Greys of Westminster

I've bought most of my stuff from there (it's near uni). Service is great, staff are friendly and amazingly knowledgable. I'd ignore those reviews, they seem to be negative astroturfing (they're all from the same short period of time and conflict with mine and many others' experiences there).

Buying used from them is great - they provide a 12 month warranty as standard and their descriptions always seem to err on the side of caution - lenses I've bought from them listed as EXC++ I couldn't have told apart from new unless walked through exactly why it was listed as such.

The choice for the D3s - £200 in the pocket never hurts considering you still get a warranty and the same service ;). I don't really care about things being new though so YMMV.
 
ausemmao said:
I've bought most of my stuff from there (it's near uni). Service is great, staff are friendly and amazingly knowledgable. I'd ignore those reviews, they seem to be negative astroturfing (they're all from the same short period of time and conflict with mine and many others' experiences there).

Buying used from them is great - they provide a 12 month warranty as standard and their descriptions always seem to err on the side of caution - lenses I've bought from them listed as EXC++ I couldn't have told apart from new unless walked through exactly why it was listed as such.

The choice for the D3s - £200 in the pocket never hurts considering you still get a warranty and the same service ;). I don't really care about things being new though so YMMV.
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If I buy from them I will probably go for a day out to London and visit the shop and check their used items and assess on the spot if it's worth the saving. With the magazine subscription offer you get 18 months warranty on used and 3 years on new items.
 
Hello

I just did a search for this shop out of interest and noticed the low google rating in the search result, so I had a look, and I agreed with the posts. If some are fake, then it maybe a disgruntled customer making more than one post.

I have just written my first ever review because the google reviews were the first ever that I have read that relate to experiences similar to mine. Everywhere else on the internet the reviews wax lyrical about them, and it's always had me flummoxed.

Reviews elsewhere are so universally positive that I was intimidated to tell my own story because I feared being flamed by loyal customers.

Anyway, my google review is under the username 'tony' on the google review dated 22 Nov 2011.

I am writing here because I want people to know that my post is not a vindictive one. My experiences are true. You can read the review on google reviews (do a google search and the results display google reviews for greys)

There was nothing wrong with the service at the time, in the shop, but at the same time the service that I got was normal, nothing really special. They pretty much just went through the motions. I came away feeling that I had had an ordinary experience. ( however...I too was eyeballed the whole time I was there...if only because the place is so small, where else do you look)

Plus, as I was new to photography at the time, and in the words of Donald Rumsfeld... I didn't know what I didn't know. And greys kept information away from me (its in the google review), which can only be to make the sale.

But they didn't give me full information about what I was buying. I found all this out to my expense over the next year or so, as my camera gear broke down, or underperformed. It took about two years to realise the glare problem with the 50mm lens. Only when I went digital could I see more closely what was happening.

I have since become a professional photographer (Nothing grand...I sell prints of my work around the country at art/craft fairs - it won't make me a millionaire, but it does pay the bills), and have become an experienced photographer. and as an experienced photographer with about 10,000 pounds worth of gear, i look back to the service I received at greys, and I realise that they told me things they shouldn't have done, and they (probably) deliberatley didn't tell me things that they should have done.

If you buy 2nd hand gear from this shop make sure you furnish yourself with all the information you need. Dont rely or trust them to tell you.

My shops of choice have become.. aperture photographic (last purchase 2.5 yrs ago) museum street, london. I have used them for 2nd hand stuff. They told me how to check a lens for dust and debris...in fact the shopkeeper told me off for not bothering to check in the proper way, then showed me how to check a lens for dust and scratches, and what they meant in terms of quality degredation. That to me is service, making sure a newbie knows what to look for, so they can make informed desicions.

My new equipment over the last few years has been from LCE, which is a franchise chain store, so each store you go to is independently run. the bloke who runs the bournmouth shop (2 yrs ago) can be grumpy though. But all other outlets have been really helpful and I am happy to buy from them, although last big purchase was nearly two years ago.

Anyway, that's all. Sorry for the rant about greys, but I am a real person with real experiences and my review on the google review site is honestly made....and it's taken 7 years to pluck up the courage to say anything.

I just feel they may be making money out of people who may be seduced by their very impressive marketing.

At best they are just an ordinary shop, just like all the others. My advice is, I suppose...buyer beware.

Tony
 
I know someone who purchased some older nikon primes for a canon 5D short film. Their personal service is amazing and prices are very good. All compliments from customers of this shop.
 
I would just like to add to my previous post (11) in this thread. Having only dealt with them over the phone, I visited their shop yesterday for the first time to buy a new lens and was warmly welcomed by the owner Gray Levett. I was there for about 1/2 an hour and got a guided tour around the shop. It is only a small shop but it is packed from floor to ceiling with all things Nikon, old and new.
Excellent service from very knowledgable people.

The shop is only 5 mins walk from Pimlico tube station and as an added bonus, there is a pub right next door.

Mick.
 
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My only experience of Grays was when I went in with a friend who was seriously contemplating buying a 300mm f2.8. They were happy to get one out of the box for him to hold, but wouldn't allow it to be attached to his (or any) camera. I thought that was a bit odd to be perfectly honest. I realise that they would then have to describe this particular example as a demonstrator or some such, but I figured that they would have one set aside to be used like this and then sell it on at a slightly reduced rate after some period of time.

He bought one the next day but not from Grays (to my annoyance...).

Just my £0.02...
 
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