Greys of Westminster

EMA747

EMA747

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Andy
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Greys of Westminster looks very professional from their website and their customer reviews on their site seem good. Can anyone confirm that they are a good shop?

Hopefully will be able to scrape the funds together soon for a D3s and some lenses. I have a Jacobs near me but Greys are slightly cheaper and seem a very customer service orientated business.
 
Bought a D70 for the wife a couple of months ago, they were very helpful, delivering to a hotel where I was staying, (doubt they would do that for a more expensive item), and the D70 was immaculate, I wouldn't hesitate to use them again if I had the need.
 
I personally have not bought from them but a mate has and has not had any issues.
 
I purchased a D200 from them earlier this year. I cannot fault them for service.

Ordered at 1200 hrs Monday with me at 1000 hrs Tuesday.

A good friend of mine put me onto them, who has dealt with them many times with no complaint at all.

if they have what you want at a price you wish to pay give hem a ring.
 
Bought a lens from them with no problems at all, very professional and helpful.
 
I dealt with then numerous times when I lived in London.

Gave a confidence to the buyer that you very rarely get these days; with that I mean you knew if you had any issues at all they would sort it. I like that when spending large amounts of money. They quickly got my trust.

I was also never rushed, go away have a think, if you have any more questions then please ask them.
 
I bought my D3 from them (pre-owned) a few months back and went to London to collect it. Friendly, courteous service, no hard sell, expert advice. I wouldn't hesitate to use them again. If you have any doubts give them a call - they're very helpful.

A word of warning though........you could spend a serious amount of money in the shop. I've never seen so much Nikon kit in one place before - go on their website and have a look:lol:
 
Probably the largest Nikon dealer in the UK, helpful and knowledgeable staff, prompt service :thumbs:
 
I have used them many times and I can't fault there service.

Mick.
 
A little expensive compared to some other places, but as others have said possibly the best customer service around
 
I am now very convinced they are a good shop.

One thing I can't quite gather from their website is can you go visit the shop and buy on the spot or do you need an appointment or something? If/when I get the cash together I will very likely buy from them and take a trip down to London for a day out and visit the shop.
 
What everyone else has said plus:
They only do Nikon and they know what they are talking about.
They give a 12 month guarantee on second hand stuff.

Possible a bit dearer than some other internet places but great service, just turn up and have a browse :)
 
It's just a normal shop so no need for anything as formal as an appointment. The shop is quite small and densely packed with Nikon gear.
 
I bought a s/h Nikon D3 from them by mail order a few years ago, it was said to have less than 4,000 clicks and had had little use and it was considerably cheaper than a new model. When it arrived I took it out to take some images and when I returned I was horrified at the state of the sensor (it was minging), I also discovered from the exif data that the camera had in excess of 20,000 clicks. I called them up and the sales assistant said to send it back, which I did that afternoon.

The following day, the Manager of Greys rang me to apologise, he was mortified that such a mistake had been made and offered me a Brand New D3 and a copy of Nikon FX in recompense.

It's a pity that not all shops are as good as Greys.
 
EdBray said:
The following day, the Manager of Greys rang me to apologise, he was mortified that such a mistake had been made and offered me a Brand New D3 and a copy of Nikon FX in recompense.
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Wow that's some good customer service! Most shops wouldn't even phone you up. :eek:
 
I can only echo the sentiments above; a most excellent establishment and how businesses should be run imho.

I also subscribed to their Nikon Owner magazine (~£60 annual membership fee) and that way you receive a 3 year warranty on all new items and an 18 month warranty on secondhand items purchased from Grays. Again, brilliant service, very knowledgable and good stock levels on most items.
 
Nikon newbie said:
I can only echo the sentiments above; a most excellent establishment and how businesses should be run imho.

I also subscribed to their Nikon Owner magazine (~£60 annual membership fee) and that way you receive a 3 year warranty on all new items and an 18 month warranty on secondhand items purchased from Grays. Again, brilliant service, very knowledgable and good stock levels on most items.
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I noticed that offer of 3 year warranty with the magazine. Is it just a case of subscribing? Nikon offer a two year warranty so I guess the third year is an extra. Does that mean you need to subscribe for three years or is a years subscription say from now for one year enough to get a three year warranty?
 
I just found this set of bad reviews and wondered if they are accurate with anyone on here's experience. http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/place...lt&ct=placepage-link&resnum=1&ved=0CCUQ4gkwAA

I have to admit to being a bit worried about some photography stores that can take the p**s a bit, especially being a bit younger (friends have experienced the same at some shops). Some of them seem to expect you are after a low end camera and are a bit sceptical when you enquire about high end items.
 
EMA747 said:
I just found this set of bad reviews and wondered if they are accurate with anyone on here's experience. http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/place...lt&ct=placepage-link&resnum=1&ved=0CCUQ4gkwAA

I have to admit to being a bit worried about some photography stores that can take the p**s a bit, especially being a bit younger (friends have experienced the same at some shops). Some of them seem to expect you are after a low end camera and are a bit sceptical when you enquire about high end items.
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Having read those reviews (and checked out the Amazon thing alluded to - unbelievable!) the fact that it's owned and run by scientologists is enough to guarantee they'll never get any of my business :thumbsdown:
 
I just found this set of bad reviews and wondered if they are accurate with anyone on here's experience.
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I found them very helpful and not too overpowering.

