20th February 2015
ISSUE NO. 946D
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PARK CAMERAS GET STEAMY TO RAISE FUNDS FOR HOSPICE, WILKINSONS STAFF ARE TREATED TO WELL-DESERVED BARCELONA TRIP, NEW TOSHIBA LAUNCH AND MORE...
Color Confidence Announced as New Distributor of ExpoImaging Lighting Tools Color Confidence has been announced as the new distributor of ExpoImaging’s range of lighting tools for photographic professionals. The partnership comes as ExpoImaging, best known for its popular Rogue FlashBender speed-light modifiers, announces a number of improvements to the portable range. For example, the Rogue FlashBender 2 Reflectors are now 20-30% lighter, made with new, softer fabrics for easier movement. Color Confidence will also be distributing ExpoImaging’s ExpoDisc 2.0 professional white balance filter and the Safari Popup Flash Booster. www.colorconfidence.com
NEC Promise ‘PixelFree’ Image Quality NEC has launched the 31.5” UHD display that, according to the company offers ‘pixel-free’ professional image quality and full colour thanks to the 10-bit IPS panel type with uniformity control. The new SpectraView Reference 322UHD display is 4K Ultra High Definition (UHD), 31.5-inch, and has a 3840x2160 resolution. The monitor is designed for professionals who require the best possible colour accuracy. Distributed by Color Confidence www.colorconfidence.com PHOTO -
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How Customers Are Using Mobiles In-Store GfK reveals how shoppers are bringing online competition into bricks-and-mortar stores
A survey by analyst firm GfK found that four in 10 shoppers use their mobile phones while shopping instore to compare prices. Another four in 10 use their ‘phone a friend’ card, contacting friends or family for advice while the shop. Over a third of shoppers use their mobiles to photograph the products they’re thinking of buying. GfK asked mobile phone users across 23 countries what activities the regularly do on their phone while physically shopping. Amongst the results, they found that half of global shoppers aged 20-29 compare prices online while inside a store. Globally, men outweighed women on using their mobile phone inside a store to compare prices on a regular basis, standing at 42% and 37% respectively. The most active age group was 20-29, with nearly half (49%) saying they regularly do this, VIDEO
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followed by those aged 15-19 and 30-39, both at 45%. Adrian Hobbs, Managing Director of Online Pricing Intelligence at GfK, said, “With significant numbers of shoppers being online whilst they are inside shops, bricks-andmortar outlets need to respond. Having a close and real-time eye on the pricing of online competitors and reacting quickly are now key success factors for physical retailers, as well as online ones.” Globally, men and women were found to be almost equally likely to use their mobile phones inside a store to contact a friend or family member for advice (40% of women and 39% of men said they regularly do this). Young adults aged 20-29 lead on this particular activity at 48%, while teens aged 15-19 follow closely (47%) and those aged 30-39 trail at 40%. This shows that word of mouth -
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and advice from the shopper’s own circle, is now instrumental in the in-store decision-making process. Sales staff must find a way to handle this new external influence in-store. GfK’s findings only reiterate the importance of engaging with customers when they walk through the door. The very act of going into a shop instead of shopping online means they are looking for a different experience - whether to see the product in real life, or to ask questions about it and get advice. By interacting, you lower the risk of them going elsewhere for a cheaper price. You show them that the value is in your shop and your service: working with them to supply their needs and facilitate their photography hobby wherever it takes them. Don’t miss our Good Service feature in the March issue of Pixel, out next Friday -
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WELCOME To Pixel Magazine As you can see to the right, I am shamelessly plugging the half marathon I signed up to at the end of last year with the idea that by now I would practically be Mo Farah. But alas, I am still wheezy, wobbly and embarrassingly slow. Still, I will be at that start-line next Sunday in aid of Great Ormond Street, and I’ll hopefully be crossing it again a couple of hours later. Any donations would be hugely appreciated. Also raising money for a very worthy cause is the Park Cameras team, who recently ran an incredible distance without even leaving their Burgess Hill store! Elsewhere in this issue you can find out about a recent trip to Barcelona enjoyed by top sellers at Wilkinson Cameras (get in touch with Panasonic to find out how you can run the same incentive in your shop). If you skipped the front cover, it’s worth another look as GfK recently conducted an interesting study into how shoppers use their
