Ritz Camera will close almost 50% of its stores in a move to reorganized after a court-supervised bankruptcy. The closing will leave 400 stores in the U.S.
Ritz was one of the first and finest camera chains but, as we all know, these chains are about as useful now as a dinosaur with a buggy whip. Online news sources provide most of the camera advice we need and online stores make it easy to get that latest 12-megapixel wonder. Besides, who needs some guy telling you what to buy when every point-and-shoot is basically the same now.
$50 million of inventory will be liquidated, so maybe you can head over to pick up a flash or something. Sales start on April 4.
Last night I bought a FujiFilm FinePix G30 at Ritz.
About 5:30 p.m.
I bought a 2 year service contract!
Now, just 12 hours later I learn they are restructuring.
What’s a mother to do?
you got 3 days to go back if you change your mind
You have ten days to get a total refund. You can return just the damage protection, if you want to. However, I would hang on to it. It will provide more protection than the manufacturer’s waranty. The company will stabilize soon and if anything happens to your camera, you’ll be happy you have it. I worked for Ritz for 12 years and I sold many protection plans. They are worth their weight in gold. I have one on every camera I own. I am still connected with people within the corporate office and things are not as bad as the look in the press.
I see you worked or Ritz do you have any idea where i can get David Ritz email address. i have a problem with a transaction.
Actually you have TEN from purchase to return it. But be smart, keep it, it is still good at Ritz locations that are not closing.
plus if u buy with a credit card almost all credit card companies extend the warranty (included with your membership to the credit card) just call the 800 number in the back to confirm how much they protect
So sad that another retailer is going out of business … I bought a camera and extended warranty from Ritz about six months ago. Is my warranty now void, or is another entity standig behind The warranty? How can I find out what, if any options I have?
Hi Maria: Ritz is in reorganization, doesn’t mean that they are going out of business, if that does happen I am sure the company will have a strategy in place to honor their warranty going forward, Ritz has the best warranty in the business.
what tom said.
Dude, I work at Ritz. They are restructuring. Nothing will happen to your extended service.
I feel worry if you work at Ritz Camera. For years all that company has cared about are extended warranties. They are overpriced, understaffed and do not take care of their employees concerns.
I had someone who used to work at Circuit City tell me the same thing about 4 days before they announced they were closing all their stores nationwide.
Rita has always been a rip off, they push and push their service contracts, which suck. I for one am glad they are going out of business, but feel sorry for the folks losing their jobs.
It must suck to be you!
I am glad to see the big fish is finally choaking on the bones of Wolf Camera. Die! Die! Die!
Oddly, with all these camera stores in trouble, the one thing I’m not seeing is a drop in prices. In fact, Olympus appears to actually increased it’s prices 10% over the last two weeks. I have pretty much reached the conclusion that most cameras are worth maybe a tenth of the list price, at most – until camera prices drop to a sane level, I’m finding a new hobby.
Yeah ritz is going to close most stores. i work for them and I know as much as the public knows. It sucks!!!!!
I just lost my job at Ritz Camera. They gave me a week, the DM went incommunicado gave me no information. I still had to work a 40hour week, so even if there was another job to find, I wouldn’t have had the time.
II also just found out I am losing my job with the company where I have been everything from a photographer to a manager in the MN studio market. Just for those of you who do not know the industry….there is almost no mark up on cameras. the stores make almost no $$ on them. It is the change in the industry and that has brought on this. The company put a lot of $$ into keeping up on technology and being able to offer the digital options at an affordable price and in a timely manner and there has not been enough printing to make it worth the investment. The company is restructuring NOT totally closing, so if you bought something with damage protection you are still safe, you just have to find a new location if yours closes. For all of you out there that do not print digital photos and keep them in your computer….I feel sorry for your kids and families. you will have no photos to show in 20 years, there will be no baby pictures, no embarrassing photos, no wedding photos. i just hope that you do something before your computer crashes and you lose them all.
I worked there as a Store Manager for years. It’s the associates who I feel bad for. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AttgniBofdY
I work at Ritz as well. Your protection policies are still good at any R$itz that is not closing. Granted, ALOT of things were done wrong at Ritz. Mostly from
those in upper management. They had NO business getting into BIG screen TV’s, cell phones, GPS devices or ipods. And BOATS, those friggin boats, who’s the rocket scientist that came up with THAT? David Ritz got greedy, listened to the morons who advised him and spent millions & millions on stock that didn’t sell. And those hard cover books? The worst crap this side of Uranus.
But yanno something, thew consumers are part of the issue as well. Ritz isn’t really overpriced, they are competitive with all other legit dealers. How do I know? I’ve been in this business for well over 20 years, the last 6 at Ritz. For all of you how actually think you’re getting a great deal on the internet, “anything that’s too good to be true, IS”.
