New design of Kodak film boxes

[snusmumriken]

Things can be worse, folks ...

Helsinki, 2024

 

[foc]

I like the new design of the Kodak film boxes. Simple clear lines and bold colour.

Personally, I am not a fan of the Ektar 100 brown and yellow colour combination but I think it does stand out in the crowd.

 

[brbo]

Maybe Kodak intentionally went the "serious, boring way" to distance themselves from the guys that are playing the "lets make the most ridiculous film and sell it to the customers at twice the price" game.

Btw, I anticipated Kodak would transition to single box items for all their 135 film years ago, yet they still only sell Portra 160/400 and ProImage 100 in "pro" packs. I know that most retailers have no problem in breaking open the pro packs and selling individual canisters, but still... I think we are paying enough for Portra to get a box.

 

[Don_ih]

After I left the graphic arts area, I started another business and I needed lithographic film, I visited my local retail photography shop and was able to order Kodak, Agfa, Ilford and Fuji graphic film stock. My situation was way too small for an account with any of the manufacturer suppliers directly, so I just enquired at my local photo shop and away I went for the next 15 years until I went electronic. This was 1991-2.

Some of that might be due to cultural differences in the way people do business between Australia and North America.

 

[MattKing]

Interesting one there Matt.

After I left the graphic arts area, I started another business and I needed lithographic film, I visited my local retail photography shop and was able to order Kodak, Agfa, Ilford and Fuji graphic film stock. My situation was way too small for an account with any of the manufacturer suppliers directly, so I just enquired at my local photo shop and away I went for the next 15 years until I went electronic. This was 1991-2.

There may have been a number of smaller users in the area. It was always possible for retail stores to request being granted "dealer" status for other lines, if they could show a customer base. I worked for a retail store near the University of BC, and we had some access to additional catalogues, because the University had need for access to some other lines.
And of course it was likely that Kodak Australia and Kodak Canada organized their marketing arrangements at least a bit differently, just as Eastman Kodak did.

 

[cmacd123]

You were probably working for a Kodak dealer. If they lost that status, they would have lost dealer favoured pricing, plus access to Kodak Lab dealer processing services, which may have included pick-up and delivery.

this would be the Montreal based section of EATON's. Our store in Nepean was a satellite of Montreal. So the Buyer expected to get offered the special packages near Holidays and vacation periods where you got something like an X-15 Camera Kit in a shrink wrap with a leather - look Camera bag for a buck less than Just the Camera normally sold for.. And sale price special buys to offer something Different from the Hudson's Bay Company who was at the other end of our Mall.

In fact we were supposed to get one of those packages for a sale in two weeks,and I found out that the Bay had the package already on sale. I called the buyer and let him know, and he called them B****RDs. then next day the store manager came down and told us the buyer had been cutting his lawn and had died from a heat attack. I still feel that one.

 

[MattKing]

Eatons in general was probably an authorized dealer, but I expect at the store level there were head office constraints on what could be accessed, or at least what could be accessed easily through the Kodak dealer catalogue.
Certainly that was the case with the Sears camera department I worked at for a while.
And if your department manager was buying grey market, the consequences might have come from other places besides Kodak .

 

[cmacd123]

Eatons in general was probably an authorized dealer, but I expect at the store level there were head office constraints on what could be accessed, or at least what could be accessed easily through the Kodak dealer catalogue.
.

this was set up by the Camera Buyer, and the tabaco wholesaler was even in the automatic order binder. (A woman from be back come by once a week and counted allour in stock film, and then placed an order to bring stock levels up, and I think she would flag the Buyer to have the stock adjusted.