mobile phones while shopping in physical stores. Here at Pixel HQ we’re busy compiling the next monthly issue, due out next week, which will include interviews with retailers and features on some of the hottest topics in imaging retail at the moment, including full-frame and film. Until then - enjoy your read! Zoe Thomas, Editor
Wilkinson and Panasonic treat staff to Barcelona trip
Congratulations to the lucky winners: • Michael Threlfall • Simon Barker • Joseph Lawson • Samuel Mossop • Adam Brown • Keith Smethurst • Anthony Houston
Pixel’s editor Zoe Thomas will be running the Eastbourne Half Marathon on Sunday 1 March Zoe and her sister (Emma) will run the 13.1 miles along Eastbourne seafront together to raise money for Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital (GOSHH), helping support the charity’s excellent work caring for seriously ill children and their families. “This will be our second half marathon – but that doesn’t make the long hill to Beachy Head any easier!” Zoe commented. “If you
Well THAT’s An Incentive… Panasonic recently ran a staff incentive with Wilkinson Cameras, offering winners a trip to Barcelona to see Barcelona v Villarreal from the Panasonic Box at Camp Nou. Between 1 November 2014 to 4 January 2015, staff were awarded points for every Panasonic product sold – with extra points awarded for any 4K products sold.
Pixel’s Editor Runs for Charity
The team was joined by Panasonic’s Robin Gower, Mark Baber and Ian Cook, as well as Wilkinson MD David Parkinson. David said: “Quick note to say huge thank you to all for organising a great event, we all enjoyed the trip very much and I’m sure we’ll see lots of Barcelona pictures being shared over the next few weeks. The guys are so pro Panasonic, I’m confident that the incentive scheme not only generated extra sales, but that the knowledge gained from Mark and the hospitality shown will generate brand loyalty that will be impossible to measure going forward.”
would like to support GOSHH with us, please donate anything you can to our Just Giving page. Thank you so much.” You can make donations by copy and pasting this link into your browser: https://www.justgiving. com/EmZoRunning2015/?utm_ source=Facebook&utm_ medium=fundraisingpage&utm_ content=EmZoRunning2015&utm_ campaign=pfp-share
Park Cameras Raises Over £790 for Sussex Hospice Staff at Park Cameras ran a relay race on an in-store treadmill to raise money for St. Peter & St. James’ Hospice
A team of 13 employees ran a total of 45.7 miles – the equivalent distance between Park Cameras’ Burgess Hill and London stores. Things got steamy in the Burgess Hill store as the team began their challenge amongst the cameras, lenses, bags and tripods. Kind customers came in to donate what they could to the cause. Park Cameras chose to raise money for St. Peter & St. James’ Hospice as this is a charity based in the local area that many of the staff feels particularly strongly about. The hospice receives just 14% of their funding from the government, and have to raise more than £2.6 million every year through fundraising
events. That’s £7,200 every single day. Park Cameras HR manager Adel Charles said, “We are delighted to have been able to raise £795.77 for St. Peter & St. James’ Hospice. Whilst the team here went through a bit of pain and quite a lot of sweat, and I certainly know this first hand, it makes it worthwhile knowing the money raised will help all at St. Peter & St. James continue with the fantastic care, love and support they provide for those in the community that need it.” Their Just Giving page is still available to view and donate to, should you wish. Simply visit www.JustGiving.com/ parkcamerasrun.
The winners stayed at the sea-facing W Barcelona Hotel, enjoying panoramic views over the city after lunch at Mamarosa Beach restaurant and the game at Barcelona FC. The following day they drove GoCars around the city taking in the sights before returning to the airport.
Claire Eaton-Whitfield from Panasonic said: “This is the first time we have run such a promotion and we are looking to work with other retailers on the best incentives to support their business. We are always looking at new ways to support the different retailers and would welcome them to discuss these types of opportunities with us.” Panasonic is now running the same incentive with Jessops.
