[peggers]

That's quite a dramatic heading but let me explain. I'm making the assumption that you are reading this because you are a Pentax enthusiast. Maybe you even love the brand. Quite a few of us, like me have been using Pentax since we first purchased a Pentax SLR many years ago. With me it was the ME Super, and what a great camera it was!
It has occurred to me that maybe this brand, which we love, might be at the crossroads of existence if the new camera does not sell well. If so, then yes, the future of Pentax is in your hands. But what can you do?
Thanks for asking. I have a cunning plan.
I am suggesting a concerted campaign to raise awareness amongst camera sellers of this new K3ii. How can we do this? Get on the phone and create interest. Ring your local camera shop and start asking questions. When we this camera be in stock? What have you heard about the new Pentax? Am I right in saying that it will be more suitable for sports photographers? What are the test results saying? How much will it cost? Can I order one from you/ What lenses will work best with it? Will the PLM 55-300 be a good match?
Why would this work?
Thanks for asking. It will work because it will put Pentax on the radar. If it is on the radar and the shops have it uppermost on their mind, then they will start recommending Pentax to new customers. New customers are the future of sales because at the moment, and correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems that within the group of current Pentax users we are slowly dwindling away.
What other ideas are there out there I wonder?
Is this pie in the sky or is it worthwhile considering?
What do you think?
I would so love to see Pentax return to its former glory.

[MarkJerling]

Sounds like a great idea!

[othar]

I don't think this will work at my nearest camera store, they reentered some Pentax gear to their selection a few years ago and stopped after about 1 year because there was too few demand

[MikeMcE]

Love your enthusiasm and Pentax thoughts.
Not trying to pop anything, but Do you have a local camera store ? I was asked this recently, and I actually would need to travel a hundred plus miles to see one, 200 miles for a real stocked retailer.
As a former retailer and service shop owner, I’m saddened. I have bought more gear through B&H than any other source. They are my local store(1200 miles) and they do stock my Pentax needs.


Hang up and DRIVE!

[matroxication]

Nice idea but not sure if it would work everywhere. Lot of physical stores stopped selling Pentax in Sydney and some stores does not even stock them. Rather its available online as a "Special Order" where the item will be shipped directly from CR.Kennedy (Pentax Distributor). I used to buy my Pentax gear from TEDS camera store but when I visited the store last time, they don't even have a section for Pentax anymore which is very sad. I even asked the sales person about this but was told there are no demand for Pentax . I always love to feel and test the gear first in person before making the purchase but its becoming challenging these days. TEDs helped me to chose Pentax K30 over the Canon 650 in 2013 where my journey with Pentax started. Hope the new K3 will get some attention.

[ramseybuckeye]

I think the closest camera store to me is about 130 miles away, and I'm not sure there is one there that sells new gear. In the US I do not think that Pentax tries to market in Brick and mortar stores, I think they are happy with the few big stores with internet presence, and maybe a few long time vendors. A few years ago Midwest Photo in Columbus, Ohio started carrying Pentax, a salesman there did not want to show me a K-3 because it was so awful. I knew right then Pentax was not paying incentives and they weren't going to make it in that store with salesman sabotage.

[peggers]

Nice idea but not sure if it would work everywhere. Lot of physical stores stopped selling Pentax in Sydney and some stores does not even stock them. Rather its available online as a "Special Order" where the item will be shipped directly from CR.Kennedy (Pentax Distributor). I used to buy my Pentax gear from TEDS camera store but when I visited the store last time, they don't even have a section for Pentax anymore which is very sad. I even asked the sales person about this but was told there are no demand for Pentax . I always love to feel and test the gear first in person before making the purchase but its becoming challenging these days. TEDs helped me to chose Pentax K30 over the Canon 650 in 2013 where my journey with Pentax started. Hope the new K3 will get some attention.

I am in Melbourne and we have similar issues. There is a Ted's very close to where I live and your experience mirrors mine. That is why I am making this suggestion to create demand. The more people who ring Ted's, the more the staff will want to find out about the camera, and then hopefully they can get one in, put it through its paces and then be in a position to recommend it. That's the plan anyway!

