B&H has grown to become an establishment in the world of photography since it first opened its doors in 1973. To celebrate more than 45 years in business, B&H has published a 91-second video that takes a brief look at the company's history.
Founded by a husband and wife — who used their names Blimie and Herman as the inspiration for the brand — B&H has gone from a small shop in on 17 Warren Street in Manhattan, New York City to a three story building on 420 9th Avenue with more than 400,000 products on its shelves and 1,000 employees at the helm.
While B&H's history is a notable one, it isn't without its blemishes. Since 2007, B&H has faced numerous lawsuits for various discrimination claims and to date has paid out more than $7.5 million in verified settlement claims.
B&H is GREAT! Been going there since their days on West 17th Street. For me it’s a quick subway ride away.
One of the best things is the ability to go to the store and handle just about everything! Trying cameras and lenses, or finding the right sized lens case, bag, whatever. It’s always fun to go there!
I've only been to B&H once in the last 5 years since I don't live near NYC. It was a chore to get anyone to offer assistance when we needed it. But the biggest laugh was when we were on the conveyer belt line to pay, I started to take a photo of the most unusual setup there, and was told, "No photography is allowed in the store." Being the renegade that I am, I didn't listen and snuck a great photo of the woman standing behind the final pickup window. No photography allowed in the store!!!
i buy at my local camera store now, since wa state will tax all internet sale. No point for me to get my stuff from B&H or Ador.. If I do want to avoid taxes, I can drive to oregon and buy at their store. Also, I bought at a my local camera store and had it shipped to a non-internet sale tax state like NV, which I have families in and they reshipped to me.
Part 1. On a lunchtime break in 1973, I passed a new camera store a few minutes from my work. It looked a little sparse inside, but I received a very friendly greeting at the door and met people who were excited about photography, very knowledgeable and fun to "discuss" with (like a very early DPR forum). I came back to B&H almost every week during the years the store was downtown, to buy or talk about equipment, to have my film developed (we almost always looked through the prints together), or just to say Hi. Herman and Blimie would usually be running and growing the business in the open back office, while Jossi (sp.) would greet customers in the front with his engaging smile and personality. Herman was a little more reserved and business like, but I remember a genuine kindness about him. Part 2 to follow
Part 2. That kindness was wonderfully shown to me when Canon announced the Canon FD 400mm SSC lens would be shipping. I told them I coveted that lens, but didn't think I could afford it. Two weeks later while I was at B&H, Jossi brought out a sealed cardboard shipping box and started unpacking it while we talked. Inside was one of the first FD 400mm SSC lenses that came into the country. He asked me if I wanted to try it out, which of course I did. Then he asked me if I wanted it. Of course, I said, but it may be too expensive for me. Herman, who was watching from the back the entire time, then came up to say hello, and also asked if I wanted it. Same reply on my part. So Herman reached into his pocket, pulled out the original shipping invoice from Canon, and showed it to me. He simply said "this is my price, this is your price". I could not pass up such generosity, and the lens was mine. Part 3 to follow.
Part 3. And although the case does look like it's been through war zones, the lens itself is still in prime working condition today, and still gets use adapted to my mirrorless cameras. And so was cemented long ago my 45 year relationship with B&H. While I do not often make it to the mid-town superstore, I am always on the B&H website first for any of my photographic needs. And always excited when I receive my package the next day. I appreciate what Herman and Blimie have built from their hearts, and congratulate them for its importance in the modern world of photography.
Henrydjp it’s time to get a grip. You’ve been ranting about the Jewish holiday closing in your last ten posts. We get that you’re not happy. If it’s that important to you why not just plan ahead and order before the closing or how about maybe just shop elsewhere at that time. Sure the video could have been better. Are you happy now? Businesses close at different times some for the last week of December others for a week in summer etc. B&H seems to bother you because it’s for Jewish religious observance, yes you’ve made that abundantly clear.
B&H is my first choice after my local brick and mortar store for all photo related purchases for more than 25 years. Sometimes they are out of stock and then I go to Adorama. Both stand behind their sales and never question any requests for return and refund. I have read about their labor issues, but that is what courts are for. And settlements are not findings of fact. Settlements exist because neither side wishes to test their claims in a court of law. B&H or Adorama vs Amazon? With the former you can always talk to a polite and informed living person. Have you ever tried that with Amazon? And they rarely sell gray market. If they do, you are told that up front. As for closure Fri. nite through Sat. evening, that is simply an expression of the 1st Amendment.
Amazon costumer service is usually superb and I've never had trouble reaching a real live and very helpful agent... /shrug I've been trying to steer more of my business towards Adorama because as a Hispanic I don't feel comfortable with B&H's checkered history with workers, it isn't just one instance but multiple ones. B&H has a better site layout and accessory selection than Adorama tho, and both package a heck of a lot better than Amazon... That's my only knock against Amazon, well that and they charge me 11.5% tax, heh.
