Zani: Pentax In Cameras For The Long Haul

By Greg Scoblete On May 19 2008 - 6:00am

Despite whispered rumors to the contrary, Pentax is determined to stay in the digital camera market for the "long haul," according to the company's new sales and marketing VP Bill Zani.

"No, we're not getting out of point-and-shoot, and, no, we're not getting out of d-SLRs," Zani said.

In an effort to bolster sales following the company's merger with Hoya, Pentax will shift its account-management strategy, replacing a model based on regional geography with a channel-specific approach.

"In the past, our account-management team consisted of generalists — now they'll be specialists," Zani said.

The move was spurred by a "360-degree evaluation of how we go to market," Zani said. "The majority of our customers will see significant changes in terms of how the account managers do business with them. We'll be talking sell through much more than sell-in," he added.

The plan "is steady growth, niche growth. It's not unit volume driven," Zani said. As part of the change, Pentax will seek to expand its sales channels, particularly with niche products like its waterproof cameras, he said.

The Hoya merger will bring other changes, Zani said. The company will move from annual assessments of its numbers to quarterly appraisals, he said.

Zani joined Pentax last month, having held positions at SanDisk, Concord Camera and Iomega.