B&H Photo Video

Coordinates: 40°45′11″N 73°59′47″W / 40.753124°N 73.996281°W / 40.753124; -73.996281

B&H Foto & Electronics Corp.
Retail
Industry Retail
Founded 1973 New York, New York
Headquarters Manhattan, New York City
Number of locations
 1
Products Cameras, video, film, audio, computers, electronics
Website Official website

B&H Photo Video, founded in 1973 and located at 420 Ninth Avenue on the corner of West 34th Street in Manhattan, New York City, is the largest non-chain photo and video equipment store in the United States.[1]

Ownership and clientele

The exterior of the store on West 34th Street

B&H Photo Video targets professional photographers and videographers. Although it is visited by more than 5,000 customers every day from Sunday to Friday, most of the company's business comes from the Internet and corporate sales. It also runs a warehouse in the Brooklyn Navy Yard located in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.[1] The store carries a wide range of electronics products, with emphasis on professional and specialty photographic equipment.

The business owner, Herman Schreiber, and many of the store's employees are observant Satmar Hasidic Jews. The store is closed on Shabbat, most Jewish holidays (except for Hanukkah, when business dealings are permitted), and Christmas. Although the web site remains open, e-commerce orders are not taken or shipped between Friday evening and Saturday evening, or on Jewish holidays.[2][3]

The brick and mortar store employs hundreds of Orthodox Jews. An Orthodox Jewish bus company provides daily service to and from Kiryas Joel, a Satmar village in Orange County, New York, as well as Brooklyn and Queens.[4]

History

B&H opened in 1973 as a storefront film shop at 17 Warren Street in Tribeca, and took its name from the initials of owners Blimie Schreiber and her husband, Herman. Later in the 1970s, B&H moved to a large loft at 119 West 17th Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues in the Photo District and began to expand its stock to a wider range of film and photography products. In 1997, the store moved to its present location. It now has more than 2,000 employees.[5]

B&H is located just south of Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, at 420 Ninth Avenue at the intersection with West 34th Street. In 2007, B&H opened a second floor above its original sales floor making a total of 70,000 sq ft (6,500 m2) of sales space. The first floor sells professional lighting, binoculars, scopes, video, audio, darkroom, film and both home and portable entertainment; the second floor focuses on film and digital photography, computers, printers, tripods, scanners and related accessories.[1]

In 2007, B&H began making sales through Google Checkout.

The store is noted for having an extensive conveyor belt system that runs along the ceiling.[6][7]

The store sponsors reviews and events for many tech-savvy websites and tech enthusiast websites including AndroidGuys and Imaging Resource.[8][9]

In 2015, their Google Play app was named the "Best Mobile Shopping App" at the Mobile Shop Conference.[10]

In 2015, B&H hired SiteSpect, a personalization platform, to help them with online shoppers.[11][12] B&H often host noted photographers on their podcasts to discuss their books and photos.[13] They have a human operator (or employee) maintaining an active presence on Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and company blogs.

In 2015, B&H added an Apple authorized shop to the computer department featuring two Apple iconic wooden tables with an assortment of Apple products from Macs, iPads to Apple Watch. There is an Apple employee in shop to assist and consult.[14] In June 2015, B&H Photo offered Apple Pay in its iOS app.[15]

In 2016, Vaio announced that they signed a contract with B&H photo video, to offer their products once again in New York.[16][17]

In April 2016 B&H Photo announced that they joined forces with CE Week and would be present on the tech show in that June.[18][19][20] In November 2016, B&H Photo offered Apple Pay on mobile web, iOS, and in store.[21]

Controversies

In October 2007, it was announced that B&H Photo agreed to pay US$4.3 million to settle allegations that it discriminated against Hispanic workers.[22]

In November 2009, a lawsuit against B&H Photo alleged that the store refused to hire women, in violation of New York City and New York State Human Rights Laws.[23] The lawsuit, brought by four women, sought class action status on behalf of all women discriminated against by B&H over the course of many years.[24] Given B&H's prior alleged discriminatory practices,[22] the lawsuit sought US$19 million in compensatory and punitive damages in order to deter future discriminatory practices.[25]

In 2011, a lawsuit alleged discrimination against Hispanic workers.[26][27]

In February 2016 the United States Department of Labor filed a lawsuit against B&H alleging that the company had only hired Hispanic men into entry-level jobs in a Brooklyn warehouse and then subjected them to harassment and unsanitary conditions.[28] On August 16, 2017, the company announced that it had settled this second lawsuit for a reported $3.22 million.[29]

Reviews

In May 2007, Zagat wrote that B&H offers "more cameras than the paparazzi at the Oscars", with "cordial" staffers who "know their stuff".[30][31]

