Hire calendar
Availability per item and serial, buffers for cleaning and a counter view of what's going out today.
Camera store software: hire, trade-ins & online sales
Camera stores: every lens booked, checked and back on the shelf. Hire gear, not headaches.
Hire bookings live in a paper diary, bonds sit in the till as cash, trade-ins get scribbled on a notepad and the website says a lens is in stock when it went out the door on Saturday. We build hire, trade-in, repair and online store systems for camera stores that all talk to each other. Then we host them and look after them.
Looking for camera hire booking software that also runs your shop?
A camera store is really three businesses under one roof: a retailer selling new gear, a rental house lending out thousands of dollars of glass every weekend and a second-hand dealer buying and selling used bodies with a shutter count. Throw in sensor cleans, repairs and the odd workshop and it's no wonder the hire diary has coffee rings on it. Most stores run each part on a different app, a spreadsheet or a bit of paper.
Wollopit builds custom software for camera stores around how your counter actually works. Hire gear has a calendar per serial number so nothing double books. Deposits are held on the card and released on return. Every check-out and return gets photos so damage chats are quick and fair. Trade-ins turn into used listings on your website in minutes. We connect the POS and online store you already use, fill in the gaps and look after the lot on our own servers.
01The problems
What we hear from camera stores
Does your camera store have these problems? Here's how we'd fix them.
Most camera stores we talk to know their gear inside out and run the business on a diary, a POS that doesn't do hire and a lot of memory. It holds up fine until wedding season.
- The problemHire lives in a paper diaryTwo photographers both think they've got the 70-200 for Saturday and only one of them is right.How we fix itA hire calendar per item and serial number. Availability shows online and at the counter so it can't double book.
- The problemKits go out half packedThe gimbal goes out without its quick release plate or the video kit is missing a battery and a charger.How we fix itKit bookings with a packing checklist for every item. Staff tick it off at check-out and again at return.
- The problemDamage arguments with no recordA lens comes back with a scratch on the front element and nobody can prove whether it was there before.How we fix itCheck-out and return photos on a tablet, condition notes per serial and the customer signs off both ways.
- The problemBonds held in cashHundreds of dollars in the till, a handwritten receipt and a scramble to refund it on Monday.How we fix itBonds held as a card pre-authorisation at booking and released automatically when the gear passes its return check.
- The problemID checks at the counterPhotocopying licences while a queue builds behind a hirer who's already late for a shoot.How we fix itID and hire agreement captured at online booking. Verified once, then repeat hirers skip the paperwork.
- The problemLate returns wreck the next bookingMonday's lens is still in someone's car and Monday's customer is standing at the counter.How we fix itAutomatic return reminders, late fees applied on the spot and a heads-up to staff when the next booking is at risk.
- The problemNo time between hiresA body goes straight back out without a sensor clean, a firmware check or a battery charge.How we fix itTurnaround buffers between bookings plus a service queue. Gear marked out of service can't be booked.
- The problemTrade-ins on a notepadOffers worked out from memory, serials not recorded and the used body sits in a drawer for a month.How we fix itA trade-in quote tool with grading, shutter count, serial and photos that becomes a used listing in one click.
- The problemUsed gear is a pain to listEvery second-hand item is one of a kind, so it never makes it onto the website.How we fix itOne-off used listings with condition grade, shutter count and real photos, pushed to your online store and Google Shopping.
- The problemRepairs tracked on paper tagsA customer rings for the third time asking if their camera is back from the service centre.How we fix itRepair and sensor clean tracking with job status, quotes approved by SMS and an automatic text when it's ready.
- The problemNew release pre-order chaosA hot new body drops, the phone rings all day and nobody's sure who was first on the list.How we fix itPre-orders with deposits, a fair queue and allocation as stock lands, with each customer told where they're up to.
- The problemWebsite stock is always wrongThe website sells a lens that sold over the counter yesterday and you're writing an apology email.How we fix itStock synced between your POS and online store. Hire and buy in the same checkout.
02What we build
Solutions
What we build for camera stores. Usually all talking to each other.
Pick the one that's hurting most or join the whole lot up. Everything is built around how your team works, not the other way round.
Online hire bookings
Customers pick dates, see live availability and book with the bond held on their card.