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NEWS Robert White Connecting With Customers
‘Touch and Try’ Zones - Plus More 2015 Changes From Calumet Calumet Photographic has unveiled details of its plans for 2015, kicking off with completed work on the flagship store on Drummond Street, London
MD Hardy Haase believes open days have a range of benefits for retailers, manufacturers and customers Poole-based camera shop Robert White has been hosting open days for a number of years now, inviting customers instore to get hands-on with new products and speak to experts. “These events are always very popular and beneficial for us as well as the manufacturer involved and the end users themselves,” said Hardy Haase, managing director of Flaghead Photographic (now incorporating Robert White Photo). The open-days are aimed at existing and potential customers, with around 80 attendees expected per event. Hardy, who formerly worked as Sales & Marketing Director at Hasselblad UK, said: “We want to help photographers take better images by expanding their knowledge of the product, which we hope will generate sales. We want to build on-going relations with both our customers and suppliers.” The shop’s next open-day, held on Friday 27 February 2015, is being run in partnership with Zeiss lenses and Lee filters. Robert White will showcase a full range of products for attendees to try out, with refreshments provided throughout the day.
CREDITS & CONTACTS
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The refurbishment a new store layout with a dedicated used equipment area, a ‘digital workflow zone’, a studio lighting showcase and touch-and-try zones from manfrotto and Wacom. More changes are expected in the coming months, including a fully functioning studio area and dedicated Epson demonstration suite. A new blog has also been launched, led by professional portrait photographer Rory Lewis, who delivers the latest news on equipment and techniques from his shoots. He will also offer purpose testing of Calumet’s collection of professional equipment, tuition tips
and hands-on experiences and practical reviews of the latest kit. The store has also introduced a new local rate number (0333 003 5000) and a price match promise, in which customers have seven days to claim the difference if they find the
same product cheaper from another UK retailer. Jon Warner, Managing Director at Calumet Photographic UK, said: “At Calumet, we are highly customer focused and are always striving to give our customers great value, greater choice and the very best experience. The Drummond Street store refit is very exciting, the shop looks refreshed and we’re sure customers will enjoy their visit even more. We are delighted to have a new phone number which is local rate and included in most mobile minutes; this is something that is important to our customers and we value their feedback.”
Pro-Level Toshiba Hard Drives Store can now store more images than ever with the new More Photographers Toshiba 4 TB and 5 TB internal hard drives The new MD Series comprises of two 3.5” internal hard drives, available in March: the PX3009E1HP0 (4 TB) and PX3010E1HQ0 (5 TB). Toshiba has said the drives are not only ‘very fast’ but also operate silently. The company has also said both are “Extremely suited for
Managing Director/Publisher: Lee Mansfield 01323 819007 lee@lifemediagroup.co.uk
Editor: Zoe Thomas 01323 819011 zoe@pixel.co.uk
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users with high demands on their technical products.” The 7200 rpm platter, 128MB memory buffer and Native Command Queuing means pros can work faster without unnecessary waiting for load and save times. The MD Series features 6.0 Gb/s interface speed.
Subscriptions: Linda Grace 01323 819015 linda@lifemediagroup.co.uk
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Consumption is also low, with power-friendly components keeping heat build-up at a minimum. Arnaud Bonvarlet, General Manager, Storage Peripherals Division, Toshiba Europe GmbH: “With these hard drives customers can enjoy the performance and trust the reliability underlying the speed and increased storage capacity. Yet again they profit from Toshiba’s experience as a worldwide pioneer in hard drives of more than forty years. RRP: - 4 TB £269 - 5 TB £310 Available: March
All material in this publication is strictly copyright and all rights reserved. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. The views expressed in Pixel Magazine do not necessarily represent the view of Life Media Group LTD. Every care is taken in compiling the contents but the publishers of Pixel Magazine assume no reponsibilty for any damage, loss or injury arising from the participation in any offers, competitions or advertisment contained within Pixel Magazine. All prices featured in Pixel Magazine are correct at the time of going to press.
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THE NEW PHO TO COLLECTION
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s d e l tr e Exp tors i b i h + ex
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The Photography Show is the event for aspiring photographers. Join us this March and:
• See what’s new from over 200 leading brands including Canon and Nikon
• See Don McCullin, Mary Ellen Mark,
Martin Parr and more on the Super Stage
• Get top business advice and enhance your creativity at the Pro Conference
Book your ticket today (for free) at:
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Advanced registration closes at 17:00, 18 March, adult ticket rates apply after this date.
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