Plain & simple. Those of you who think the quality of prints at Walgreens, Target & KMart are the same as those in a camera store, well, I don’t want to offend you. But you’re morons.
Yes, Ritz screwed 1,000’s of employees in this, they BS’d us all along on the state of affairs, kept us in the dark et al. Cut our hours, cut our small commissions and sent us seriously outdated stock (for months on end) that no one bought the first time and demanded that WE save Ritz Camera. Yup, that was the weekly mantra for weeks & weeks.
Gald ya have enuff money to last 5 limetimes David Ritz – I hope ya choke on it.
Ritz sucked a$$ and I hope some disgruntled employee goes ballistic. They charged way to much gor shit cameras. FUCK RITZ!
And it continues to get even WORSE @ Ritz . How do I know? Straight from the horses mouth – I work at a Ritz store that is in liquidation.
The entire Company is one gigantic Hungarian cluster F*ck, that now has no idea what they are doing, who’s in charge of what, or how to actually communicate with those who are fortunate enuff to still have jobs in the current liquidating stores.
Many managers who were asked to stay on for the entire 8 weeks of this (more than half), have been let go/fired with 3-4 days notice, yeah, JUST LIKE THAT, inventory out all their products, do the paperwork for it, and have it shipped to remaining stores and then sent packing, THUS screwing them out of an additional “managers” stay on bonus – something they actually signed CONTRACT for (not to mention the additional commissions they lost as well. I hope most of them contact lawyers.
And it keeps getting better, trust me.
So now we have 7,8,9 stores shipping worthless garbage, 50 boxes at a time to very few remaining stores that are now overwhelmed with 100’s of boxes of left over CRAP.
No one, I mean NO ONE, knows who’s actually “in charge”, not even the idiots at the Corporate Office. One jack off actually told me to be grateful that we will be getting unemployment checks for our efforts. None of us know for sure if we are even getting the vacation pay that we EARNED. But we DO know that we are not getting paid for the sick time we “EARNED”.
No one, employees, higher ups, etc., cares about anything. And common sense certainly tells me that thievery is going on BIG time across the country – it’s human nature. 1,000’s of people are now being royally screwed, job wise and financially and are probably pilfering products left and right. It’s incredibly easy. Why are they doing it? Probably to put much need money in their pockets to feed & clothe their families in the future that unemployment won’t cover. The way I see it, Ritz didn’t foster any loyalty, so they’re not getting it back.
Personally, I couldn’t partake in that, but I also don’t care that many are doing so. Serves David Ritz right for what he’s doing.
Corporate waste? Hmmm, lets see. The upper lab technicians came in to take apart the labs, then left numerous expensive items behind. I know of at least a few stores where 1,000’s of dollars worth of items were either left behind or employees told to “take them” Case in point – $300.00 roto trims, new boxes of photo paper, densitometers. etc, etc. You can be sure that the “company” doesn’t want employees talking amongst themselves about these things, but guess what David Ritz? WE ARE ! No one repsects you and no one really cares that you’re whining about them having taken away your corporate jet.
Don’t believe the Ritz spin that it was a bad economy or a poor Christmas selling season. That was merely a very small part of the decline. It was an arrogant, greedy moron of a CEO, the rocket scientists that advised him & the regional managers that implemented all of this garbage they came up with.
Big Screen TV’s? Who in hell thinks of Ritz when it comes to that? I certainly don’t. Even with my employee discount I got better deals at Circuit City (before the liquidation sale) & Best Buy. Millions upon millions of dollars wasted on those things that never sold in the first place. Het David? Brilliant decision ! !
Well, time and space forbids me from going on, but I’m sure you get my drift. But I will have to agree with Raymond Teal & hope that some disgruntled employee goes ballistic. And if I’m correct that employees are stealing? I’d just shrug my shoulders and have a laugh at David Ritz’s expense. Ya get back, what ya put out there pal.
Good I’m glad they are shutting down and I’m not surprised. The worse customer service I ever received. Sold me a camera and lens after I paid and got camera home. No lens. I went back and was told I would have to pay another $60. for a lens. Even though I already paid. Associate (Jay) was rude and got no help from the stores corporate office. This company sucks and is a huge rip off. Check out equipment BEFORE you leave the store!! Tacoma Washington
I have seven more days. I am tired. I have been asked every ten minutes for the past 2 months why we’re closing. I look around and see SMART Media readers, the overstock of Quantaray flashes, and ugly bags, and what used to be free pedometers and bookmark dictionaries. I have yet to be thanked by anyone in any authority, if there is such person, for constantly trying to satisfy customers needs. Another store that is staying open is so close I walk regulars over to the kiosks a block away and say goodbye.
RITZ CAMERA EMPLOYEES – Did anyone employed by Ritz get denied their unemployment benefits? Ritz denied my nephew his unemployment and we now have to take it to the appeals process.
If anyone is experiencing the same problem, write panaservices@comcast.net.