Kit builder
Bundle bodies, lenses, batteries and cards into kits with packing checklists for each piece.
Check-out & return app
Tablet checks with photos, serials, accessories ticked off and the customer's signature.
Bonds & deposits
Card pre-authorisations at booking, released on return or partly captured for damage.
ID & hire agreements
Licence capture and signed terms online, stored against the customer for next time.
Return reminders & late fees
SMS and email reminders, overdue alerts and late fees added without an awkward chat.
Service & turnaround queue
Sensor cleans, firmware updates and charging between hires, with out-of-service blocking.
Trade-in quoting
Grade, shutter count, serial and photos, with an offer as credit or cash and a tidy record.
Used gear listings
One-off listings with condition notes and real photos pushed to your website and Google Shopping.
Repairs & sensor cleans
Job tickets, service centre tracking, quote approvals and ready-to-collect texts.
Pre-orders & allocations
Deposits for new releases, a fair queue and customers updated as stock arrives.
Online store sync
POS stock, prices and hire gear in one online store with one checkout.
Workshops & photo walks
Bookable classes with capacity limits, gear hire add-ons and reminders.
A website that sells and hires
Hand-built and quick on mobile, built to rank for 'camera hire near me' and your suburb.
03The systems
The big ones
Your whole camera store, on one system.
These are the systems camera stores ask us about most. Each one works on its own and they get properly useful once they share the same gear and customers.
Hire calendar
Every lens booked once. Never twice.
Each body, lens, light and gimbal gets its own calendar by serial number. Customers book online against live availability and your counter sees exactly what's going out and coming back today.
- Calendar per item and serial
- Live availability on your website
- Kits with a checklist per piece
- Turnaround buffers between hires
- Weekend and weekly hire rates
- Bonds held on the card at booking
- Today's pickups and returns view
- Out-of-service blocking
- Utilisation per item
- Waitlist when gear is booked out
Check-out & condition
Damage chats that take thirty seconds.
Every check-out and return goes through the same quick routine on a tablet: photos, serials, accessories ticked off and a signature. If something comes back scratched or missing, the record is already there.
- Check-out and return photos
- Serial numbers scanned
- Accessory checklist per kit
- Customer signs on the tablet
- Condition notes per item
- Damage charged against the bond
- Bond released on a clean return
- ID and agreement on file
- Overdue alerts and late fees
- Full history per serial
Trade-ins & used gear
From the counter to the website in minutes.
Grade a trade-in, log the serial and shutter count and snap a few photos. Make the offer as cash or store credit and the item turns straight into a used listing on your online store and Google Shopping.
- Trade-in quote tool
- Condition grading you set
- Shutter count and serial logged
- Store credit or cash offers
- Photos taken at the counter
- One-click used listing
- Pushed to Google Shopping
- Warranty period per used item
- Aged stock alerts
- Margin on every used sale
Repairs & services
No more 'is my camera back yet?' calls.
Repairs, sensor cleans and service centre jobs each get a ticket with a status the customer can see. Quotes get approved by text and they hear the moment it's ready to collect.
- Job tickets at the counter
- Sensor clean bookings
- Service centre tracking
- Quote approval by SMS
- Status updates sent automatically
- Ready-to-collect texts
- Photos on drop-off
- Parts and labour on the invoice
- Overdue job alerts
Online store & pre-orders
Shop, hire and pre-orders in one checkout.
Your POS stock flows to the website so you only sell what's on the shelf. Customers can buy a memory card and hire a lens in the same order. New release pre-orders run off a fair queue with deposits taken up front.
- POS stock synced to the website
- Hire and buy in one checkout
- Pre-orders with deposits
- Fair queue and allocations
- Customers told their place
- Click and collect
- Australia Post and StarShipIt shipping
- Afterpay at checkout
- Google Shopping feed
- Back-in-stock emails
04How it changes
Before and after
A wedding season Friday, wolloped.
Here's how a busy Friday at the hire counter could change. Every store is different, so we map yours first.
Before
- Flip through the diary to see if the 70-200 is free
- Find out it's double booked when the second hirer turns up
- Photocopy a licence while the queue builds
- Take a cash bond and write a receipt by hand
- Pack the kit from memory and miss the charger
- Argue about a scratch on Monday with no proof
After
- The calendar shows the lens is booked and offers the backup copy
- Hirers booked online against live availability
- ID and agreement already on file
- Bond held on their card at booking
- Kit packed from a checklist and photographed
- Return photos settle the scratch in thirty seconds
05Services
Everything under one roof
Software, websites and systems for camera stores.
