an entrepreneur is an essential approach to a successful business life. Good luck, and look before you leap!