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03-18-2010, 05:59 AM   #16
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The advantage is increased sales and revenue.
I wouldnt call the KX a "slow moving" product. How do you define slow moving?
I dont stand around Best Buy for hours - but I cant imagine the people shopping there are sweeping up the D90s.

03-18-2010, 06:57 AM   #17
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>The advantage is increased sales and revenue.

From a company with less than a 5% share of the DSLR market? That is hardly a convincing argument.

>I wouldnt call the KX a "slow moving" product. How do you define slow moving?

Compared to the P&S category, for instance.

I> dont stand around Best Buy for hours - but I cant imagine the people shopping >there are sweeping up the D90s.

Not really relevant to the discussion, but I don't imagine so either. Again my point is that access to mass merchandisers is not the slam dunk some think it is. I'm done now.
03-18-2010, 07:22 AM   #18
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OK, I guess your right.

For a tiny, and market share limited company like Pentax, it would be waste of time and resources for multiple major retailers to actually sell their products in their brick and mortor stores.

Oh-well
03-18-2010, 08:46 AM   #19
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Unfortunately, the small photo stores that carry Pentax charge the MSRP prices and for a tight budget individual it is hard to spend extra 15% - 30% for an item. Mi local store prices are untouchable.

This is a point againts Pentax because people that walk to a photo store without any particular brand will miss the Pentax line alltogether. In these stores Nikon/Canos are just a little bit more expensive than the web due to competicion from Department stores, etc. This as a result makes Pentax less attractive.

03-18-2010, 09:03 AM   #20
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QuoteOriginally posted by Warren s Quote
Why are there so few brick and mortar Pentax product vendors? If any?

No Pentax stuff………
If you're on Staten Island, you're in lose proximity to three of the largest Pentax dealers in the US.

B & H, Adorama & Beach Camera. are all in the NYC area.
03-18-2010, 09:22 AM   #21
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QuoteOriginally posted by baldeagle21b Quote
You are a Pentax representative trying to get access into my store.
That's the questionable assumption -- that Pentax HAS sales reps going around to local stores. I suspect that Pentax deals on a corporate level with big online outlets that happen to have brick+mortar presences -- but not with the Big Box outlets? Why not?

So, questions: have any USA Pentaxians here ever seen a Pentax sales rep in a store? Have you ever asked a store manager if they're visited by Pentax sales reps?

I recall from another thread that Pentax refused to front (provide on credit) product to certain photo chain stores, as was the practice of Canon/Nikon. When said chains went belly-up, Canon/Nikon took large losses; Pentax didn't. Perhaps Penhoya's beaners are quite happy with their current policies; being prudent didn't hurt, eh?
03-18-2010, 11:49 AM   #22
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I feel like most people do plenty of research online for the dslr they want, have been convinced by a friend, or are already knowledgeable enough to know which one they want next. Likewise, I think these people are most likely to buy said dslr online, even if they'd like to try it in a store first.

I can, however, see Pentax PS cameras doing well in B&M stores because most of their designs catch the eye. Same with the K-x colors, to be honest. Look at how well Apple's designs do. The white K-x would draw a lot of Apple fanboys to it, I'm sure. It did for me! That goes for Pentax's three new cool-looking PS models, as well.

03-19-2010, 11:13 AM   #23
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QuoteOriginally posted by RioRico Quote
That's the questionable assumption -- that Pentax HAS sales reps going around to local stores. I suspect that Pentax deals on a corporate level with big online outlets that happen to have brick+mortar presences -- but not with the Big Box outlets? Why not?

So, questions: have any USA Pentaxians here ever seen a Pentax sales rep in a store? Have you ever asked a store manager if they're visited by Pentax sales reps?

Here in Cleveland, there is a regional camera store chain, Dodd's, that has a half-dozen or so outlets in the area, and a few more in Columbus. They are also a big professional outlet. In fact, they're just about the only camera stores in the area. When Ritz went bankrupt, all but three or four of their Ohio stores near Cincinnatti closed down. All the mom and pop camera stores are gone, as well.