Whether you're starting fresh or upgrading what you've got, it's one team from the first sketch to the support call.
Custom software for camera stores
Built around how your camera store actually runs: hire calendar, online hire bookings and the admin in between, in one system you own.
Websites for camera stores
Fast, hand-built websites that rank for the searches your customers make and turn visits into enquiries, bookings or orders.
Camera store system upgrades
Running on spreadsheets, old software or a platform you've outgrown? We move your data across and upgrade in stages so the business never stops.
Apps and portals for camera stores
Kit builder and check-out & return app: customer and staff portals that work on any phone without an app store.
Integrations and automation
We connect Lightspeed, Square and Shopify so information moves on its own and nobody retypes it.
Hosting, support and care
Managed hosting, updates, backups and security for your camera store, looked after by the people who built it.
06Integrations
Connections
Plays nicely with what you already use.
We connect to the POS, online store and hire tools you already rely on, work alongside the ones that do their job and replace the ones holding you back.
- Lightspeed
- Square
- Shopify
- WooCommerce
- Stripe
- Afterpay
- Zip
- Xero
- MYOB
- Booqable
- Current RMS
- greenID
- Australia Post
- StarShipIt
- Sendle
- Klaviyo
- Mailchimp
- Google Merchant Center
- Humanitix
07How we work
The process
Some people dip their toe in. We turn up in a rebreather.
We get properly below the surface of your camera store: the systems, the busy days and the jobs everyone hates. Then we fix the bits that matter most first.
- 01
Think
We spend time at your hire counter, in the back room and on the shop floor, then work out what's actually slowing you down.
- 02
Archi-tech
We plan it before writing code: your gear, kits, bonds, trade-ins, repairs, online store, hosting and cost.
- 03
Build
Real engineering, shown to you early and often. Usually the hire calendar first, so you get a win before wedding season.
- 04
Look after
We host it, maintain it and keep improving it. When something breaks you call the people who built it.
08Questions
FAQ
Things camera stores ask us.
Something else on your mind? Ring 0423 011 252 and ask the people who'd build it.
Can customers hire and buy in one checkout?
Yes. A hirer can grab a lens for the weekend and buy a memory card and spare battery in the same order, with the bond held separately on their card.
How do bonds work?
We hold the bond as a pre-authorisation on the customer's card at booking. If the gear comes back clean it's released automatically. If there's damage you can capture part or all of it with the return photos as the record.
Can it stop the same lens being booked twice?
Yes. Every item has its own calendar by serial number, so if you've got two copies of a lens it knows which one is free. Turnaround buffers stop gear going straight back out without a check.
Do we need to replace our POS or online store?
Usually not. We connect to Lightspeed, Square, Shopify and WooCommerce so stock, prices and customers stay in sync. We build the hire, trade-in and repair side around what you've got.
We already use hire software. Do we have to switch?
No. If Booqable or Current RMS is doing its job, we build around it and fill the gaps like trade-ins, repairs and stock sync. If it's holding you back, we'll show you what replacing it would involve before anything changes.
Can trade-ins go straight onto our website?
Yes. Once a trade-in is graded and photographed it can become a used listing on your online store and Google Shopping in one click, with the shutter count and condition shown.
How much does a camera store system cost?
It depends on what you need, so we quote up front once we understand it. No surprise invoices, no lock-in and you own what we build.
How long does it take?
Smaller pieces like a hire calendar or repair tracking can be quick. Bigger systems are built in stages so you get the first win early instead of waiting for everything at once.
Who looks after it once it's built?
We do. We host it on our own managed servers and keep it updated and secure. When you need something you ring the people who built it.
We already have systems. Can you upgrade them instead of starting again?
Usually, yes. Most camera stores we work with keep what's working and upgrade the rest in stages. We move your data across, connect the old and new while we switch and retire the old system only when the new one is proven.
Contact
Got a camera store problem? Consider it wolloped.
Tell us what's slow, broken, manual or missing. You don't need a spec, just describe what's going on.