Re: filmscanners: Nikon 8000

[Isaac Crawford <isaac@visi.net>]

Moreno Polloni wrote:
> 
> > > And which "mass distributors" sell scanners at cost? As far as I know,
> Nikon
> > > scanners are only sold in photo stores that also sell Nikon cameras.
> > > Personally, I'd rather buy a scanner from a photo store than a
> department
> > > store. There's a lot to be said for knowledgeable sales staff, service,
> and
> > > support.
> >
> > Well, by mass distributors I was referring to B&H, Camera World, etc.
> > Most things nikon are sold at or near cost by these folks. They aren't
> > doing that with scanners because of what David had mentioned...
> 
> I can reasonably assure you that B&H and others do not sell at cost, whether
> it's a scanner or a camera. I am familiar with wholesale pricing on some of
> these products, and they are making a fair profit.

        I see, and how long have you been in the business? If by fair profit
you mean 0-5 percent, I guess you're right. They can make some decent
profit on gray products, but not on most Nikon USA products. 
> 
> Really now, why would they purchase product, maintain inventory, pay
> employee salaries, rent, etc., and then sell items at pr near cost? Maybe if
> they lose a dollar on every sale they can make it up in volume.

        You have it almost right... If they make 5 bucks on a camera, plus
whatever they make on the other things they sell, they will (and do)
make quite a profit with volume. It is in all the other things that they
make real profit. Straps, filters, film, bags, etc... Sell a couple
thousand of these things a day and the money will roll in... And I can
assure you, they do not lose a dollar, at the very worst, they will
break even. This has been going on for some time. Have you ever wondered
why so many local camera stores are going out of business all over the
country? It is because there is no longer any money to be made on 35mm
equipment. Many places are strictly photo finishing and used equipment
these days instead of new equipment sales.
> 
> > That's what I mean... If the scanners are the same price, why wait
> > around for a Nikon when you can get the Polaroid now?
> 
> Because some people compared the two and prefer the Nikon, obviously.

        Err, how? There are no Nikon's to be had. You can compare specs and
features, but not scanners... There are of course people that need
specific features, but there are many that do not even consider the
Polaroid just because it is Polaroid.
> 
> > Many of my
> > customers could only say that they wanted a Nikon, which is fine BTW, I
> > was just curious why. Most of the people that I talked to couldn't point
> > to anything in particular, like features, to support their decision... I
> > guess that I feel that Nikon is becoming the Bose of photography!:-)
> > I.E. they know the name, so that's what they buy...
> 
> I think you need to give people more credit than that. If someone is
> dropping $3k on a scanner, they're likely to do some product research and
> make an informed purchase decision.

        You'd be amazed... In my *experience* of selling camera gear, the
higher the price, the less serious the user is for the most part. There
are of course many professional and deadly serious amateur photographers
that make investments in good tools (like the members of this list), but
the majority of high ticket items are sold to people that want a high
ticket item, not a tool. And really, that's the way it has to be. It is
in everyone's interest that as many people as possible buy high end
stuff, the casual users basically subsidize the manufacture of those
expensive items. As far as scanners go, I can assure you that Nikon has
a leg up on Polaroid on name alone. This was demonstrated to me time and
again when it was the SS4000 and the LS2000 duking it out. For many
customers, the added resolution and low noise of the SS4000 was an
obvious benefit to them, and still most of them got the Nikon because
that's what they wanted. And I have no problem with that, I'm a big
believer that people should get what they want, it's just that I feel
that many people are not willing to even look other items that would
make more sense for them. I have a feeling that if the Polaroid scanners
were labeled Nikon, they would have just as much trouble keeping them in
stock as Nikon does...:-)

Isaac