Dodd's has recently expanded their Pentax stock. A year or so ago, about a month after the K-7 began shipping, I was in their flagship store and they didn't even have one in stock. I was there yesterday. They not only had the K-7, they had the K-x in all colors, except blue, and quite a few Pentax lenses. A couple of weeks ago, I was in one of their suburban stores and they had a red K-x, whereas a year ago, they had absolutely nothing with the Pentax name on it.

I spent a little time talking to one of the sales people, who is a Pentax user. He said that, yes, they do have a Pentax rep who visits them on a regular basis. He also told me that, in their stores, at least, Pentax was beginning to overtake Olympus for third place, behind (of course) Nikon and Canon.

BTW, they also had the A10 p & s from Pentax. Cute camera. Made me think about going home, getting out my Auto 110 and trying to find some 110 film.
03-19-2010, 11:18 AM   #24
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QuoteOriginally posted by RioRico Quote
Pentax doesn't advertise, not in the States anyway.
The latest issue of either PopPhoto or Shutterbug, don't remember which, had a full-page back cover ad for the K-x.
03-19-2010, 01:06 PM   #25
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QuoteOriginally posted by noblepa Quote
I spent a little time talking to one of the sales people, who is a Pentax user. He said that, yes, they do have a Pentax rep who visits them on a regular basis.
QuoteOriginally posted by lavascript Quote
The latest issue of either PopPhoto or Shutterbug, don't remember which, had a full-page back cover ad for the K-x.
"Oh the times, they are a'changing!!"
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03-19-2010, 02:20 PM   #26
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QuoteOriginally posted by RioRico Quote
A very few Pentax retailers are in the very largest US cities. In Sacramento, capital of the world's 7th largest economy, I can barely find one (Fry's Electronics has a scant sample). There's some old stuff in tourist rip-off zones in San Francisco, but no major retailers. Canon+Nikon dSLRs are in every Big Box Store in every little city. Sony+Olympus are easily found. Pentax is very nearly invisible. And zero ads.
You probably won't find one in Albany either. There are only a couple of camera stores left and if they do sell Pentax, they don't mention it in their yellow page ads. There are people from this area (Saratoga/Glens Falls) who drive to NYC to shop for photo gear. The camera's that you will find in a store up here will most likely be an entry level Nikon or Canon and probably an older model.
03-20-2010, 03:36 AM   #27
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The question is really, how do B & M stores make a go of it in a situation where on line dealers will under cut their prices by ten to fifteen percent? Most people will go into their local store, pick up a lens or camera, handle it and then walk away to order the item on line for a little bit less.

The big box stores offer nothing. The salesmen know almost nothing and the prices are terrible. I find that Best Buy marks everything up considerably. Currently, on line, they are selling a Nikon D90, with the kit lens for 1540 US Dollars. Just in comparison, Amazon has the same 1025 dollars. Now, do you think Best Buy is turning over an extra 500 dollars to Nikon?
03-20-2010, 11:35 AM   #28
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QuoteOriginally posted by Rondec Quote
The question is really, how do B & M stores make a go of it in a situation where on line dealers will under cut their prices by ten to fifteen percent? Most people will go into their local store, pick up a lens or camera, handle it and then walk away to order the item on line for a little bit less.

The big box stores offer nothing. The salesmen know almost nothing and the prices are terrible. I find that Best Buy marks everything up considerably. Currently, on line, they are selling a Nikon D90, with the kit lens for 1540 US Dollars. Just in comparison, Amazon has the same 1025 dollars. Now, do you think Best Buy is turning over an extra 500 dollars to Nikon?
This is exactly why B & M camera stores are disappearing. The Internet is definetely a mixed blessing. On one hand, it allows us to find all kinds of information and search out the best deals. On the other hand, the online sellers have a fraction of the overhead costs that a B & M store does, so they find it harder and harder to compete.

I've read that, a couple of years ago, Pentax made a decision to de-emphasize their presence in B & M stores and concentrate on online and mailorder sales. As the influence and pervasiveness of the internet increases, it may turn out that they were ahead of the curve. Maybe not.
03-20-2010, 03:06 PM   #29
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Unfortunately, chain stores maintaining higher prices seem to prey on people who have not done their homework, whereas a lot of B&M stores try to overwhelm you with their photographic chops into buying what they say will work for you (in other words, what they have on the shelf). Thank goodness we also have the internet.
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