Henry’s

Where do I even begin? I went in, knowing what camera I wanted and not too sure about which lens to get. Kyle — the guy who helped me was friendly and super helpful. The lens I wanted wasn’t in store so he ordered it for me. The next day, he called me to let me know there’s a used lens in store and asked if I wanted to check it out and it was 3x cheaper than the original lens. When I was testing the lens, he told me I was pretty lucky. Long story short, they’re genuine people who want nothing but the best for you. I would definitely recommend this place for its customer service and the knowledge they have on their products.

Henry’s is a weird weird store… I buy a LOT of camera gear… in the last six months I’ve purchased a 6D, 5DSR, 24 – 70 F4L, 70 – 300 F4−5.6L, 16 – 35 2.8L, about six filters, four memory cards… in other words, about $ 10,000 worth of gear (not much for a pro, but a pretty good investment for a hobbyist) and none of that was Henry’s.
Everytime I email for a quote, I get an offer that’s insulting. I email for a quote on a 5DSR ($ 4300 retail) and get offered $ 4200 but only if I buy today (aka dodgy high pressure tactic). Literally every other store in the city (Aden, Vistek, Downtown Camera) offered under $ 4000 (pre-​tax).
I am writing this particular review because they have a backpack I want and it’s (shockingly) cheaper there than anywhere else… so I email to put one on hold… get an email 24 hours later that it’s not available.
Now, ask yourself the following question. Would a business that has any vague idea of customer service end the interation that way? Can they get on from another store? Can they special order one in? It’s a $ 250 backpack! I can understand, if not forgive, the lapse if we were talking about a dirt cheap $ 20 bag but this is a high end pro-​bag and it stands to reason that high end pro bags get sold to people who, gasp, spend money on camera gear! So even if they don’t make a huge profit selling me a bag, would they not want to build a relationship with a customer?
Bottom line:
1) Their customer service stinks
2) Their prices are on par with others (as mandated by the camera manufacturers) but they are WAY less willing to deal than anyone else in the city
So, yah, pass on Henry’s.

This was my first time going to the Toronto Henry’s location. Initial impressions were good, place was spacious, lots of equipment to choose from, and decent amount of employees helping people out. At first, I felt the employees were very helpful actually, they were quickly to answer any «beyond average consumer» questions, and gave their own personal preferences as a side note.
But the issue started when I tried to do a simple price match. The whole process took more than 20 minutes from the employees checking to make sure that the price match was valid, to getting the manager involved. When he came over, I felt instantly verbally attacked by the manager. His tone and quick disapproval of the price match made me felt like I was carving into their business. It was to a point, where I was literally forced to back down my initial price match through intimidation, and accept my own defeat. I didn’t want to press on further, nor do I ever want to deal with such hostility to a new customer.
I found out after more research at home that the price match was definitely valid. But I won’t be returning for any «bargain» in the near future…
Too bad that the employees were actually very helpful. Shame about the upper management though.

I’ve been lied to by store employees… I highly suggest going to Vistek instead.

Well From the items I purchased
their ebay site is good for deals but my store level experience from a couple of the henry’s (not church) was disappointing .
I purchased items three times (at store level) to find that I was not told but extended warranty was added. I was sold a used lens and was not told that when they added on the rear cover and lens cover they were charging me for it… I do not like under handed sales people ! oNE SHOULD ADVISE THAT THE LENS COVERS AND CAPS ARE NOT INCLUDED AND NOT JUST ADD THEM ON THE INVOICE AFTER… AND IF i AM HAPPY WITH THE 90 DAY WARRANTY DO NOT ADD ON SNEAKY A 2 YR WARRANTY WITHOUT ADVISING ME .
When I buy from henry’s ebay it is a much better experience .
Hence I am sticking to henry’s ebay… not sure if they others work on commission that they feel the need to add on to a customers bill without offering you a choice !
Ebay henry’s is a much happier experience

they need lessons on customer service
great selection of items… when its in stock
definitely phone before making the trip
i tried to offer suggestions to make the store better
but it came down to «thats an unreasonable suggestion»
as well i had a couple of employees refuse to get me a manager when i had an issue or two.
i’ve had CSR’s openly state that the shift was over and someone would be around to help me, only to see the same CSR go around to the other end of the counter to deal with a female customer, and yes i say this openly because i saw him do up a bill and money be tendered…
for how big this store is, they lack alot of stock, or keeping multiples of the same item.

