We visited B&H on a rainy May 2012 NYC tour day just looking for an inexpensive point and shoot camera. The huge store has a Harry-Potter-ish feel with a larger than life scope and a bit of a cultural shock in how tourists are supposed to shop. The overhead trolley system was the first thing I noticed - they sell you your gear upstairs and then roll your selection down to checkout in big green bins magically appearing near the front door exits for you to pay for and walk out the door. But first: you walk around the floors above and see what is available at the meagre 70,000 sq foot display space. Most of the staff are Orthodox Jews and of course native New York speakers. Unlike traditional stores, you can't just make your selection and purchase it within the store. No, first you have to meet with a sales person to see what you like. They have hundreds/thousands of items on display all over the store to touch and feel. If you like something, they will print out an order request form for you. Then you go stand in a line to speak to a second sales person behind long counters that circle the display area. I'm pretty sure we talked to Gerald R Photo Sales Professional at this point. He puts you in their computer and takes the sales order and helps you select extra warranty and or kits and such. Then, finally, all your selections are placed in a big green bin and you get a printed sales order. Then you get to go downstairs and stand in a long airline security type queue again to wait to pay for your selected items while your bins roll around overhead. Finally you go to another desk where your purchases from the green bins have been put in bags ready for pickup. We exit the store and look at each other .. whoa, that was different.
The promotional About Us video from the link above is slickified but gives you a taste of what our in store shopping experience was like. Fun, loud, busy, kind of magical. Put me in mind of scenes of the Gringotts Wizarding Bank from the Harry Potter movies ... maybe we should have had Hagrid as a tour guide.
p.s. As a Jewish establishment, they are closed on Saturdays, but you can always shop the website 24/7/365 ..
p.s. As a Jewish establishment, they are closed on Saturdays, but you can always shop the website 24/7/365 ..
RSS Feed
