Amvona

Have any of you purchased anything from amvona.com? you can get there stuff for dirt cheap on ebay! i

have bought a tripod from them which seems ok, if not a little too heavy. i'm just not sure about anything

else i see. like, a set of 4 light stands for $10 on ebay? what? how do they make money?

shipping

Agree, love the backdrop I got, but it cost $20 or a little more to ship.

I've bought lots of stuff from them. The softboxes (with halogen lamps) are good, and the softboxes can be added to Paul C. Buff strobes (with Buff speedrings). The super heavy duty booms are very good. The 42" 5-way reflector is very good. The muslin backdrops I've gotten have been a very good value, except the 4" sleeve at the top does not accommidate the Amvona rods, so you have to attach the muslin with clamps. The 3-way backdrop stand that I got from them did not come with all the correct rods. I'm hoping they'll make good on the replacement parts. The tiny little camera bag I got from them on ebay for $12 (plus $9 sh&h) was a near-useless piece of crap.

 

They're still turning a profit. Almost all of this stuff is very inexpensively built in China. Then there's the aforementioned shipping. And for the tiny profit they earn on Ebay, they make up for it with the prices on the Amvona.com website.

 

All in all, I've been very pleased with Amvona. There's only about 15 people that run the whole show up there in Massachusetts. There's one guy named Sam in customer support who told me they've sold more than 60,000 items on ebay. They're busy people. Overworked and understaffed. Sam acts like it. Say something he doesn't like, he'll let you know. First thing he said to me was "item number?" I told him I didn't have the Amvona item number, but I have the item number to the Ebay auction. He barked at me saying, "that's the number I need! I don't need anything else!" Then he proceeded to screw up the whole order. I called back and some lady got it straightened out. I've read elsewhere on the internet this is a common problem with them. They have always been willing to fix any little problems I have though.

If a salesman handled me that way, it would be aloha, dirt cheap prices or not. Who needs abusive salespeople? Curt is OK, brisk I can handle, the rest is horsehockey IMHO. I wonder what would happen if I asked Sam a product question,such as the way the stands are assembled or the tube diameter,or the floor rubber base? Yeah, I think I will call and see which of us hangs up first and then get back to this thread. I think I stick to Bogen for product info and to B and H for ordering and backup. Isn't it nice to be so wealthy and uppity...

Hi Jennifer, I have purchased several items from amvona myself, and have been perfectly happy with them.... Most all equipment is of decent grade and the prices and shipping are very resonable if you buy through ebay.

their only drawback I have had problems with is it seems like it takes awhile to get your orders. and have had a few broken knobs on things such as plastic Tighteners, but just a letter to customer support, had new ones out in the mail almost immediatly. they are one seller I trust on ebay to purchase and get what They are describing without and hidden problems......

BTW, after repeated calls of only getting someone's voicemail, a live human finally answered the phone and they made good on the incorrect and missing parts by sending me replacements.