Film from Italy -- Ferrania starting production 2014
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When the world was green, Kodak did their own distribution, and also used the Photofinishing channel. Joes Drug store got a few rolls of film from their local photo-finisher and it came with their dally processing pickup. perhaps one roll at a time based on a weekly inventory count, and a stock of 5 rolls of each of the most popular sizes.
When I was in the business, (1970s) Kodak Canada had a 400 rolls minimum order and most film was shipped by the Brick only. You have a customer who wants 620 Tri-X you order 20 rolls and hope that you sell it off. Once you start to focus on streamlining your business, it is more retailer friendly to have a distributor who can provide somewhere between the two models.
Of course once you go into such a model, the distributor has a stake in Keeping the business, and it would cost real money to buy them out.
good distributors can really add value by making the product more accessible to customers. Freestyle is one of the folks who sells FOMA products for example, and they wholesale to other firms, example the "Holga" film sold by B&H. Distributors will hold sufficient stock that a customer can get an order quickly.
Some distributors will even drop ship.
there have been so broad hints that Ferrania is exploring how they get the product to the customer. No doubt the new folks they keep hinting about are being added to the mix because of their industry connections.
Who makes Holga film?
Before my country joined the European Union, technical equipment was 30-50% more expensive than in neighboring Germany. We got our fair share of explanations why this was the case: taxes, import duties. When we finally joined the EU, prices came waaay down, and we finally learned the truth: by joining EU, our retailers were able to order directly from big distributors and did not have to order through an extra layer in the distributor chain.
This may have formed my opinion, that there is no such thing as a good distributor, and particularly if there are multiple levels of them between manufacturer and me, the end user.
Sell it in packs of five rolls directly to a few big retailers (and some smaller retailers if they ask for it) and be done with it. Twenty years ago accounting and shipping logistics were done with pencil and paper, and I understand why Kodak wouldn't ship small volumes back then. Times have changed ...
Foma I think
If Ilford dont sell in packs of five, packs of five are a bad idea.
Ilford have HP5+ and Xp2+ in my large pharmacy if Ferrani wanna sell E6 they need to do the same. It is a chain so I assume they only need one shipment.
But Im not able to use E6 as I don't have a local lab and the post is not reliable. I stopped using Fuji in 2006 cause the loss rate was 5%! I could do drop off and collect but that would be at a lower volume.
I can home process but I don't like the chemicals.
Ilford have HP5+ and Xp2+ in my large pharmacy if Ferrani wanna sell E6 they need to do the same. It is a chain so I assume they only need one shipment.
But Im not able to use E6 as I don't have a local lab and the post is not reliable. I stopped using Fuji in 2006 cause the loss rate was 5%! I could do drop off and collect but that would be at a lower volume.
I can home process but I don't like the chemicals.
I remember back when Kodak and Fuji standardised on 5 roll propacks, discontinuing single roll distribution on many films (I'm mainly thinking 120 but some 35mm applies). In any case many retailers will split the packs. I haven't taken a deep look into why they chose to just sell in 5x packs.
We already have some info to speculate how things may be set. Given that Dave Bias is both in Impossible and Ferrania; If he's the one chosen for marketing and distribution it's quite possible that Ferrania's distribution model will be akin to Impossible's.
Impossible's distribution model seems quite succesful. I'm not into Polaroid but it's available locally, in the web, and direct from them.
I think you hit the nail on the head with the E6, and it's my opinion and I've been saying this for a while that when FILM Ferrania decides to start producing their film they should sell an option to buy a kit that is both film and developer sold as a package as part of their sales strategy.
I just hope they don't use Impossible's pricing model. I would be out on day one.
No way will I pay $20 for a roll of color film. Nor even $10. Nor even $6 (well maybe $6 for E-6)
No matter what, they are still competing with digital.
No way will I pay $20 for a roll of color film. Nor even $10. Nor even $6 (well maybe $6 for E-6)
No matter what, they are still competing with digital.
Dave Bias is in...then I would wonder if pricing would match Impossible
You can buy E6 kits already?
Id scratch mix only why would I used a kit? I normally mix up fresh and batch.
If there are not labs available they have left it too late.
Only a few people will want to home process.
And Id expect it would be expensive you will have options cheap mono or expensive colour.
They will be like Fotokemia if we don't buy it won't be there tomorrow - it is last chance saloon.
They are not I've not found a digital camera I can use - yet.
They are competing with mono.
And maybe Ilford if Ilford make a tri pack c41 colour.
It is an ecological niche.
Like the mammals had when the dinosaurs died.
There is a problem with your reasoning and I have already asked here this:
please, name the last time you bought a Ferrania made developer or any other processing chemistry?
As far as I know, at least in the UK, I have never seen or heard of any chemistry made by Ferrania and available to the public. there might have been some products available to commercial premises.
