CVS Pharmacy Send Out Service and potential business opportunity

Christopher Walrath · May 20, 2009

My next door neighbor is the manager of the CVS Pharmacy in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. She and I got into a conversation about CVS' send out processing service. She reports that CVS still sends out film to be processed. CVS sends it to someone and that someone sends it to someone else and so on. She said send out can now take up to four weeks. FOUR WEEKS to get back.

Well, I informed her that I process my own black and white film. 135 roll and 120 roll. She said she would pass it by her DM and in all likelihood she may begin to use me as a source for processing black and white if and when it comes into her store. I quoted her $5.00 per roll of 35mm and $6.00 per roll of 120. She said she would let me know but seemed very enthusiastic. If it works out and it works out well I might even extend this to other area stores. I'd need to keep the volume at a manageable level but this could go a long way to satiating G. A. S., see a movie every now and then and whatnot. I only foresee one initial investment, continous sleeving for transporting the negs with her to the store.

So, just to let you know about CVS and to plant the seed for the possibilities for side work.

Have a good night all.

Kevin Caulfield · May 20, 2009

I assume your quote is just for processing, not for printing? They would then presumably charge the customer about $10 and $12 respectively for 35mm and 120, so that they make a profit. That is probably cheaper than what they charge now, and sounds reasonable, but do you think $5 and $6 is enough to make it worthwhile to you?

Anscojohn · May 20, 2009

I cannot see this happening with a large chain. If it does, any possible profit you make shall be (or should be) sucked up by the cost of an insurance policy against lawsuit for damaged or lost film.

kodachrome64 · May 20, 2009

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Anscojohn said:
I cannot see this happening with a large chain. If it does, any possible profit you make shall be (or should be) sucked up by the cost of an insurance policy against lawsuit for damaged or lost film.

What a buzz kill.

Anscojohn · May 20, 2009

kodachrome64 said:
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What a buzz kill.

******
I guess. But having spent two decades in retail camera store management, I know the kinds of problems that can crop up. Better, perhaps, to advertise locally because then one has a better control over the disclaimer process. Eliminate the big corporation and its lawyers.

kodachrome64 · May 20, 2009

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True. I agree, it doesn't sound very practical (or something that CVS would want to do) but I didn't even think about the damn lawyers.

But hey, if you can do it and make enough money for it to be worthwhile, more power to ya!

Kevin Caulfield · May 20, 2009

Don't most labs limit their liability for lost or damaged film to simply a replacement roll? As far as I know, they do here.

Anscojohn · May 20, 2009

Kevin Caulfield said:
Don't most labs limit their liability for lost or damaged film to simply a replacement roll? As far as I know, they do here.

*****
That is the limit of liability; and provided one has a reasonable customer, and knowledgeable clerks who pass on proper instructions and give the proper claim checks stating the liability, the problems are usually non-existent. But let some SOB take his "priceless" black and white pictures to the drug store for processing and have a problem ensue, and one can be reasonably certain (in our litigious popular culture, at any rate) that his lawyer niece or nephew will show up brief-case in hand, forthwith.

bdial · May 20, 2009

Don't most labs limit their liability for lost or damaged film to simply a replacement roll? As far as I know, they do here.

That's generally the case here, in fact, I've never seen a lab that promised more than that.

However, I think the real issue is that the CVS chain could take it very negatively (no pun intended) to lose face with their customer over a mistake made by their supplier. They could quite legitimately go to the supplier for the film cost, plus ask for compensation for the impact to their customer relationship, ect.

Beyond that, the little paragraph about the liablility means nothing if the customer has the resources to hire a soliciter and start a law suit, and a desire or reason to do so.

I don't mean to throw cold water on Chris's endeaver, but John raises some good points. It could certainly be a good enterprise, but probably warrants some caution too.

