Buying analog photo supplies in Switzerland

[fdonadio]

Hello, there!

I am going to Switzerland in late February. I don’t know yet which cities we’ll be visiting, but I plan on taking a Nikon SLR or my trusty Hasselblad. I’ll probably take the Hassy, as I can change between B&W and color whenever I feel like and won’t have to take two bodies, even though I have two Nikons and they are much lighter.

In either case, I’ll be taking some film, but I would like to buy some more and feed my stash back home, if the prices are good enough. Any advices on buying film — and, maybe, some paper or darkroom supplies — in Switzerland?

Another possibility is buying from Germany or Great Britain and have it delivered to the hotel in Switzerland. In this case, how would I deal with Customs? How much could I buy from other EU countries without being taxed?

Thanks in advance.


Cheers,
Flavio

 

[fdonadio]

I did some Google searches and things don’t look good.

There are a handful of shops where film can be bought in Switzerland, including online. Prices are kind of high, almost double than the US, but that doesn’t seem to be a valid comparison. I’ll have to compare to neighboring countries and see how they fare.

Switzerland is not in the EU, so there are taxes if buying from abroad. Buying online, anything above 63.00 Swiss Francs (CHF) is taxed in 8%, plus a handling fee of 18.00 CHF. If you cross the border, you can import up to to 300.00 CHF without paying taxes.

 

[twelvetone12]

Hey! Swiss resident here
I normally use ars-imago in Zurich, which has a great assortment and "great" prices (http://www.ars-imago.ch). Keep in mind that prices are on the Swiss side of things, so quite high compared to the rest of Europe (generally 50-100% more, depending on what). When I'm not buying from ars-imago I use Fotoimpex.
When you order from Switzerland they will discount you VAT which then should by applied back by customs. Customs are kind of a lottery, sometimes you are lucky and you don't have to pay any and sometimes you end up with an invoice of 30% of the value of the goods, never figured out how it works... (I got taxed for stuff as low as 20 euros) If you plan on ordering a pallet worth of stuff from Fotoimpex let me know as they told me we can fetch it directly in Marly
If you have an address in DE probably the easiest is to have Maco or Fotoimpex ship there. I would not order from GB since it will 100% get stuck in customs sometimes for up to various weeks.

 

[fdonadio]

Thanks for the tips, twelvetone12! The first online retailer I saw was ars-imago. Great assortment, but the prices are almost double when compared to Fotoimpex.

There’s a way to reimburse VAT if you re-export the goods, but it can only be done after paying it.

 

[fdonadio]

I've been looking at the prices of 135, and they aren't that bad, they are the same or just a hair different than in Belgrade, Serbia. I was quite amazed actually.

Well, it’s cheaper than here in Brazil too, but you can pay even less in Germany.

 

[removed account4]

will you be anywhere near basel ?
just a hop and skip from there is
belfort france and on the main shopping street.
( it was the last shop on the block, or at least was about 6 years ago )
there is a photo shop that sells ilford film and chemistry.
i've bought fixer there when visiting family, and it was like
everything in europe .. subject to VAT tax so keep that in mind
no matter where you buy it to add 15-28%
... i've made it a point NOT to buy film
when in europe because of the VAT-$$$-thing.

 

[twelvetone12]

In Europe shops are required to present prices with all taxes (including VAT) already included.

 

[fdonadio]

Yes, but the shipping is 9€, so l'd have to order quite a bit of film for the purchase to be profitable, and l only buy one roll at a time. I'm a broke student, need l say more?

I’ve been through that. I used the same film for a lot of time for fear of trying a new one and get disappointed (and losing money).

Now I buy something like 50 rolls at a time when I travel. Film is unbelievably expensive here.

 

[fdonadio]

Just came to know I’ll be spending 8 days in Zurich. If anyone has more information for me, I’ll be grateful. Places to buy film, places to buy used cameras, places to shoot nice landscapes... any information is welcome!

 

[twelvetone12]

Ars-imago in Badenerstrasse then is a must stop I suggest you compare the prices with Fotoimpex, I was checking tri-x the other day and in 10 packs it is cheaper from ars-imago. They have used cameras buy way overpriced. If you like Ramen there is a tiny place called Miki nearby in Sihlfeldstrasse 63 that is my favorite.
On Saturdays there is a nice flea market in Helvetiaplatz, there is always a guy selling (crappy...) cameras but once in a while you get great deals (I found a new F90x for 15 chf).
If you like to peak through used books my favorite spot is Bücher-Brocky in Bederstrasse,
That's it for my knowledge of Zürich

 

[fdonadio]

Thanks, @twelvetone12! I didn’t remember to search for flea markets. It’s not something common here.

I’m gonna have to visit ars-imago, even if just to take a look.