Save 75%+ Off Axis Cameras From Target Canada Bankruptcy

JH
John Honovich
Jan 12, 2016
IPVM

This company emailed us. We are not getting compensated in any way for this, I am just passing this along as I thought the camera pricing might be interesting and also a peek at what Target uses.

On the Axis side, they have the Q6034 720p indoor PTZ for $499.99 and the discontinued P3353 for $129.99.

They also have a wide array of housing / accessories from Wren used with the Axis cameras. The most interesting one is a Wren 22" PVM public view monitor with built in axis camera and p7701 decoder for $499.99.

Here is the company's list of items available. For example, 77 PTZs available.

This reflects Target's relative conservative / plain approach to surveillance. If anyone actually buys one, let us know if there are any issues.

U
Undisclosed #1
Jan 13, 2016
IPVMU Certified

On the Axis side, they have the Q6034 720p indoor PTZ for $499.99...

I hope they didn't pay anywhere near the $2800 MSRP they show.

Maybe if they bought Hik instead they'd still be in business...;

(1)
UM
Undisclosed Manufacturer #2
Jan 13, 2016

How do you know if their credit card database hacking incident didn't contribute to their bankruptcy, and that the hacking didn't occur when someone said "Hey, let's try installing this Hikvision camera instead. It's a lot cheaper."

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JH
John Honovich
Jan 13, 2016
IPVM

According to Fortune, Target Canada's problems had nothing to do with the credit card database issue:

"Rather than launching new stores in carefully- selected spots and building slowly, Target acquired 124 locations in 2013 in one fell swoop by buying all the outlets from a failed discounter called Zellers, whose stores were in dismal locations. In addition, Target suffered from supply-chain problems that yielded empty shelves and high prices, and it added up to an unmitigated disaster."

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U
Undisclosed #1
Jan 13, 2016
IPVMU Certified

How do you know if their credit card database hacking incident didn't contribute to their bankruptcy, and that the hacking didn't occur when someone said "Hey, let's try installing this Hikvision camera instead. It's a lot cheaper."

Because I was joking, mostly? :)

Mostly.

Consider that 77 @ $2800 vs 77 @ $500 is nearly a $200,000 difference, and that just on the PTZs alone! To make $200,000 profit in discount retail easily might require $20,000,000 in sales.

And if they were pay full or close to full retail, then this might be indicative of money left on the table from other infrastructure items as well, hence the bankruptcy angle.

Though I doubt they really paid full retail, hence the joke.

I wonder if home town favorite Avigilon was able to bid for this work back in the day...

U
Undisclosed #5
Jan 30, 2016

There would have been no bid opportunity for any outside companies...Target and Axis have/had (?) an exclusive worldwide agreement...

And to the curiosity seekers...Target paid no where near MSRP for any Axis equipment!!! They have the best discount on the planet for their stuff ( when you purchase more than 100,000 cameras you can do that!

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JH
John Honovich
Jan 30, 2016
IPVM

5, are you saying Axis is selling direct to Target or?

U
Undisclosed #5
Jan 30, 2016

I will say that the price Target pays is negotiated directly...technically they purchase through a partner...I don't know who actually owns the partner???

UM
Undisclosed Manufacturer #3
Jan 13, 2016

The source of the Target hack was actually the HVAC system. It could easily have been some other system though. If you look through the details, it's pretty scary to think how easily this could have been a security integrator or manufacturer instead of and HVAC company.

Target Hackers Broke in Via HVAC Company — Krebs on Security

UM
Undisclosed Manufacturer #2
Jan 13, 2016

Does it say anywhere they come from the Target bankruptcy on their website? Didn't see it. So I assume it was in the email....?

JH
John Honovich
Jan 13, 2016
IPVM

Yes, that it is what they told me directly.

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RM
Ryan Marshall
Jan 13, 2016

CamerasDirect is my website and yes we did acquire these as a result of the Target bankruptcy. They are all brand new and sealed in the original packaging. I've attached a picture of the Axis box with a target canada label. Notice on the sticker it says "TGTCA" = Target Canada, followed by the Axis model number. All of the Axis cameras and Wren products have these stickers.