They were great at explaining how things worked, what my options were, and what was the most favorable deal. Didn’t try to up sell me. Alvaro was an excellent salesman. Got a very good price.

Expensive but willing to price match. Definitely good expertise here so certainly worth a visit.

I like this store, the selection is huge and the prices are competitive.
I also like the warranty and the trade in policy they have.(When you want to upgrade)
You may have to wait your turn for help, but its Toronto that’s the norm.
I also enjoy their large used selection, as you can save yourself a lot of money.
The good part is they are a chain store, so if this store doesn’t have it «New or used» another Henry’s might have it.
All in all this store has had what I’ve needed when I needed it, at a reasonable price.
I’d like to commend the staff as well, one you get to know the experienced ones.
They will help you with advice and personal un-​biased experienced opinions.
It may seem a little cold, but it is the biggest store in the biggest city in Canada.
This isn’t a mom n pop shop, so expecting that atmosphere isn’t fair in my opinion.
Don’t be afraid to walk up and ask someone for help.
Because they don’t «pressure» sale either. Good luck and happy shooting!

Selections range from Simple to Pro (although not TOO much Pro stuff, but nice) and the staff is generally solid.
I mainly deal with the rentals department and they are all always very helpful. Since I’ve been going to them for so long, I get rather solid deals. Great stuff.

My girlfriend and I went here for the first time and had an awful experience. The place is in disarray and I was constantly hounded by employees, which isn’t necessarily bad, but when I would say yes to receive their help, they were quick to dismiss me to other departments. Why they offered help in the first place dumbfounded me.
One employee kept pointing me in the direction of their most expensive stuff and seemingly had no clue about how any of it worked. He would also look around bored after providing me with very general (and not at all helpful) answers to my questions.
Bottom line if you want a camera shop where you are treated with any kind of respect, don’t go here.
Ed

Best experience I’ve had at a camera store. Was helped the minute I walked in the door. Had had a shutter issue with my pro camera and had taken it to a camera repair shop who wanted to keep it for 5 days (I didnt have the time) and showed a couple DOPs on set who couldn’t figure it out, but the guy at Henry’s figured it out on the spot. All that and he showed me a few other worthwhile tricks on camera maintenance and protection (ie. Hoya filters which I ended up purchasing). Wish I’d visited them earlier.

Henry’s (Downtown) often has some oddball filter adapter or accessory that nobody else has and those are the only times I support this store – and can give them more than one star.
Almost every time I have been in, I am ignored. Is it because I might know more about the product? I have also detected a kind of snobbery or something there. The environment is just not friendly and always feels rushed. I have only ever felt like a customer here.
If you can get past that, the selection is pretty good for non Nikon and Canon. The prices seem OK. Just remember that they advertise a lot and you’ll be paying for it.
But the worst thing? THEY ARE CLOSED ON SUNDAYS! Sunday shopping is the norm now, this is 2013. Hobbyists need to be able to get gear on both days of the weekend. The only reason I can assume for this is that the owners are Christian. It just doesn’t’ make sense that the flagship store, in the country’s biggest city would be closed on one of the prime shopping days of the week.
note 1: I attend two Aperture classes upstairs and they were excellent and of good value.
note 2: a Henry’s I have been to north of the city provided a better customer experience to my (then) girlfriend at the time.
I never recommend this store and ALWAYS recommend Downtown Camera, just a few doors west.

