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The Campkins Cameras Team: Introducing Francois, and the importance of having a physical shop 

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Campkins Cameras prides itself on great customer service, and it’s particularly important in the light of competition from e-commerce. So Chris chatted with some of the team at Campkins Cameras. Here’s our chat with Francois. 

Chris

We’re at the Copper Kettle, just a few doors down from Campkins Cameras on King’s Parade, and I’ve got Francois with me. Hi Francois, how’s it going?

Francois

I’m good thanks, I’m really enjoying the day and not being blown vertically by the wind after the storms this week!

Chris

So, what do you do at Campkins, and what got you to this point?

Francois

So at Campkins I mostly do sales, anything in the shop that needs selling I sell. And I also get involved on the print side of things – printing of photos and canvases. I’ve worked for Campkins since April last year, when retail was able to reopen. And before then I worked for another photographic retailer in Cambridge. 

And before that, I lived in Cape town in South Africa, where I worked for myself as a photographer.

Chris

So photography has been a big part of your life? 

Francois

It has. Yeah. The first camera I picked up I must’ve been about 10, 11 years old, and it was my mum’s point and shoot. And I used it to take photos of Airfix models, because that’s another thing that I’m crazy about is aviation.

Chris

Lovely. What is it that you love about photography? 

Francois

Being able to create something. And it’s also a good combination of tech geekiness, as well as art. I can’t draw or paint to save my life, but if I have a camera with me I can use that to make beautiful images and I can also teach other people how to make beautiful images, which I get a massive kick out of.

Chris

So Campkins is seeing its own Jubilee this year – 70 years in business as Campkins Cameras. We’re an independent retailer and especially in the world of e-commerce, in your view, why is it still important to have a physical store?

Francois

I’m fairly passionate about the idea that cameras are one of those things that you can’t buy from sight and see, you shouldn’t just buy a camera online. A lot of our customers like coming into the shop because they’re dealing with a human being. And especially those who are new to photography, and they’re not sure what they should be looking at and buying.

They really value our advice. We can spend time with them and put together a solution that works best for them. And you don’t get that with an online retailer – an online retailer just says, “what do you want and how many of them?” 

We don’t think like that at all, we’re much more about the human touch. So for that reason, it’s still very important to have a brick and mortar shop.

Chris

Especially when an outlay for a camera is – it’s not in the tens of pounds – it’s an investment and a significant investment for some people. And I think because it’s so connected with something that people are so passionate about, it’s important to have that kind of in-person presence, isn’t there? 

Francois

Also, we’ve got regular customers who are coming to the shop. And even just some who come and spend time on a Saturday morning, they come and say hi and have a poke around. And the next thing, two weeks later, they’re back and they’re buying more stuff. It’s not just a shop. It’s almost like a photography community. 

And again, you just don’t get that with an online retailer.

Chris

That’s great, thanks Francois. Let’s get back to the shop. 

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If you want to chat with Francois or anyone else in the team, just pop into the shop on King’s Parade. 

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About Owen Howell

Is the third generation and the current owner who was born into the business, learning all about the new and used camera trade from his father Barry and grandfather Tom. He now has a highly qualified team who themselves are practising photographers with a combined experience of over 100 years. You can catch Owen and his team using either the live chat on the website or by emailing [email protected] or telephone 01223 368087.

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