Christopher Walrath · May 20, 2009

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Great give and take, guys. I have been giving this lots of thought tonight and will move forward. But this is good food for thought.

removed account4 · May 20, 2009

chris

if you do this sort of work, get professional liability insurance.
it isn't worth the trouble for you, if someone sues you for everything you have got
because you might have done something wrong. also, the amount you quoted your friend is way too low,
especially if you are hand processing the film ( and printing ?! ) i have processed and printed commercially before,
and you are going to spend a heck of a lot of time doing this.
i would make sure you get yourself a sales tax id number, as well as a waste hauler to take away your spent chemistry.
it is one thing pouring chemistry down the drain if you are a happy hobbyist but once you are taking $$$ for your endeavors
you will be liable, like a business, to " do the right thing" with all your effluence ...

good luck!!

john

MattKing · May 20, 2009

It is great being a lawyer - you get blamed for everything:rolleyes:

It is easy to disparage litigation, until you hand over your valuable negatives to someone like Christopher and, to his great regret and dismay, he does screw up, and your negatives are ruined.

It doesn't matter to you that Christopher is careful and conscientious, and that the error was one in a million, and that he is really sorry - they were your negatives.

So when you sue, Chris is going to want to have insurance in place, because one of the most important benefits of insurance is that it covers his defence costs - otherwise he may have difficulty relying on those carefully worded release and liability terms that he wisely insisted be printed on every film envelope and pick-up tag (if only the CVS clerk had actually filled out the envelope and handed out the tag before the customer left the store).

Remember, they were your negatives.

Matt

Sirius Glass · May 21, 2009

The maximum liability I have seen labs own up to is a replacement roll(s) of film. That is all I got from Qualex when they lost 3 rolls out of 7.

Steve

Anscojohn · May 21, 2009

Sirius Glass said:
The maximum liability I have seen labs own up to is a replacement roll(s) of film. That is all I got from Qualex when they lost 3 rolls out of 7.

Steve

*******
That's all you got because you did not hire a lawyer to "go after" Qualex--or better yet, have a friend or family member to do it for you at little or no cost to you, other than to your sense of integrity
Fact, is, if one is willing to bring suit; even in small claims court, you can make out like a bandit. After all, sez you to da judge sez you, those three rolls of film not only had the patent photos for your latest invention; but had your invention being held up by BigFoot, Elvis, and Amelia Earhardt, dontcha know.
Retail camera shops which I managed were owned by a large east-coast photofinisher. If one is SOB enough to be willing to make enough waves, you can get a new Hasselblad or two out of a photofinisher, despite the disclaimer and if everyone did and said everything perfectly.
Let's not forget the recent situation in D.C. where a local judge!! sued the owners of the neighborhood dry cleaner for losing his pants--sued them for ca. 50 MILLION dollars. Though the case was eventually thrown out, it cost mom and pop close to a hundred thousand dollars in legal fees.

BobNewYork · May 21, 2009

Unfortunately it probably isn't worth your while Chris. Insurance would probably run $200 per month or more, (that's 40 rolls per month to cover just that cost)That 40 rolls will also never be 8 runs of five each because they'll all require different dev. times; and when you look into waste disposal you'll likely find that the State DEC requires you to dispose of wash water as hazardous waste - and it doesn't take long to fill a 55 gal drum with that.

As to the product liability, you'll also find that the films only become "irreplaceable and exceeedingly valuable" once they're lost or damaged.

Sorry to pour cold water on the idea, but the days have long since passed when reasonable people expected reasonable best efforts.

Bob H

mjs · May 21, 2009

The CVS closest to my house sends their film out; one slightly further away still processes their own, in house. Likewise, the older Wal-mart in town processes their own film, the newer one on the other side of town sends it out.

None of them do their B&W in house, though.

removed account4 · May 21, 2009

most of the drug store chains that were sending through qualex will probably be sending to fuji down the
road ... they are one of the few large processors left ... and fuji sends to dwaynes ...
seems strange that it took 4 weeks to have b/w film processed through dwaynes, usually
it gets done + returned in 2 weeks ...

