Blaster34 Loc: Florida Treasure Coast

But are you happy with the lens?

Duane Hanley Loc: Milwaukee Wisconsin

I sold cameras in a pro shop in Milwaukee for 9 years and the way it worked was the manufacturer has a msrp or manufacturer's suggested retail price. You can't advertise a Nikon (for example) product for less than the msrp. You could sell for any price you wanted, you can't advertise the sale price. That the way it use to work anyways. As far as Gray market or green dot merchandise you are all right, the gray market stuff is not intended for sale in the U. S. As a result the U. S. WARRANTY is not valid. And if something went wrong and a repair is needed, it has to go overseas to the manufacturer. Some camera manufacturers were a little more forgiving in the policy but guys like Hasselblad and Nikon were not so forgiving. Maybe things changed since then but I doubt it.

wetreed

I have known Adorama has sold grey market items for years. They don’t sell as much grey market as a 42St Photo, but they also sell grey market. It’s not that hard to tell if it’s grey market. A great price, stripping away things like batteries and neck straps. If it’s too good to be true it’s not.

henryp Loc: New York, NY

There are two issues. MAP is minimum advertised price. It is imposed on authorized US retailers by US distributors and sets the minimum advertised (not selling) price and tells the retailer how he may reveal the real (usually lower) selling price online or in a print ad or during a telephone transaction. The retailer may sell for any price he wishes.

More recently US distributors had adopted 'unilateral pricing,' also imposed on authorized US retailers. This dictates the minimum selling price. A retailer who drops below that minimum amount even by a penny is in violation. The programs are patrolled strictly and violations are met with severe repercussions.

Both programs are usually imposed on all authorized US retailers across the board.



Speaking only for B&H, we do sell "grey market products and when we do each is clearly labeled "Imported." There's a description on each item's detail page saying, "Items marked "Imported" are imported and/or distributed by other entities and are warranted by B&H Photo-Video. "Imported" products do not qualify for manufacturers rebate programs.There is no difference in the item itself." That in turn is linked to a more comprehensive explanation at https://www.bhphotovideo.com/find/HelpCenter/Policies.jsp#greyMarket

While Nikon USA does have a reputation for not touching grey market items sent for repair whether in warranty or not, Canon USA has displayed a more elastic practice and will usually not reject the camera or lens.



The short answer is YES, B&H sell grey market items. BTW, we have the Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM Lens on our site at https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1092632-REG/. The price right now is $1,899.00 (after a $300.00 "instant savings"). It is brand new and it is NOT grey market.

ggenova64

Does Amazon sell Grey Market?

lamontcranston

Yes. Read the ads and the warranty information carefully. You should be able to figure it out. Many Amazon products are not sold BY Amazon, they are sold THROUGH Amazon by 2nd tier dealers.

jjdeis

The equipment should have a USA warranty card if it is not gray market.

BebuLamar

I like the unilateral pricing. That is a good policy.

hookedupin2005 Loc: Northwestern New Mexico

B&H tells you that they sell grey market, on their website....Type in Grey market into their searchbox, and read all about it.

torchman310 Loc: Santa Clarita, Ca.

All you need to do is look at the ad. There are usually 2 prices for the same lens. The lens with the lower price tag says IMPORTED. This is from The B & H site. So you have Imported at $500.00 for the lens, and (for the same type of lens) you have $750.00 for The USA lens. IMPORTED = Grey Market ! Buyer Beware.

LaurenT Loc: Northern California

Thank you everyone for all of the information shared. I went directly to Adorama with my orde r number, and with a prompt reply, was told that the lens I purchased was not grey market, but a US lens with US warranty. Boy, did I get a good deal for $1799.

If I had not made this post, I would not have known that “Imported” meant grey market. I would have figured since they are mostly from Japan, they are all imported. Live and learn.

Thank you again for all of the information.

Lauren

ggenova64

Lauren That's a Great price for a Canon lens... They are coming down in price.

Charles 46277 Loc: Fulton County, KY

I was camera department manager in a KMart for many years (when they were #1) and they were the company that broke the power of manufacturers to set prices for retailers--"Manufacturer's Suggested Price." Some continued to suggest a list price, but this no longer had (or has) any significance. Retailers can sell at any price so long as it does not break the Anti-Trust Acts. For instance, they cannot sell below cost and then (after the competition is ruined) jack up prices as a monopoly. The only defense we could offer when going below cost (which we did, like grocers, on "loss leaders," which are items given away to attract customers), I marked Kodak film and cameras below cost all the time, but I had to keep records that I was beating a competitor's selling price--that justified it. What Kodak said or thought was irrelevant--nobody sold it at Manufacturer's Suggested Price.

It is also illegal to give a big retailer lower prices than the little guy. I bought Kodak film at the cheapest price by buying over 200 rolls a week, but any mom and pop store could get the same cost because even the corner store can order that many rolls and sell them before they get old--or should not be carrying film. If it took them a year to sell 200 rolls, the film still had a year of freshness on it.

Gray market is a horse of another color. Global companies may have lower prices in China or Korea, etc., because they make the products there at lower cost. The Ford trucks made in Thailand (at low prices) are made there--they do not ship those trucks over here. They sell more trucks in Asia than they do in America, and GM sells more cars in China than they do here--but they are made there (and not shipped back here). Cameras, on the other hand, are cheaply shipped. So I could open a retail company in Thailand, buy Canon cameras there cheap, then sell them to the USA on the Internet at cheaper prices. This is called "gray" because camera companies have given exclusive rights to distributors in each country, in order to assure the best service there. My shadow company in Thailand would not do that--it may disappear after I sell the cameras I bought. That is why there were warranty problems when this started happening. But finally American courts ruled that camera manufacturers had to honor their warranty no matter who sold it, and regardless of whether the customer sent in a card. So "gray" is not so gray, especially with Internet sales today.

To counter the gray market and assure authorized distribution, Canon sells the Rebel series here, but the same camera made in Indonesia is called the Canon 650D. I bought one online, so I have a Rebel by another name--but I can call Canon here in the US and get any help I need for the camera. They are a global company, and if somebody from Indonesia travels, they can get service in any country--and so can I. Likewise, if you have a Rebel series, you can get service in any country you go to, even where that model is not sold.

torchman310 Loc: Santa Clarita, Ca.

Lucky you. But now you know. Knowledge IS Power. Enjoy your lens :-)

maryo Loc: Santa fe

Try to register it at nikon and they will not accept it.