[jpzk]

I did some work, years ago, similar to what you are suggesting in your OP.

The truth is that there are very few camera shops around that carry the Pentax brand, the closest one being at least 200Km away.
The ONLY camera store in town carries the "usual" (Canikon, Panasonic, Sony) and either they still don't quite realize that Pentax IS a brand nor, when one can speak with a knowledgeable salesman, I get the usual "Canon/Nikon" is better. I know who works in that shop, believe me.

Nonetheless, your idea is great and the next time I drop by that store, next door to my guitar gear stuff store, I will go in and harass them !

[dbs]

I am in Melbourne and we have similar issues. There is a Ted's very close to where I live and your experience mirrors mine. That is why I am making this suggestion to create demand. The more people who ring Ted's, the more the staff will want to find out about the camera, and then hopefully they can get one in, put it through its paces and then be in a position to recommend it. That's the plan anyway!

Hi Peggers.

I'm in Adelaide ( sort of ) and the same over here.
I think the problem is near the top of the chain and until that is fixed / resurrected the status quo won't change.

Dave

[Mooncatt]

I see this backfiring pretty bad.

Let's say we are able to get just 10 people contacting these store with fake interest. At best, they may special order a few of the cameras, they sit on the shelf forever, eventual returned to Ricoh unsold. That is valuable time, money, and effort infested by the store for zero gain. If you're lucky, things go back to the way they were. At worse, they could see this for the trick it was and black ball Pentax all together.

It would be better to spread the word to other photographers and get actual potential customers interested. Even if the local store doesn't sell them, it's still extra buyers of the brand. Hopefully those buyers are impressed and further spread the word. Over time, sales may increase enough that Ricoh and retailers take notice.

I doubt even that scenario would be successful. I've tried to convince my wife to join the Pentax family because she wants a decent camera, but even with me right there to give help and advice, plus this awesome forum, she is still heavily considering Canikon simply because it's what everyone else has. It's a nice idea, but I don't think Pentax will see much growth without Ricoh investing in better advertising. Or... Any advertising for that matter.

[bwgv001]

I think the best to help, is to buy something!

[totsmuyco]

If I had spare cash, I'd buy me some Pentax gears every year. That's one way of helping out. Let the inventory move. The second would be to endorse the brand. We can always post our good photos in Facebook or some other social media and say it was taken by a Pentax along with the data on the EXIF so as to disguise the campaign. I think those are the 2 things I can think of as an ordinary person.

[JPT]

The way I've been supporting Pentax is to purchase from Ricoh Imaging's store directly. I've purchased one camera, two lenses and some accessories in the last couple of years. It cuts out the retailer in the middle and must be more beneficial to profitability. Admittedly, you can often get the product cheaper elsewhere, but we are talking about how to go to some extra effort to support the brand here. It strikes me that anyone could make this choice that would help Pentax.

I'm not sure that the problem with Pentax not being in bricks and mortar stores is specific to Pentax, as much as the stores themselves. Many of them have gone out of business or are close to it because of online competition and falling sales overall. They are cutting the brands they stock and Pentax, being smaller, was one of the first on the block. Even if they can be persuaded to stock Pentax, it won't make that business model work for them, and they may still go out of business.

Ricoh is not a weak company and the K-3 III looks great, so I'm not concerned about it. But I'm convinced that if Pentax returns to glory, the new glory won't look like the former glory. It won't be made in camera stores.

[Fenwoodian]

We can always post our good photos in Facebook or some other social media and say it was taken by a Pentax

I think you've got a great idea! Post exceptional photos taken with Pentax gear all over the Internet. Also talk up your Pentax gear on Non-Pentax websites and blogs.

[eddaytona]

That's a great idea except for the fact that Pentax has no new gear and the rumors are that they are sticking with DSLRs. So twenty-tens.
I've owned exclusively Pentax gear since the early 70s. I love the WR on my K-5 as I go into extreme environments twice a year but I'm surly not buying another DSLR when I have my phone and a pocketable Sony RX100 m7. Sad.