Target Canada Axis Box

Avatar
Tyler Graham
Jan 14, 2016

How old are these, i.e. do they still have a warranty?

RM
Ryan Marshall
Jan 14, 2016

They still have about 3-4 months before the warranty expires.

OA
Osama Ahmad
Jan 17, 2016

Hi Guys,

Never thought my first comment would be on such a discussion.

I would not advice anyone to buy them as investment for some quick bucks. I do agree that this is a good price but the difference between the partner price and this price is not really that much.

I though I would buy all of 'em but then I checked an excel file and now I decided not to buy any,by the way, talking about the Q6034.

Cheers

RM
Ryan Marshall
Jan 18, 2016

Osama, if you're serious about buying all of the PTZs in one shot I can offer you a discount beyond what is on the price list. Just send me an email and we can discuss: ryan@camerasdirect.com

UI
Undisclosed Integrator #4
Jan 17, 2016

A friend of mine (with his own side business doing CCTV installs for a few clients) looked at buying the cameras out of a couple local stores when they closed down. I looked through the stock lists they gave him and there was nothing really spectacular, at least nothing suitable for our needs at the price point they wanted, even if they were going for thirty cents on the dollar. I talked to my boss about going in on it, but he wasn't interested in a bunch of used cameras, despite the fact there was still factory warranty on them (and yet, we continued to recycle ancient used IQ and Arecont cameras... gah).

It would have cost him something like $15k per store up front and he could have only use a few himself; without a guaranteed resale of the rest, he opted against it.

As far as Target Canada's demise, I wouldn't say so much that the Zellers stores were in bad locations, as most were anchor retailers in major malls. Zellers was once a very popular low-cost retailer, similar to Wal-Mart, but once Wal-Mart came to Canada, their popularity started to fall, aided by the fact their products and prices didn't really keep up and over time the stores started to look dingy and dated.

When Target announced they were coming to Canada, shoppers got excited, expecting the same kind of products and pricing they'd get by crossing the border to the US stores. Unfortunately, Target Canada ended being little more than dressed-up Zellers stores (they were VERY nice stores, mind you, very clean and bright and well-organized), with little improvement in variety or prices. The prices were MOSTLY in line with Wal-Mart, and they definitely had a larger presence (ie. more convenient locations), but the product fell short in both selection and quality.

Realistically, the biggest problem was that customers felt let down. Wal-Mart customers didn't need to cross the border for their US stores because the Canadian stores offered good alternative. Target didn't. People expected a lot from them, and they didn't deliver. Even after Target Canada admitted where they'd gone wrong and tried to fix it, customers didn't come back. That's what ultimately killed them.

UI
Undisclosed Integrator #4
Jan 22, 2016

If anyone cares, here's a recent article on the (almost) rise and fall of Target Canada: http://www.canadianbusiness.com/the-last-days-of-target-canada/

RM
Ryan Marshall
Jan 18, 2016

Thank you to everyone who placed an order, they will all be shipped out shortly. We started with 7 different Axis models, now we only have 2 models and they are moving quick. I'm offering Free Shipping to IPVM members on orders $100+, just use coupon code IPVM2016 at checkout.

Avatar
Daniel S-T
Jan 22, 2016

I knew I should have gone down to the stores when they were shutting down and asked to buy their cameras, I just figured they wouldn't sell. Might have got even better deals?

I was totally thinking about it the whole time they were doing their liquidation before they officially closed. All the stores in my area were re-done when Target took over from Zellers, so I know none of the equipment was all that old.

UI
Undisclosed Integrator #4
Jan 22, 2016

You would have had to buy them ALL... and go in and remove them.

At least, that was the case with all the ones I heard about.

RM
Ryan Marshall
Jan 22, 2016

We didn't have to go in and remove anything, they arrived at our warehouse on pallets after making payment. Most of what we have is brand new and sealed, probably just sitting in a warehouse waiting to be used.

Yes we had to buy a whole group of items at once, which was mostly Axis and Wren stuff. We spent close to $100,000 for the entire deal when it was all said and done.

U
Undisclosed #1
Jan 22, 2016
IPVMU Certified

Might have got even better deals?

Yes, since we assume Ryan is making a profit.

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