I have clarify this review isn’t for this downtown location. It is for Henry on line store. This is the worst service I ‘ve ever received. I ordered the lens on Dec 1,2013. After 9 days, my order was automatically cancelled without letting me know. I sent out an email to check the status on Dec 3^rd. It changed to «on Hold». Their customer service replied that they have to verify each order with VISA and ask me to call them. I wrote back for the reason to call them. They told me they need to verify it with VISA office. Apparently, I can do nothing to help the process. So I didn’t make a phone call. After 9 days, my order was cancelled without noticing me, when I called their customer service, the attitude was horrible. I was even told to buy somewhere else.
Very disappointed.

This camera store has it all. As an avid hobby photographer I’ve been buying camera and accessories for the past 20+ years. I’ve purchased different equipment and accessories in several different stores, including Vistek, Aden Camera, Black’s and so on… I used to bounce around them, looking for the best deal and the behaviour continued until I found this Henry’s location.
The store has everything and I love its half back program. They also have a price match guarantee and the fact that you can take advantage of their almost endless supply of items found on their online store (deliverable to an address of your choice, including in store) makes this place a winner. But no place would get a five star if the staff wasn’t great too and this is what I found in all the people I’ve dealt with. A couple of examples are Celine and Alfred, two amazing people, very knowledgeable and kind.
A great place and without a doubt a favourite when it comes to my digital photography needs.

Serious turn of events. After getting in touch with the Assistant Manager, Luigi, I have completely changed my impression of Henry’s, for the better.
Luigi was very accommodating to the refund, and even went a little above and beyond to make it up to me for all the trouble. I appreciated his professionalism and his sincere care for the store’s reputation. I also dealt with Eddy while processing the refund, and he too was great to deal with — a significant improvement over the staff at my last visit.
Thanks to Luigi and Eddy, I now remember why I was under the impression that Henry’s is a good company and a nice place to buy cameras.

I bought a camera, ma!
The layout of the store is very spacious and they have divided brands by stations, which is heaven for an organizational, square nut like myself. It is very, very big. Don’t be deceived. They sell the cameras, equipment, frames, bags, etc.
However, the customer service leaves a lot to be desired. I wandered on my own, and then parked myself in front of a display. The clerks were busy chit chatting and it wasn’t until I put one of my bags on the counter top that one of them came over and asked if I needed help.
At this point, I already knew what camera make and model I was buying, so I didn’t know what questions to ask her (other than super basic ones).
I am not impressed with the customer service, esp when it comes to helping out a newbie navigate these waters. Here’s the truth: for a basic point & click that a newbie needs, going to Best Buy or Future Shop is your best option. Henry’s caters to people who have a solid knowledge. Eons ago, I took photography lessons and learned to develop my own film (yeap, I learned to use a manual camera and develop film), but all that knowledge is lost.
I do want to regain it and bought myself a nifty modern camera.
Price wise, I comparison shopped with Downtown Camera and Aden. Henry’s is more expense; and Aden’s less expensive. But I have a discount program at work, so my camera was much cheaper when she rung up the final price. Hence, another reason why I bought it here.

I love photography, so a good store with lots of stuff and qualified personal is very important for me.
I get all of this at this Henry’s location. It’s my little Disneyland for cameras.
Attentive staff that never makes me feel pressured into buying something.
Their policy on exchange and price matching is excellent.
Plus, twice a year they have their own photo show «Exposure» where you can save a ton and learn a lot.
I think it is the best store in Toronto to look at and try out photography equipment.
Love it.

They have some great staff here that can answer any question you throw at them. They’re only fault is that they always seem to be in a rush. I’m not sure if it’s because the store is always busy and they have lots of customers or maybe they’re paid on commission and are trying to bank as many sales as possible, I really don’t know.
They have a great selection at this location and if they don’t have the exact item you’re looking for in stock, they’ll bring it in for you at no charge. Even if you’re not sure whether you really want it, they’ll still bring it in.

I usually visit Henry’s Scarborough location when I need some supplies or just browsed around… and I love the store a lot. always have a good experience.
For their Downtown Location, I expect a lot more. since it is kind of a Flagshop store and their head office… The store though quite big but feels like it is empty… just empty stores with limited selections and full of staffs… staffs mainly male wondering around doing nothing? staring at you?
I think will with stick with Henry’s Scarborough location from now on! What’s a disappointment!