Did Domke sellout?

[BradS]

What is the relationship between Domke and Tiffen?

 

[BrianShaw]

I don’t know the details of when/how it happened but Tiffen has owned Domke for a long time, at least 20 years.

 

[BradS]

@BrianShaw Thanks. I guess I’m not surprised so much as disappointed. Tiffen appears to be almost completely brain dead when it comes to customer service. Luckily, the Domke bags are every bit as good as they always have been.

 

[Dmosher]

I started working in a camera store in 1996 and I'm pretty sure Tiffen owned Domke at that time. If not they did very shortly after.

 

[benjiboy]

Jim Domke sold his business to Tiffen more than twenty years ago and. retired to Arlington Texas.

 

[Ai Print]

Yep, Tiffen has owned it for a long time. I know Jim, he retired but is still doing the occasional assignment, really nice guy.

 

[BradS]

Yep, Tiffen has owned it for a long time. I know Jim, he retired but is still doing the occasional assignment, really nice guy.

Yeah, he was/is a really nice guy. I think I spoke with him personally when I bought my first Domke bag something like 30 years ago.

 

[mshchem]

I just bought a couple Domke, small bags in the last year. Beautiful, USA made.

 

[benjiboy]

I just bought a couple Domke, small bags in the last year. Beautiful, USA made.

I have 2 Domke bags both made in USA an F2 and a smaller one, thinking about it rationally if they were made in China they would probably have been just as good but half the price,

 

[mshchem]

I have 2 Domke bags both made in USA an F2 and a smaller one, thinking about it rationally if they were made in China they would probably have been just as good but half the price,

The zippers would break.
Remember everything is cheaper in the US. No VAT, practically no fuel taxes, practically no tariffs. When we run out of money we just export the debt.
We just now have had to start paying 6% state sales tax on Internet sales.
I looked at Billingham bags, cheaper here than in the UK.

THE US CAN'T GO ON LIKE THIS FOREVER?

 

[Kodachromeguy]

The zippers would break.

Do you have data with which to back up this statement? Do you know where the zippers are made that are on today's Domke bags?

About 10 or 15 years ago, a company called Safrotto did sell canvas bags via eBay that looked like Domke models. Many buyers said they used a thicker grade of canvas and were superior. A company in Taiwan called mekko sells similar canvas bags. I asked about them in a thread earlier, but no one here had any experience with mekko products.

 

[mshchem]

Do you have data with which to back up this statement? Do you know where the zippers are made that are on today's Domke bags?

About 10 or 15 years ago, a company called Safrotto did sell canvas bags via eBay that looked like Domke models. Many buyers said they used a thicker grade of canvas and were superior. A company in Taiwan called mekko sells similar canvas bags. I asked about them in a thread earlier, but no one here had any experience with mekko products.

Nope, no data pure opinion. Damn fine bags. No gimmicks.
Best Regards

 

[benjiboy]

Domke bags in the U.K cost about the same in pounds as they do in U.S Dollars, nearly twice as much.

 

[Sal Santamaura]

Domke bags in the U.K cost about the same in pounds as they do in U.S Dollars, nearly twice as much.

One GBP is not currently trading at two U.S. Dollars. It's more like 1-1/3 U.S. Dollars:

https://www.xe.com/currencyconverter/convert/?Amount=1&From=GBP&To=USD​

 

[BradS]

Domke bags in the U.K cost about the same in pounds as they do in U.S Dollars....

Isn't this kinda the situation for everything? It certainly seems like it.

 

[benjiboy]

It's not just the exchange rate, it's the retail cost including V.A.T. at 20% on U.S imports plus import duty.

 

[MarkS]

Domke bags were made in Rochester, NY, for a long time- including under Tiffen's ownership. I'd heard that production would be moved elsewhere in the early 2000s, and bought my last Domke bag at at that time. Haven't thought about them since, as both of mine are still going strong. They've certainly been successful for a long time, hope they continue.

 

[Ernst-Jan]

The zippers would break.

That's nonsense, in China they can make anything you want. If you pay shit they can deliver you shitty zippers. If you pay more they can supply your product with good zippers.

 

[c41]

I just bought a couple Domke, small bags in the last year. Beautiful, USA made.

I have a small Domke bag, The padding is extremely poor but the bag itself seems good.
I do find photography to present an above average interest in bags relative to many other hobbies.

 

[mshchem]

Tamrac made nice stuff, but they're gone. I have at least a dozen of their straps. These are the quick release type so you can detach most of the strap when camera is on a tripod. The Zytel quick release clips are US made. I wouldn't say I require them to be made in the US. Might have even more confidence if they were made in certain other countries. This isn't the place for politics. So I won't comment further.
Best Regards Mike

 

[mshchem]

I have a small Domke bag, The padding is extremely poor but the bag itself seems good.
I do find photography to present an above average interest in bags relative to many other hobbies.

Yes the bags are pretty much canvas, with a bit of closed cell foam.

 

[Colin Corneau]

That's nonsense, in China they can make anything you want. If you pay shit they can deliver you shitty zippers. If you pay more they can supply your product with good zippers.

Anyone paying a premium wouldn't look to offshore/Chinese manufacturers...a business doesn't look to those partners to be the best quality, they do it to f**k their workforce and shove the difference in costs straight into their pockets. I mean, come on -- this isn't even hard to fathom.

I have no gripe against China or its people, but it is not a trustworthy partner in business or politics (which in that country are one and the same). Yeah, you'll save money. And yeah, you might even get a decent quality product sometimes (I have a Saffroto product that's pretty good)...but you're kind of rolling the dice, aren't you? Trust is in short supply and I guess it's up to the individual how important that element is.

 

[BrianShaw]

Tamrac made nice stuff, but they're gone.

Eh? What do you mean by “gone”?

https://markets.businessinsider.com...mium-products-under-guragear-label-1029329884

 

[Kodachromeguy]

Tamrac made nice stuff, but they're gone.

I see a USA Tamrac web page with all sorts of nice bags and backpacks listed: https://www.tamrac.com

 

[mshchem]

Well they were gone a couple years ago. They must be resurrected. Ah, they are now designed in California. Not the same company, now a brand.