I'm not knocking B&H mind you, their CS has been great to me too and the site is easily one of the best out there as far as both functionality and listed specs/info. Amazon has their own checkered history with workers too, hence why I've tried to go to Adorama more...
I've had Amazon ship me a lens in a cardboard box that was way too big, with a single air pillow that did nothing to cushion it. The lens rattled around inside the box all the way across the world, and arrived damaged - hardly surprising.
I won't buy lenses from Amazon again. B&H packs camera gear with due care and attention.
I should mention that even though B&H or Adorama are my sellers of choice, I am also an amazon Prime member for everything else. I didn't want to leave the impression that I am anti-Amazon. I just prefer the other two sellers for all things photographic.
I don't buy anything from B&H. Since the late 1970s, I have bought from most other stores that matched B&H prices, such as Abe's of Maine, and other stores that are much smaller than B&H. I don't like making huge stores bigger. Let the little guys survive and compete.
The great thing is all these "non-employee" B&H people posting defending the giant will end up with this blowing up in their faces when they need to buy something from B&H when the online store checkout is closed for over a week and B&H has the best price, and possibly the only store with stock.
So yeah, defend the giant over the consumer. Absolutely inane. I'll bet if Apple suddenly pulled this crap and decided to close online shopping for over a week in favor of Tim Cook's religious beliefs these same "non-employee" B&H posters would be royally trashing Apple. So many double standards here. 😊
The store is succeeding despite its closure policy. So obviously customers have adapted to this.
You are free to shop elsewhere. If others don't have your desired item in stock, blame them, not B&H. My clients have to work within my personal schedule too.
The first time I went to B&H was way back in the early 90s. The second time was last week, the day after Christmas, to buy a battery for my Canon. I realized I came to NYC with only one, half-charged battery.
Pretty pathetic to see some of the screeds putting the company down because they stick to their religious principals. They aren't practicing hypocrisy, they aren't casting aside their strongly held beliefs for a few dollars more, they are simply being a stand up organization for sticking to their beliefs. If that bothers some so much then shop elsewhere, end of story.
Great store, fantastic service, fun to visit. That said I buy almost everything on line from Amazon. Except my photo gear, which I buy from B&H and Adorama. One reason, sales tax.
If you ever get to NYC, then the B&H store is a must see destination.
B&H got where they are by offering huge selection, fair pricing, and a high level of professional service. This was in stark contrast to some camera shops in the area.
It is like a Disneyland for photographers and enthusiasts. You will get to actually handle hundreds of bags, tripods, and every camera and lens imaginable. Their salespeople are really helpful and knowledgeable, and their used selection is awesome.
Be forewarned that parking nearby is impossible, unless you pay around $40 an hour at a parking garage, or spend something like $200 to get free parking. So public transportation is best if you are just browsing.
If you get the chance, you should visit the store. Adorama is also pretty great too, but on a smaller scale. Both stores offer the same kind of service and pricing, but B&H is better for finding hard to get things.
New Yorkers are pretty pretty fortunate to have these stores.
"B&H store is a must see destination." No it's not! it's a store the museums are a must see, the view from the Empire State Building is a must see, Central Park in snow is a must see. Geez our values seem to be slipping
My oldest daughter lived a short walk from the B&H store for 6 years. Being able to stop by the store every time I came to NYC to visit her was a delightful bonus. I always enjoyed all the typical NYC tourist spots such museums, theatre, fine dining, etc. but for the money (free), nothing beat wondering around the B&H Superstore for a couple of hours and touching all those gadgets that I had salivated over while browsing the Internet. Pure heaven.
The history of B&H video summed up, if you don't want to watch....started in the 70's by two guys who's names start with the letters B and H, and....that's about it. Just a marketing video, nothing to see here.
I buy a lot from B&H, almost exclusively these days. I was in NYC a few years ago and visited the store, wanted to buy a messenger bag that would fit my D800E with a 70-200 attached and a 200-500. The one I thought I wanted to buy was $300, and really wasn't right. The one they recommended was $100 and works perfectly. something to be said for buying from people that know their stuff and won't steer you to more expensive stuff just to get bigger sales.
There was a huge camera store in Chicago like that, 5 stories of goodies. They just couldn't adapt to the internet world. Out of business. Props to B&H for doing that.
Somehow they found the magic of combining a retail store with a huge internet market. Beside camera equipment, I just bought an iMac computer at competitive prices with Best Buy. What was helpful was I spent about 45 minutes discussing the different options and feature with B and H's experienced staff. I went to Best Buy store previously and couldn't even get anyone to help me even though 4 guys were standing around. I want to see Best Buy stay around but they have to get experience staff that wants to work.
