47th Street Photo: Back in the 1960’s and 1970’s I used to shop at 47th Street Photo. It was a first class operation like B&H & Cameta are today. Prices were great (they weren’t as...

drmike99 Loc: Fairfield Connecticut

Back in the 1960’s and 1970’s I used to shop at 47th Street Photo. It was a first class operation like B&H & Cameta are today. Prices were great (they weren’t as “fixed” in those days). It is gone now (an outfit called 42nd Street Photo is in no way the same thing). Does anyone know what happened to it? Did it morph into one of the stores we know today? Back then stores weren’t open on Sunday unless they were closed on Saturday. 47th Street, like B&H, was owned by observant Jews so I’d shop there on Sunday when NYC parking spaces were plentiful! I bought my Pentax 6x7 there in 1979 and still use it.

PixelStan77 Loc: Vermont/Chicago

drmike99 wrote:

Back in the 1960’s and 1970’s I used to shop at 47... (show quote)

In my opinion it has to do with greed by getting you to buy without customer service and a reduced price. What you are getting what is called grey market product not covered by the manufacturer so you are stuck without a paddle.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

New York Times wrote and article about that in 1997!

"The company stumbled, along with many other consumer electronics chains, during the economic downturn of the early 1990's, when the razor-thin margins of the business got squeezed to the brink by a falloff in demand."

https://www.nytimes.com/1997/03/27/nyregion/with-questionable-future-47th-st-photo-closes-doors.html

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

PixelStan77 wrote:

In my opinion it has to do with greed by getting you to buy without customer service and a reduced price. What you are getting what is called grey market product not covered by the manufacturer so you are stuck without a paddle.

Where I am, it is cocktail hour. I think you need one. Badly.

drmike99 Loc: Fairfield Connecticut

PixelStan77 wrote:

In my opinion it has to do with greed by getting you to buy without customer service and a reduced price. What you are getting what is called grey market product not covered by the manufacturer so you are stuck without a paddle.

What does that have to do with my question???

drmike99 Loc: Fairfield Connecticut

bsprague wrote:

New York Times wrote and article about that in 1997!

"The company stumbled, along with many other consumer electronics chains, during the economic downturn of the early 1990's, when the razor-thin margins of the business got squeezed to the brink by a falloff in demand."

https://www.nytimes.com/1997/03/27/nyregion/with-questionable-future-47th-st-photo-closes-doors.html

Thank you for the answer.

DAN Phillips Loc: Graysville, GA

There was also a company called Porter Camera. It was a great company to do business with. At the time, I bought mostly dark room supplies, but they had a huge variety of items for photographers that you can't find today. I guess like all of us will one day, they went the way of the DoDo Bird.

markjay

In 1977 (41 years ago !) I made my first business trip to Japan, and was planning to buy my first "real" camera there (I wanted a Pentax). At the time, this was still a very exotic location and Japan had not yet become the powerhouse economy it is today. In 1977, "Made in Japan" still meant junk. Many women still walked in the streets in Kimono's.

I asked around in the Tokyo office of the large Bank I was working in, to find out who was a camera nut, and where was a good place to go shopping in Tokyo during the weekend. I eventually found someone in the operations department who was an intense amateur photographer. The first thing he asked me was ... "Arent you from the New York office?" to which I replied yes - and he told me to wait until I got home and buy at 47th Street Photo.

traderjohn Loc: New York City

drmike99 wrote:

Back in the 1960’s and 1970’s I used to shop at 47... (show quote)

It is not the same company that you knew. It is different as is their approach to selling cameras. If you go there eyes wide open and understanding if the product is grey market, and there is no US warranty. Examine everything you are buying, there should be no problem. Understanding that grey market cameras are produced by the same company and or its licensed operators. Now if you went to B&H or Adorama your experience would be different. Again the dreaded grey market may come into focus there as well. The difference is they will let you know as long as you ask. What about Hunts Camera store in Manchester?

ggab Loc: ?

drmike99 wrote:

Back in the 1960’s and 1970’s I used to shop at 47... (show quote)

I did a google search for it. The website shown in Google is no longer available: http://www.47stphoto.com/
The google response:
Long-standing retailer offering digital SLRs & video cameras, plus lenses, lighting & accessories.
Address: 1635 McDonald Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11230
Hours:
Closed ⋅ Opens 9AM

Phone: (800) 998-2066
See all questions (1)
Reviews from the web
Reseller Ratings
9.9/10
851 reviews

The most recent reviews were very poor and the newest was 3 months ago. The reviews up to a year ago were very strong. Looks like things turned sour in 2018.
I suspect they are out of business.

mborn Loc: Massachusetts

47 good 42 bad!

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

drmike99 wrote:

Back in the 1960’s and 1970’s I used to shop at 47... (show quote)

We have the same history. 47th St Photo was the place to buy cameras in the 1960s and 70s. I remember waiting on line in that narrow hall and then getting up to the narrow counter. They went out of business, and several companies bought the name. The name eventually moved to Brooklyn, but I'm not sure the store is still in business.

What's a shame is when the name is sold, and customers don't know that it's really a completely different business. That's what happened with Abe's of Maine.

https://www.google.com/search?q=47th+st+photo&rlz=1C1CHBF_enUS716US717&oq=47th+st+photo&aqs=chrome..69i57j69i61j0l4.3622j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

mleuck

PixelStan77 wrote:

In my opinion it has to do with greed by getting you to buy without customer service and a reduced price. What you are getting what is called grey market product not covered by the manufacturer so you are stuck without a paddle.

Thanks for you opinion! It has no real basis and has no meaning.

drmike99 Loc: Fairfield Connecticut

traderjohn wrote:

It is not the same company that you knew. It is di... (show quote)

It isn’t the same company because it doesn’t exist. People confuse it with 42nd St photo which IS what you described.

rfmaude41 Loc: Lancaster, Texas (DFW area)

ggab wrote:

I did a google search for it. The website shown i... (show quote)

Actually 47th St Photo does still exist, but only as an Amazon storefront.