Previously, the Phoblographer reported that Lensrentals purchased BorrowLenses. However, we also reported that they’ll acquire the BorrowLenses locations and employees. That was reported based on the information we had at the moment, which wasn’t clear. However, it turns out that this won’t be the case. Lensrentals provided us a quote on what’s happening.
A Statement from Lensrentals
“While Lensrentals is not acquiring employees or locations as part of the acquisition, we did acquire the BorrowLenses brand and select assets,” said Tyler Beckman, Lensrentals CEO, in a statement to the Phoblographer. “We will bring the BorrowLenses assets under the Lensrentals brand, expanding our customer base while growing our inventory of pro-grade photo, video, and cine gear and accessories. We’ve also set up a transition page to help former BorrowLenses customers onboard to Lensrentals.”
Essentially, Lensrentals bought the brand and the entire inventory. One can make an educated guess that this also means that the customer data is also transitioning. But the employees and the locations aren’t going to Lensrentals.
Online vs. Brick and Mortar
The Phoblographer uses Lensrentals often for our reviews, and links to them on several articles. We’ve even partnered up with them in different situations. Often, they’ll send us gear early and provide an extra day or so free of charge. In my years as a journalist, I’ve never been able to get that from a brick-and-mortar store. Specifically Adorama Rentals and FotoCare haven’t provided that to me in the past. But the value in working with brick-and-mortar stores comes when you’re in a bind and need something semi-last minute. Lensrentals is for when you have everything set and ready beforehand. Indeed, it all depends on if you’re a type A personality or not — though even that’s a stretch of a statement.
If you live in Tenessee, you can arrange to pick up your gear from the Lensrentals facility. However, I truly wish they had more locations. Here in NYC, we could surely use more rental houses available on the weekends. Other American cities, I’m sure, could benefit from it too. Many folks who need to rent gear live in Washington, LA, Austin, Boston, Atlanta, Jersey City, Philly, and more. With so much extra inventory, keeping it in just a single place seems like a lot. Peer-to-peer rental options, such as Share Grid, also exist online.
The Growth of the Camera Market Isn’t What You Think
According to one source, the camera rental market is expected to grow until 2028. Verified Market Reports backs up that claim, as it seems like only an upward trend. Another report states that the market will be somewhere in the millions. If you stack that up against inflation, that’s truly not a lot of money. Comparatively, in 2029, the sales in the camera market is supposed to be worth 6.8 billion. However, where the real money is supposed to be is with the print market at 28.2 Billion. Lensrentals has its Lenskeeper program, which sells refurbished gear at decent prices. As time passes, we wonder how the 2nd hand market will perform.
The latest Fujifilm X100vi camera shows us that the camera goes for more money on the used camera market. In fact, brand-new prices are also soaring.