Mind I did go in wearing a suit, and tie, and clean shoes.

Some of those comments on that link I would think a bit mischievous.

They say that Grays do not publish prices. They do on their website
 
Well I can only speak as I find and have had great service from Greys over the years.

Didn't know about their religious persuasion and to be honest don't really care either.
 
Someone's beliefs are their own business, as long as they don't force them on me. Greys have been around for decades, never dealt with them but would not hesitate to do so if the need arose.
 
I've bought quite a few bits and bobs from them over the years, the shop is only a few minutes walk from my main workplace, their service, knowledge and stock is second to none. OK, their prices may be a little higher than others but the quality of their stock is undoubtedly top notch.

And in all the times I've been there they haven't invited me to take a 'personality test' once.
 
For a brand new D3s and Nikon 24-70f2.8 Greys prices are actually cheaper than my local Jacobs. I reluctant to buy off the net from anywhere other than the select few sites that seem to get good reviews on here but sadly they all have high prices too. Warehouse Express for example are more expensive that Greys for the two items. DigitalRev is cheaper by quite a bit but it would presumably be a HK model and would not qualify for the Nikon 2 year warranty.
 
Andy, I would purchase from Greys before Warehouse Express any day of the week, if their prices are actually cheaper then that would be a no-brainer.

Concerned about feedback, there are many more bad reviews about Warehouse Express than there are about Greys.
 
Grays have (or at least had when I looked earlier) a low mileage D3s for sale, thing is if you go via Quidco then a new one (with the 6% cashback on offer atm) from Jessops is near enough the same price....
 
They do have a used D3s but to be honest it's so close to the price of their new ones I would just buy new.

Just looked at Quidco and the catch is that the 6% cashback is only on the price without VAT. So the saving is about £170 I think which makes it around £3420. About £100 cheaper than Greys but I have read some pretty bad things on here about Jessops aftersales and I am a bit wary of buying something so expensive without good protection if something were to go wrong.
 
EMA747 said:
They do have a used D3s but to be honest it's so close to the price of their new ones I would just buy new.

Just looked at Quidco and the catch is that the 6% cashback is only on the price without VAT. So the saving is about £170 I think which makes it around £3420. About £100 cheaper than Greys but I have read some pretty bad things on here about Jessops aftersales and I am a bit wary of buying something so expensive without good protection if something were to go wrong.
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There's a 2 year Nikon warranty so you can take the camera direct to them if you don't want to deal with Jessops....
 
I suppose so.
How exactly does these cashback things work though? I assume you sign up but then do you have to wait until you have accumulated a set amount before they pay out and/or do they charge a commission like paypal do? Is there any risk of it going wrong because if I did and I ended up having to pay the full Jessops price of nearly £3600 then it would be really bad.
 
Clicky , sign up and then go to the Jessops site via the link from Quidco. The sale then shows as tracked" in your account and the money is then credited to your account once it clears. I've had no problem with Jessops paying up fairly quickly, in fact the only company, in my experience, that wouldn't honour the cashback were PC World.
 
Anyone know how the 3 year warranty with the Nikon Owner magazine works? http://www.nikonownermagazine.com/
It says you get 3 years on new products for subscribers. That's a pretty good deal. Do you just have to buy a subscription and that's it?
 
EMA747 said:
Anyone know how the 3 year warranty with the Nikon Owner magazine works? http://www.nikonownermagazine.com/
It says you get 3 years on new products for subscribers. That's a pretty good deal. Do you just have to buy a subscription and that's it?
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Although I don't subscribe to the magazine, I did e-mail Grays about it not long ago and there are three subscription levels, Gold, Silver and Standard. The Standard subscription will offer you a three year warranty within your year of subscription (that's how they worded it). To be honest, whether this means you can buy something within your year's subscription and the warranty would be honoured even after your initial subscription has expired, I'm not entirely sure. May be worth having a chat with them about it. The Gold subscription would give you a 5 year warranty.

As for the shop itself, I've used them for many years both in person and through mail order and have always been satisfied with their service. I particularly love the used department......could easily spend all day there.
 
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I have only been in there once, and have to say it may seem a little more upmarket (the staff are all very well presented and smart), but unlike your local Jessops etc, these guys know their business.

I didn't go in for expensive items, yes i understand how some may see them as overpowering, but i just saw it as the personal service, would you rather walk in and be ignored for 10 minutes?

As others have said, there is said to be no better service and i believe that from what i saw.
 
Bought a D80 + 18-70, then a 35 1.8, and now a D7000 from there and wouldn't hesitate to go back. There are some items which are more expensive than other major retailers but I was surprised to find that they can be quite competitive on others.

Professional, knowledgeable and friendly staff although I can see why people might be a bit put off by the leather chairs and private office feel of the place. Personally, I quite like it as it feels like you are getting a more 'personal' service as opposed to walking to up to a till, paying and leaving.
 
Chris_911 said:
I've bought from them, visiting the shop both times.
Nice, old-school service.
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this is the best summary. Their 2nd hand pricing can reflect their location, but they only have good condition goods.
 
Hmmm they have a "Nikon D3s Digital SLR body
boxed and complete. Under 4k shutter actuations" for £3350. Or is it better to spend an extra £200 and get a brand new one from them?
 
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