See also

  • Photography portal
  • New York City portal
  • Business portal

References

  1. 1 2 3 Goldman, Adam (2005-12-12). "New York camera shop combines 18th-century Jewish traditions and the hottest digital technology". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on 2006-05-16.
  2. ↑ "B&H Photo Video". Archived from the original on 11 May 2010. Retrieved 2010-05-11. Please note that B&H does not process Web orders from Friday evening to Saturday evening.
  3. ↑ "B&H order processing schedule". Retrieved 2010-05-11.
  4. ↑ Santos, Fernanda (2006-08-27). "Reverberations of a Baby Boom". The New York Times.
  5. ↑ Karni, Annie (February 5, 2007). "B & H Photo Emerges as a N.Y. Institution". The New York Sun. Retrieved July 8, 2017.
  6. ↑ "Inside B&H conveyor system…". Swiss Miss. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  7. ↑ Lâm, Par (June 6, 2011). "BH Photo: Visite de la Mecque des boutiques photo" (in French). Retrieved July 8, 2017.
  8. ↑ "Sony Xperia Z5 review: A sleek and snappy flagship". AndroidGuys. 3 May 2016. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  9. ↑ "MindShift's Multi-Mount Holster lets you match your camera carry style to your active lifestyle". Imaging Resource. 4 May 2016. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  10. ↑ "B&H Photo Video Wins Best App of the Year at Mobile Shopping Conference". Yahoo. 19 Oct 2015. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  11. ↑ Guy, Sandra (24 August 2015). "B&H Photo gets a clearer picture of online shoppers' intentions". InternetRetailer. Retrieved 2016-05-10.
  12. ↑ B&H Photo Video. "@BHPhotoVideo". Twitter. Retrieved 2016-05-10.
  13. ↑ B&H Photography Podcast (14 April 2016). "The B&H Photography Podcast Presents: On AIR, an Interview With Vincent LaForet". Yahoo. Retrieved 2016-05-10.
  14. ↑ "B&H Photo's Manhattan superstore opens prestigious Apple-authorized mini-store". AppleInsider. Retrieved 2017-07-04.
  15. ↑ "The B&H Photo App Now Accepts Apple Pay". June 8, 2015. Retrieved July 8, 2017.
  16. ↑ "Vaio Expands Distribution With Ingram Micro On Board". Twice. 13 Apr 2016. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  17. ↑ "CORRECTING and REPLACING VAIO® Expands Distribution Channels to B&H Photo Video, DataVision and Ingram Micro". BusinessWire. April 13, 2016. Retrieved July 8, 2017.
  18. ↑ "B&H Photo-Video Joins CE Week to Educate Consumers About New CE Devices". Reuters. 24 Apr 2016. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  19. ↑ "B&H Photo Joins Forces with CE Week; Welcomes Attendees to June Tech Show". PR Newswire. 31 Mar 2016. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  20. ↑ "What's New in 2016". CE Week. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  21. ↑ Smith, Michael. "Apple Pay Now Available on B&H Mobile".
  22. 1 2 "EEOC and B & H Reach $4.3 Million Settlement in National Origin Discrimination Case". Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. October 16, 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-13.
  23. ↑ "Gadget Retailer Faces Discrimination Suit". NY1. November 19, 2009. Archived from the original on November 22, 2009. Retrieved 2009-11-19.
  24. ↑ "B&H Photo Sued For Talmudic Discrimination Against Women". Village Voice. November 19, 2009. Archived from the original on November 21, 2009. Retrieved 2009-11-19.
  25. ↑ Eligon, John (November 18, 2009). "It Was Some Day in Court For Ampersand". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 11, 2011. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
  26. ↑ Del Signore, John (December 14, 2011). "B&H Photo Sued Again For Discriminating Against Employees". Gothamist. Archived from the original on March 3, 2014. Retrieved 2014-06-17.
  27. ↑ Ross, Barbara (December 14, 2011). "B and H Photo discriminated against us, say 2 Hispanic employees in lawsuit". New York Daily News. Retrieved 2014-06-17.
  28. ↑ McGeehan, Patrick (February 26, 2016). "B&H Electronics Store Sued for Discrimination of Hispanic Workers". The New York Times.
  29. ↑ https://petapixel.com/2017/08/16/bh-pay-3-22m-settle-lawsuit-filed-dept-labor/
  30. ↑ Simon, Stephanie (2007-05-16). "Shopping: Cameras". NY1. Archived from the original on 2012-09-27. Retrieved 2010-04-11.
  31. ↑ "B&H". Zagat. Retrieved 2016-05-10.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.