I was the instigator of one of those. I started upselling the 20 exposure rolls. at my start we sold CX-126-12 and CX-126-20. the photofinishing cost was so much to develop the film, and so much a print. I would tell the customers that by spending 50 cents more for the twenty roll, they would pay less per print. {I of course did not tell them that I knew that if they had kids, the roll of film would be used by the end of the weekend. even if a 36 exposure roll existed for 126 Cameras.} Only one customer stopped me and ask for a 12 after he had caught on. I had no guilt as I suspect that they would be glad to have the extra shots when the kids grew up.

sure enough, we were soon asking for extra 20 exp rolls, and we were selling much more 20 rolls than even the main Montreal store downtown. And Later the 12 exp rolls were flaged as slow moving., and we had to transfer some to other stores. (the price tickets had a code to show the date received, and we were not to have anything in stock for over 5 months)

anyway the binder was updated with the new suppler being Kodak and the note that the minimum order was 400 rolls. Perhaps montreal Main was not really trying to Push film and the grey market guys had a Lower minimum.

 

[ant!]

the EU wants french, German, Italian and Spanish, (and still expects English ever after BREXIT) Canada needs english and french

Of course English is still needed in the EU, since Ireland didn't leave, only the UK. Also, in Europe it is pretty normal to see 5 and more languages printed on products which sell not only locally, or a translated sticker. This might be more the case in the smaller markets, but even in German supermarkets finding products printed as well in Czech and Hungarian and a few other languages isn't weird.
Then there are Belgium and Switzerland(non EU) which need multiple languages. So very similar to the situation in Canada.
Having lived in 3 European countries before moving to Canada, I find multi-language prints quite normal. In Europe it's more the fine print though, while in Canada every word, but I understand the reason behind that. In the end, Quebec (without French speakers in other provinces) has a population as large as some European countries (similar to Austria, Hungary, more then 13 of the smaller EU countries,...). Which doesn't mean that some language protection laws are a bit overshooting, but I understand the intension. (I started learning French from 0 when moving to Montreal 10 years ago).

Back to topic: having only the absolute minimum required on the outside and more information as a fold out inside would make sense...

 

[bags27]

Alaris sold Kodak to an Los Angeles hedge fund

Kodak Alaris Announces Acquisition by Kingswood Capital Management

Kodak Alaris announced today that Kingswood Capital Management, LP ("Kingswood") has acquired the company from the United Kingdom Pension Protection Fund (“P...

www.businesswire.com

 

[MattKing]

Alaris sold Kodak to an Los Angeles hedge fund

Kodak Alaris Announces Acquisition by Kingswood Capital Management

Kodak Alaris announced today that Kingswood Capital Management, LP ("Kingswood") has acquired the company from the United Kingdom Pension Protection Fund (“P...

www.businesswire.com

No.
The UK Pension Protection agency sold all the shares in the corporation named Kodak Alaris to Kingswood Investment Management.
So Kodak Alaris, which is the entity that has the marketing and distribution business for Eastman Kodak still films, which was owned as a shareholder investment by the UK Pension Protection agency, is now owned as a shareholder investment by Kingswood Investment Management.
Just as the film manufacturer, Eastman Kodak, is owned as a shareholder investment by a number of other shareholders. There is even a possibility that Kingswood might have some of those Eastman Kodak shares in their portfolio as well.

 

[bags27]

No.
The UK Pension Protection agency sold all the shares in the corporation named Kodak Alaris to Kingswood Investment Management.
So Kodak Alaris, which is the entity that has the marketing and distribution business for Eastman Kodak still films, which was owned as a shareholder investment by the UK Pension Protection agency, is now owned as a shareholder investment by Kingswood Investment Management.
Just as the film manufacturer, Eastman Kodak, is owned as a shareholder investment by a number of other shareholders. There is even a possibility that Kingswood might have some of those Eastman Kodak shares in their portfolio as well.

I'm a business dolt, Matt. So, pls correct me if I'm wrong (you will!). So, Kingswood now owns the "the marketing and distribution business for Eastman Kodak," as you say. But not the actual production of film? is that it?

In any case, the new boxes may be a result of this new owner of the marketing. Is that right?