I always buy from B&H. They will take back a product if you are not happy with it, no questions asked. I did this once with a Canon L zoom that had a bit of a sticking point as you turned the zoom ring...no questions asked.
One of the better big NYC camera stores... now and then. Of course, back then there were also lots of local camera stores that were more helpful and the more fun/funky Spiratone (which I usually visited on Northern Boulevard). Miss the others, glad B&H is still around....
I’ve been getting gear from B&H since their days on 17th street. They have always bent over backwards to be fair with any issues - service is terrific. I am friends with many of the reps there. BTW, I live only 9 blocks away...
Always happy with B&H. Excellent customer service, people that actually know what they are selling, and are willing to accommodate strange customer requests. The fact that you can not check out immediately on Saturdays seems a minor inconvenience, the package wouldn't go out on Sunday anyway. Plus it saved me some impulse buying $$$ more than once ...
My first order from them was in the mid 80s. I have signed up two government agencies to purchase equipment through them plus one private corporation. They completely screwed me on an order at the end of last week - spent a morning chatting with their rude customer service rep (every reply required five minutes of wait time) out right asked question only to receive a wishy washy answer and then have them send me an email at the end of today canceling the order altogether.
Whatever history they have if this is their customer service I will happy go elsewhere
hey, with such a craving for photographic items I think we are walking into pagan fetishism territory... :-) ... I am sure the japanese deity system must have a few photographic gods between the zillions of deities...
i grew up in north jersey in the 1980's, NYC was 20 min from my house, if you were into photography, you knew to go to B+H, because they wouldn't screw you. Everybody else in the city at that time was either grey market or a scam store for the tourists, In 1986 B+H had the reputation for providing good service, and I'm glad its still the same in 2019!!!
i used to purchase from Adorama and B&H about 50/50, until Adorama gave me bad time on a purchase that they sent me the wrong filters, making me feel like a criminal. so, i never considered Adoram ever since! i haven't had issues with B&H because all my canon product would work right out of the box, so we will see how they will handle if i have any issue in the future, i'll pass judgement then ;-)
Very “Greedy” Camera Store! I spent a lot of money ($2400) with them in past. Then wanted them to price match on 2 occasions competitors and they wouldn’t plus lowballed me on 2 occasions trying to sell my used gear. After I told them KEH offered more then they said they would give me more money on my used gear. Why they have a tremendous selection of gear they have become tremendously greedy in my opinion especially the amount of buying power they have. They lost another $3k of my business with other camera dealers because of their greedy mentally. Shame on you BHPhoto! Not everyone is wealthy like Bill Gates 🙂
@Matthew It is greedy! They refused to match 2 eBay sellers of brand new camera gear-one was a PowerSeller for heavensakes. Well it doesn’t matter anymore anyway because I can buy US warranty products for gray market prices on Greentoe.com & smaller camera companies online. BHPhoto can’t manipulate the camera market anymore by hoarding the latest & Greatest camera gear in bulk.
People want everything for nothing. B+H offers a brick and mortar store that is incomparable in the U.S., knowledgeable and friendly salespeople, a generous return policy, free shipping and honest prices. But because they won't come down $5 to meet the lowest of the low, on eBay they are "greedy." Greentoe - Really? You make an offer, you sit around waiting for a response, maybe they take it, maybe they don't. @princecody, you don't have anything better to do with your time? Give me a break!
Most retailers will not price match Ebay for good reason; those sellers are not necessarily reliable and in most cases not even a real retailer. That would be like asking the store to match an offer that a neighbor of yours offered you for some of their gear. It's not quite the same as asking them to match Adorama or Best Buy.
I do believe that Greentoe is very reputable, and while I haven't purchased from them yet, I have tried them and they always responded very quickly. In fact a couple of times one of the founders even emailed me with a counter offer and asked me to email him back with any questions/concerns/counteroffers. So I have nothing but respect for Greentoe. It's an innovative service.
B&H considers each price-match question individually and tries to say YES as often as possible. We regret when circumstances prevent us from doing so. That said, we almost never price-match eBay. -- Henry Posner / B&H Photo-Video
@HenryP Why Henry why? It makes absolutely no sense especially if the seller is a powerseller. It saddens me as an American having to give my hard earned money to Hong Kong & Japan when I could spend it in the US in turn helping pay for the hard working employees @ your box store wages & raises. Not everyone in the US inherited tremendous amounts of money or is independently wealthy. I need to take a nature walk now.
@Aleph Calling a hardworking American greedy for not wanting to pay retail? BHPhoto is the one making millions upon millions a year lol Wow just Wow! They can pricematch 1 item out of 11,000 plus sold on a daily basis. That’s basically like giving away 1 Free Starbucks Venti latte. Have a little compassion for heaven sake. Makes me want to support the little camera store even more.
If you want to save money, then buy from the eBay seller. Problem solved.
