Well this did not take long

I am most shocked by the camera strap being sold out.

[Applicable products]
・ RF100-500mm F4.5-7.1 IS USM
・ RF100mm F2.8 L MACRO IS USM
・ RF400mm F2.8 L IS USM
・ RF600mm F4 L IS USM
・ Ring type tripod mount E (B)
・ RF14-35mm F4 L IS USM
・ EOS R3
・ Eye cup ER-h
・ Eye cup ER-hE
・ Strap ER-L1
・ RF100-400mm F5.6-8 IS USM
・ RF16mm F2.8 STM
・ Lens hood EW-65C
・ Multi-accessory shoe adapter AD-E1
・ Speedlight transmitter ST-E10
・ Multi-accessory shoe directional stereo microphone DM-E1D
・ Multi-accessory shoe Smartphone link adapter AD-P1

Didn't even actually go up for sale, did they?

If Canon needlessly increased their manufacturing capacity (additional factory footage, equipment and labor expenses) to meet the initial demand at product launches, it would 1) raise initial costs and 2) would be wasted down the line when demand waned. And Canon knows the temporary increased capacity is needless because the waiting consumers will still be around 3 to 6 months from now. Sure, some might not wait, but the lost sales aren’t enough to offset the increased expenses in their calculations.

But yeah, no doubt these companies already know what’s going to happen sales wise and spin the shortages for free publicity. I think it makes good business sense on both ends.

archerscreek wrote:

If Canon needlessly increased their manufacturing capacity (additional factory footage, equipment and labor expenses) to meet the initial demand at product launches, it would 1) raise initial costs and 2) would be wasted down the line when demand waned. And Canon knows the temporary increased capacity is needless because the waiting consumers will still be around 3 to 6 months from now. Sure, some might not wait, but the lost sales aren’t enough to offset the increased expenses in their calculations.

But yeah, no doubt these companies already know what’s going to happen sales wise and spin the shortages for free publicity. I think it makes good business sense on both ends.

You beat me to it.

It has been this way with all the manufacturers for decades. I remember that it took Leica almost a year to clear the backlog when they introduced the M6 back in the mid 1980s (at a point when they were financially strained). It also happened when I bought my Nikon D100, D300 and D700.

It would indeed be bad business wise for the manufacturers to end up with surplus production capacity in a few months when the initial order rush is over.

A little patience is often good for the buyer. Some head scratches and annoyancies may be avoided, if the purchase is postponed to after the first or second firmware revision.

Quarkcharmed wrote:

Cameras come and go. Straps stay forever.

So true. My oldest strap in use is about 35 years old.

Chimpy boy wrote:

I couldn't see what was out of stock as the link opened a Japanese page ? If it was a Canon camera stap ? a quick question why would anyone want to walk around with a Canon camera strap ? screaming out what model of camera it was attached too ! I have shot in some iffy places around the world and I found it was best to draw as little of attention as was possible, just a thought.

Heck, I can’t figure out why anyone would use a camera strap at all.

BirdShooter7 wrote:

Chimpy boy wrote:

I couldn't see what was out of stock as the link opened a Japanese page ? If it was a Canon camera stap ? a quick question why would anyone want to walk around with a Canon camera strap ? screaming out what model of camera it was attached too ! I have shot in some iffy places around the world and I found it was best to draw as little of attention as was possible, just a thought.

Heck, I can’t figure out why anyone would use a camera strap at all.

No problem, as long as I - a strap user - know why. 😉

olstrup wrote:

BirdShooter7 wrote:

Chimpy boy wrote:

I couldn't see what was out of stock as the link opened a Japanese page ? If it was a Canon camera stap ? a quick question why would anyone want to walk around with a Canon camera strap ? screaming out what model of camera it was attached too ! I have shot in some iffy places around the world and I found it was best to draw as little of attention as was possible, just a thought.

Heck, I can’t figure out why anyone would use a camera strap at all.

No problem, as long as I - a strap user - know why. 😉

You need to liberate yourself

BirdShooter7 wrote:

olstrup wrote:

BirdShooter7 wrote:

Chimpy boy wrote:

I couldn't see what was out of stock as the link opened a Japanese page ? If it was a Canon camera stap ? a quick question why would anyone want to walk around with a Canon camera strap ? screaming out what model of camera it was attached too ! I have shot in some iffy places around the world and I found it was best to draw as little of attention as was possible, just a thought.

Heck, I can’t figure out why anyone would use a camera strap at all.

No problem, as long as I - a strap user - know why. 😉

You need to liberate yourself

Oh, I have no problem with that. But I see no need to liberate my cameras. I like to have straps on my cameras when I walk around with two cameras - one on each shoulder - or swap lenses when standing/walking.

Well, it's an entertaining enough notion, a bit of light reading for a Saturday morning coffee break.

To be extended into a well rounded anecdote I think it should at least pay some lip service to the competing notions of cashflow management, overconfidence and overstocking, the lack (or excess) of which lead to numerous tech companies going belly up in the 90s. Apple were very nearly one of them.

Commodore was one of them. At one time the worlds largest maker of personal/home computers, and then gone, taking the Amiga, perhaps the finest ever home computer, with it.

Now it's fair to say it wasn't just these competing notions that were to blame in Commodore's case, indeed it is remarkable that Commodore aren't in the Guinness Book of records for sheer scale, volume and nature of their screw-ups, but cashflow mismanagement and overconfidence were in among them. Commodore didn't just shoot themselves repeatedly in the foot, they employed shotguns and shackles to ensure they never missed their feet.

It's not always about screwing over your customers, sometimes it's about trying to ensure you don't screw yourself.

And I don't think photogear buyers need much in the way of hype, they are usually quite self sufficient in the gas department.

Marco Nero wrote:

As I have stated on previous occasions, Canon have taken a leaf out of Apple's marketing playbook:
.
By hyping new products and then deliberately under-supplying (yes, that's exactly how it works), they can drive up demand to ridiculous levels which then increases media coverage and public discussion, which then attracts even more attention and drives up demand further.
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They did this with the release of the R cameras, all of them... including RF adapters, RF lenses and EOS R camera bodies (especially the R5 and R6). If you don't believe this, then you must accept that they were "caught with their pants down" on just about every single product bought to market in the last few years... including batteries and spare parts.
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This is a well known marketing technique that was pioneered by Apple when releasing new products. The usual claims of "we have received more orders than anticipated" line is the same excuse trotted out in the past. The method is surprisingly effective.
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But both Apple and Canon have very capable customer and market research - which they indulge in whenever they release new products. They tend to know exactly how many products will be needed and how strong the demand is, long in advance of release.