Sirius Glass · May 21, 2009

Anscojohn said:
*******
That's all you got because you did not hire a lawyer to "go after" Qualex--or better yet, have a friend or family member to do it for you at little or no cost to you, other than to your sense of integrity
Fact, is, if one is willing to bring suit; even in small claims court, you can make out like a bandit. After all, sez you to da judge sez you, those three rolls of film not only had the patent photos for your latest invention; but had your invention being held up by BigFoot, Elvis, and Amelia Earhardt, dontcha know.
Retail camera shops which I managed were owned by a large east-coast photofinisher. If one is SOB enough to be willing to make enough waves, you can get a new Hasselblad or two out of a photofinisher, despite the disclaimer and if everyone did and said everything perfectly.
Let's not forget the recent situation in D.C. where a local judge!! sued the owners of the neighborhood dry cleaner for losing his pants--sued them for ca. 50 MILLION dollars. Though the case was eventually thrown out, it cost mom and pop close to a hundred thousand dollars in legal fees.

What I did do after trying to work with Qualex many times, I worked with Costco and convinced them to cancel the contract with Qualex. Once the contract was canceled, I called the manager at Qualex, who I had tried to get to request a search for my negatives and print, to tell him what I had done. He said that he wished that he had listened to me and helped me because my response cost him his job.

Steve

Christopher Walrath · May 21, 2009

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I appreciate all of the feedback.

At this point (if it goes through) it will in all likelihood be a trickle at best. Debbie and I are going to try it through her store and see how it goes. As to disposal of chemistry it won't be much than I already do presently so I am not concerned with that.

As to legalities I will probably put the disclaimer on the envelopes and let it go there. I will reinburse a roll for a roll with free development of that roll. Like if something happened they want to give me more business anyway. Can't foresee screwing up but anything is, of course, possible.

We're just going to tryt it out and see where it goes from there.

Sirius Glass · May 21, 2009

Christopher Walrath said:
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I appreciate all of the feedback.

At this point (if it goes through) it will in all likelihood be a trickle at best. Debbie and I are going to try it through her store and see how it goes. As to disposal of chemistry it won't be much than I already do presently so I am not concerned with that.

As to legalities I will probably put the disclaimer on the envelopes and let it go there. I will reinburse a roll for a roll with free development of that roll. Like if something happened they want to give me more business anyway. Can't foresee screwing up but anything is, of course, possible.

We're just going to tryt it out and see where it goes from there.

Best of luck with this. I just wish I had thought of it first!

Steve

Anscojohn · May 21, 2009

Sirius Glass said:
What I did do after trying to work with Qualex many times, I worked with Costco and convinced them to cancel the contract with Qualex. Once the contract was canceled, I called the manager at Qualex, who I had tried to get to request a search for my negatives and print, to tell him what I had done. He said that he wished that he had listened to me and helped me because my response cost him his job.

Steve

*******
Now that's "goin' after!" And you didn't even have to talk to lawyers!!

GGardner · May 21, 2009

Good luck in this endeavor -- you've piqued my interest with a bunch of questions: How many b&w rolls do they see now? Does this store sell B&W film? Is it usual for a manager at a chain store like CVS (is it a franchise or corporate-owned?) to be able to make their own product/service stocking decisions? e.g. if I made my own, say, shampoo, could I can some random CVS to stock it locally?

Let us know how this works out!

Tim McGraw · May 21, 2009

The CVS in my area is no longer sending out film.
Done away with service as of March.
I called today and found out, so I guess it's wally World and Dewayne's for the Kodachrome, I still have about 10 rolls of kodachrome 25 to shoot up.
I better hurry !

Ektagraphic · May 22, 2009

How much black and white send out does that CVS get?

Christopher Walrath · May 22, 2009

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Very little if any by here estimation. As I mentioned above, it's just another service to offer her customers. Or, rather, an alternative.

CVS Pharmacy Send Out Service and potential business opportunity

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