Subscription service for new cameras shows growth of sharing economy

A new Tokyo-based camera-sharing service has upped the stakes for similar businesses by offering new cameras and lenses instead of used ones. The move recognizes a growing interest toward utilizing a sharing economy and advances the range of sharing services on offer.

CHIKAZ Recurring Service, Inc. started the Cam’Lens subscription-based monthly rental service early this month for new cameras and lenses. The concept behind it is to enable a shift from ownership to usage by providing good products in an easy-to-use manner.

Similar services offered until now have rented out secondhand cameras and interchangeable lenses. But Cam’Lens decided that to really meet users’ needs, it would provide brand new items. It says it also wanted to simplify the rental rules, compared with other service providers, to make it easier for customers to simultaneously borrow items of varying price grades.

The system is easy. Membership is free and users can order either single or numerous products via the Cam’Lens website. Payment is made by credit card and delivery is free. This approach helps the company achieve its aim of giving users a sense of having the items always close at hand.

Steadfast popularity for cameras

CHIKAZ says that although the spread of camera-enabled smartphones has caused the digital camera market as a whole to shrink, demand for cameras with interchangeable lenses remains steadfast. It cites a deep-rooted popularity for such products, which makes the market five to six times the size of that of film cameras during their peak in the 1990s.

Compact, high-function mirror-less cameras in particular have gained users among women and the elderly, it says.

Changing a camera’s lens allows a photographer to create an atmosphere in a way that smartphone cameras can’t. But as the lenses become more advanced, so do their prices, making it difficult for enthusiasts to own more than one. Cam’Lens solves that problem.

A cupboard full of camera equipment within reach

Rental prices range from well below 10,000 yen to well above it. Minimum rental periods are between one month and six months, depending on the product. For some items, users who rent them consecutively for two years can attain ownership of them. No extra payment is required if a product is damaged while a user is renting it.

As well as quickly adding popular new products to its selection, Cam’Lens will even accept requests for products to be included in the service. It’s all a bit like having a cupboard full of the latest camera equipment just an internet connection’s length away.

As well as the shiny appeal of all things new, customers who are new to a sharing economy may prefer to start with new products, especially as the spread of the COVID-19 virus continues. Nothing stays new forever, though, and Cam’Lens does also rent out finest-condition secondhand cameras and lenses.