Ritz/Wolf Camera Stores to Close
Sep 10, 2012 06:38:21 #
I purchased my Nikon P510 last April at Ritz and paid $ 25.00 more than the on-line price, just to support my local store. Now I see that another company has come in to sell all their inventory. I was allowed to brouse last Saturday [the owner is a friend] and found that everything was marked up on the list price tags about 25% and then red tagged down 10% from that as a sales price, a lot was scratched, broken or had parts missing.Buyer Beware-all sales final !
Sep 10, 2012 06:40:29 #
madcapmagishion wrote:
We have 2 Ritz stores here in Jacksonville, FL and both carry Nikon and Canon lenses, not a wide varity but a few.
The Ritz store here started going out of business 4 months ago...dont expect any good pricing!
Sep 10, 2012 07:02:39 #
Sep 10, 2012 07:08:16 #
The Wolf camera stores in the malls by me already closed and when they had their discount of 20 to 30 percent, lens and camera bodies were not included.
madcapmagishion wrote:
Ahhh! But that 10% thats not junk may be a good opportunity for some, like Nikon or Canon lenses! :D
Festina Lente wrote:
Thanks madcapmagishion. A good update.
Wolf/Ritz has been in Bankruptcy for some time now. It is a sad legacy of very poor and greedy management.
I would not buy anything they sell thru liquidation as 90% of it was overpriced junk. I expect to see much of it re-appear on e-Bay by enterprising individuals.
Wolf/Ritz has been in Bankruptcy for some time now. It is a sad legacy of very poor and greedy management.
I would not buy anything they sell thru liquidation as 90% of it was overpriced junk. I expect to see much of it re-appear on e-Bay by enterprising individuals.
Ahhh! But that 10% thats not junk may be a good opportunity for some, like Nikon or Canon lenses! :D
Sep 10, 2012 07:28:08 #
I bought a Canon lens through Ritz a couple of years ago using a promotional opportunity offered through my bank - I was supposed to get a % back from Ritz for the purchase. They never paid the discount, saying that I "did it wrong," which was impossible. After that, I didn't patronize them very much. I'm not surprised they're completely going out of business. If you don't treat your customers right, you're not going to have customers.
Sep 10, 2012 07:37:07 #
sirlensalot
Loc: Arizona
They have been gone from our little berg for several years now. They allegedly had a good rep for photo processing. I tried them a couple of times for some 4x6 prints. Nothing extraordinary but a bit pricey.
Hit and miss with educated staff. Maybe not the best place to go, but they were local.
Hit and miss with educated staff. Maybe not the best place to go, but they were local.
Sep 10, 2012 07:37:15 #
JBTaylor
Loc: In hiding again
flyguy wrote:
Maybe they were bought by Bain Capital? That would explain the liquidation. :twisted:
Being passed over by Bain Capital could also explain the liquidation. Companies closed by Bain were already in trouble and would have closed anyway before being extended on life support for a while.
Sep 10, 2012 07:46:28 #
Sep 10, 2012 07:51:43 #
sirlensalot
Loc: Arizona
On a positive note, back in film days I picked up a little stylus epic for a trip. Toughest little camera I own. Great photos. I purchased it locally from a Ritz store. No regrets.
Sep 10, 2012 07:59:46 #
I have used Wolf/Ritz for years and have nothing but good results. Whenever I have a question they have always been helpful. I hope the 2 shops close to me do not make the hit list.
Sep 10, 2012 07:59:46 #
I have used Wolf/Ritz for years and have nothing but good results. Whenever I have a question they have always been helpful. I hope the 2 shops close to me do not make the hit list.
Sep 10, 2012 08:11:31 #
If anything, visiting a Ritz/Wolf camera store always reminds me of how not to treat your customers. Can't wait for them to disappear... bye, bye.
Sep 10, 2012 08:19:32 #
deej wrote:
If they are liquidated by the same type of company as Circuit City I would not rush in to buy. That company liquidated at almost full price for a long time. The deals were nothing that great.
That's standard liquidating practice. The problem with not rushing in is that if you don't rush when prices have been "slashed" 10%, someone else inexperienced with company liquidation will. By the time prices have been slashed 70, 80, even 90%, there is nothing left that you and I want. That's when the liquidator consolidators come in and buy everything that's left that the liquidators can't sell.
The other thing is that employees still can use their employee discounts for a certain amount of time. In some cases those discounts are 60%, so when an employee has always wanted something and knows the company is going under, s/he immediately uses employee discount to get stuff for self, family, and friends. By the time the serious price slashing comes around, there is little left, just stuff for the garage sale people.
I've been through the process several times, now, most recently with Circuit City and Borders.
Sep 10, 2012 08:34:30 #
Last time I shopped in a Ritz store was back in the early 70's
Sep 10, 2012 08:44:53 #
I recently walked into a local Ritz as a friend suggested it--her husband shops there and they love it.
The prices were so high on even basic items that I just shook my head and drove back home for the internet and amazon.com.
I've tried a couple of liquidation sales before: Computer City, Circuit City. By the time the prices were at my level there was nothing left but broken crap and hundreds of 50 packs of off-brand CD-R's
The prices were so high on even basic items that I just shook my head and drove back home for the internet and amazon.com.
I've tried a couple of liquidation sales before: Computer City, Circuit City. By the time the prices were at my level there was nothing left but broken crap and hundreds of 50 packs of off-brand CD-R's
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