 

[koraks]

Kingswood now owns the "the marketing and distribution business for Eastman Kodak," as you say. But not the actual production of film? is that it?

Correct.

an Los Angeles hedge fund

Kingswood is not a hedge fund. Hedge funds don't invest in companies the way Kingswood does.

the new boxes may be a result of this new owner of the marketing. Is that right?

Unlikely.

 

[bags27]

Correct.



Kingswood is not a hedge fund. Hedge funds don't invest in companies the way Kingswood does.



Unlikely.

thanks. I see I misspoke. Private Equity.
Still, they could have brought in consultants even before they purchased it who suggested refreshing the aesthetics, though, as you can tell, I know nothing about business.

 

[MattKing]

Kodak Alaris is and was much more likely to have at hand wide ranging international photographic still film marketing and distribution experience than Kingswood is.
Kingswood is much more likely to have at hand experience with respect to access to financial capital than Kodak Alaris is.
Lack of access to capital is one of the biggest challenges for photographic still film manufacturers and marketers.

 

[koraks]

they could have brought in consultants even before they purchased it who suggested refreshing the aesthetics

Yes, it's conceivable, but not very likely. You don't send consultants (and pay for them) before you purchase a company. You start spending money (at best!) only after the deal is done. And in a case like this, it's very unlikely that the initiative for something as minor and operational as a new box design would be the initiative of the new owner. Generally, the kind of control an owner/investor exerts is more performance-oriented. They will demand a certain ROI and/or EBIT(DA) (i.e. financial performance) in a certain timeframe. They will generally be informed and consulted (but usually not the initiator) of major developments (e.g. entirely new product lines, market segmentation etc.)

New boxes is something along the lines of (in the margins of a performance review meeting):
Alaris: "oh by the way, while your coffee is being poured, look at our new boxes"
Kingswood: "ah swell, looks nice. Say, this executive who has just left, ..."
...and that'll be pretty much it as regards Kingswood.

 

[Dustin McAmera]

(I'll put the link in as code. Can't get it to work for me.)

Ilford's 'limited-edition' retro packaging.

 https://www.instagram.com/p/C_s18JktCQI/

I doubt it'll make me buy more or less of the film. I hope they had Kentmere Packaging make it (in fact, it would be nice if they made all Harman's boxes).

 

[cmacd123]

(I'll put the link in as code. Can't get it to work for me.)

Ilford's 'limited-edition' retro packaging.

 https://www.instagram.com/p/C_s18JktCQI/

I doubt it'll make me buy more or less of the film. I hope they had Kentmere Packaging make it (in fact, it would be nice if they made all Harman's boxes).

does not work for me also, although I think Instagram only shows stuff to folks who are logged into an instagram account,.

 

[Don_ih]

You don't need to be logged in. Internet search for "Instagram Ilford" and go to the appropriate result. You need to open a post in a new tab, though, to actually see it. They're not as bad a nee Twitter.

 

[Mick Fagan]

I wonder if they will have retro pricing?

In my dreams!!!!

 

[Don_ih]

I wonder if they will have retro pricing?

They should put 45-year-expired film in the boxes. I have a few rolls...

 

[JParker]

These Retro packaging initiatives from Foma (some time ago) and now Harman / Ilford photo are very nice. I like it!
It is an additional option for those who like having some retro boxes. But no one must buy it. Perfect.

But I am extremely disappointed by the new design of the Kodak films, though. Looks like it has been made by an auxiliary force instead of a skilled, experienced product designer.

 

[pentaxuser]

Things can be worse, folks ...

View attachment 377613
Helsinki, 2024

Just seen this

pentaxuser

 

[mshchem]

I wonder if they will have retro pricing?

In my dreams!!!!

Pounds, shillings, pence?

 

[Alessandro Serrao]

Apparently it's a trend to change packaging.
Ilford also is changing Fp4 and Hp5 packaging, a limited run they say...