Why do you insist that B&H match that price? What is it that they are providing that you won't get from the eBay seller? If they aren't offering anything extra, then go with the eBay seller - you get the lower price, and no hassle. If B&H are offering something extra (like having the item in stock, and the security of dealing with them), then sounds like there's a reason that their price is higher.
There are a lot of great camera shops in the US. DPR should do a showcase of different stores as a nod to the camera industry as a whole. Not to mention many do sell through Amazon as 3rd party vendors, so I see it as a win-win situation.
Purchasing from Amazon with Prime gives me 5% and some times more CASH back with specials. I enjoy DPR’s great work as well, so why not support them (Amazon)?
I just had another order from B&H delivered today by FedEx. What a mess. I suppose retailers will switch carriers based on cost primarily (and damage ratios, secondarily). This box was half open and only luck kept the contents inside. It's not like this box traveled from NJ to CA. I live in PA, so huh? This isn't the first instance of this happening, and so if I switch away from B&H (buying from them since 1980), it will be because of FedEx. Yes, they know about it because I call each time to complain. I'm only one person, but if you've experienced the same shoddy handling, let them know about it.
I sent a double-boxed electronic development board via the post office. They punched a large hole right through it, broke the board, killed $500.00. But, that's the first time in over 1200 shipments. Meanwhile, UPS record on 25 shipments is 2 damaged, 1 lost. We each have our own experiences.
I'm very sorry to read this. Sending me photos of the package as you received it helps. If you're dead-set against FedEx, most domestic orders can be shipped via UPS or USPS or DHL, per your preference. -- Henry Posner / B&H Photo-Video
AGREE - when BH used UPS, boxes arrived intact; since switch to FED EX it is haphazard - both integrity of shipping and the actual fulfillment (delivery). i never had problems with UPS, last few orders with FED EX nothing but problems in tracking, delivery, holds, etc. BH apparently switched to FED EX from UPS after holiday season 2 years ago, and NOT for the better in my experience(s) - multiple. For their part BH has done best to make good on the screw-ups but what a hassle.
As a professional graphic arts photographer I started using B&H for my supplies, about 43 years ago. At that time their stock of film and chemicals were better than most other suppliers in New York City. They were always very honest about their prices. Now, as a retired old geezer I still use B&H for all my supplies and equipment. I love them.
I've been shopping at B&H for 40+ years. Not perfect but far more so than other retailers. However, I don't think the cheap shot of the "blemishes" link is appropriate. I don't see anything like this when you're publishing news items about other businesses. How about the billions Samsung had to pay out for infringing on Apple patents? Oh wait, Samsung isn't in direct competition with your owner, Amazon, is it? But B&H is.
justshootyou is specifically pointing DPReview's inconsistency. It regularly posts press releases for dodgy zombie brands like Kodak and Polaroid without any meaningful commentary whatsoever, but here they've taken the time to point out issues with B&H, which just happens to be one of the few major competitors to Amazon.
I don't know if DPReview was doing Amazon's bidding when posting its caveat about B&H but by being inconsistent on this issue they give the appearance of doing so at a minimum.
I remember when they were on 17th street in the mid 80's. Back then I purchased over $20,000 worth of camera and studio gear from Photo Marketplace on 17th street that was partners with Calumet (Chicago). I purchased over $20,000 worth from B&H just from 2012.
I shop @ B&H. Good... selection, service, price. Returns are straightforward and fair. Reasonable deals with the used department as well (buy and sell).
I've generally had good experiences with B&H back to the days when you ordered by phone, based on prices advertised in magazine adds. B&H was the place you ordered from when you were willing to pay a bit more for honest deal. Many of the other stores with ads would sell you grey market imports, then charge you for items that were included in the manufacturer's packaging, like the lens cap, camera strap and battery (or, sometimes, they'd just steal those items out of the manufacturer's packaging and then sell them to other customers).
You mean, besides that Best Buy carries almost nothing in our industry anymore?
I've gone to Best Buy almost every time I've needed to make a photo-related purchase, and they've never once, in over 10 years, had anything I was looking for.
Camera manufacturers made it easier to purchase gear from Best Buy by going to a MAP strategy (minimum advertised pricing). Legal or not, that's why prices are all the same nowadays, regardless of where gear is purchased. BB lost me forever when I found them selling HDMI cables for $70. BB can be good when you know exactly what you want, and in some instances, they have it in the store. Where they fall short is in the area of expertise. Hard to find in a store that hires help at low retail wages and changes their schedules weekly.
Possibly you're confusing MAP (minimum advertised price) which has been around for decades with the more recent unilateral price. The latter sets the lowest permitted selling (not advertised) price. -- Henry Posner / B&H Photo-Video
"Best Buy" in Canada is nothing. Creepy "just off the boat" sales people sidle up to you so they can "ring in" your purchase, even if they gave you no help with it. The sooner they are gone, the better.
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