I keep my fingers crossed that they are thinking in that development in their product range (pun intended).
OK, they're not competing with digital for your purchases. But they are for the purchases of most other people in the known universe.
Didn't think about the pricing scheme, and I hope it doesn't follow Impossible! I was thinking much more about being present as they are.
Hopefully when they have settled in their tech and don't need intensive R&D they can ease up on price... Instax is much more affordable.
And talking about instax, its gotten a lot of attention lately with the release of the NeoClassic 90 and it seems to be easily available (film as well), at least it is adversised nicely in camera stores.
Hopefully when they have settled in their tech and don't need intensive R&D they can ease up on price... Instax is much more affordable.
And talking about instax, its gotten a lot of attention lately with the release of the NeoClassic 90 and it seems to be easily available (film as well), at least it is adversised nicely in camera stores.
Truth be told, I'll be happy even if all Ferrania can announce in September is a preliminary run of new E-6 Super 8 film for their cine customers. The crucial part is not the format(s) they might initially announce. It's the "new E-6 film" part that really matters.
That would be the sound of the baby elephant standing up for the first time. Walking, running, and growing to become the alpha-male in the herd can all come later in due course. First little guy just has to successfully stand up...
Ken
That would be the sound of the baby elephant standing up for the first time. Walking, running, and growing to become the alpha-male in the herd can all come later in due course. First little guy just has to successfully stand up...
Ken
OK, they're not competing with digital for your purchases. But they are for the purchases of most other people in the known universe.
You are logged into APUG not DPUG...
Whhhaaat? Might as well just go digital then. I paid WAY more than ten ($17 for the last rolls) for most of the Provia 400X I stockpiled and even the Agfa branded Provia is about eight bucks now.
Slide film almost all costs more than ten bucks a roll now. Twenty I would balk at too but I'd be pleased to have another quality offering at ten. Heck even Portra and Ektar neg films are not that much less now.
Sent from my iPhone via Tapatalk using 100% recycled electrons. Because I care.
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Id hope that to, a C41 or mono in a few years would be good as a growing up step.
Ummm Color film is already more expensive than $6 per roll right now I don't know where you're shopping...?
Oh I didn't realize someone had already said it.. lol
MattKing
Moderator
Kodak Canada's historic 400 roll minimum wasn't really much of a problem for most dealers. When you consider that a large proportion of the dealers were on Kodak's pick-up and delivery service, which meant customers could drop off their pre-paid Kodachrome one business day and pick up their developed slides or movies between one and two business days later, withlut charge, it wasn't hard to sell a lot of Kodachrome.
The chain stores also tended to pool their Kodak purchases.
The size of the "bricks" of film might be a challenge some times, but it was surprising how much film in less common sizes was sold by the local drug stores.
The chain stores also tended to pool their Kodak purchases.
The size of the "bricks" of film might be a challenge some times, but it was surprising how much film in less common sizes was sold by the local drug stores.
There is a problem with your reasoning and I have already asked here this:
please, name the last time you bought a Ferrania made developer or any other processing chemistry?
As far as I know, at least in the UK, I have never seen or heard of any chemistry made by Ferrania and available to the public. there might have been some products available to commercial premises.
I keep my fingers crossed that they are thinking in that development in their product range (pun intended).
Compared to making a modern and somewhat competitive E6 emulsion, making an E6 dev kit is trivial. There are recipes here on APUG for crying out loud. It might be a tad more complicated to make a kit of long lasting concentrates, but still: just take a quick look at the chemical structures of those dye couplers used in E6/C41 film and you know what I mean. And the dye couplers are only a small part of the whole story ...
E6 processing is available. I sympathize with those in places with no local processing but unreliable post, but here I send all mine out and have never lost a single roll in several years of doing this. Kits are also readily available. If you don't like three bath mix up your own stabilizer from formalin per PE's instructions here, also pretty readily available, and don't over use your blix - I believe the issue with the combined bleach and fix is more one of capacity or life as mixed bath than it is one of fresh blix not working as well. I can't see Ferania doing this, nor do I see any need for it, in the US at least, with reliable post to several labs available and chemicals available from Tetenal and Arista/Unicolor.
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I wasn't sure about the price of Portra and Ektar as it has been many months since I stocked the fridge so I checked. Ektar is $5.50 from B&H and Portra $6.99 (160) - $7.35 (400.) The cheapest E6 films are the Maco stuff. The Agfa rebranded Provia is $9.95 barely squeeking in under the $10 figure, but available for less (last time I bought some anyway) direct from Asia off eBay, but not a LOT less - close to $8 a roll.
People whining about $6 film are probably shooting the mass market consumer Kodak and Fuji stuff which IS available cheap. But considering the total price of everything the price for Ektar and Portra just isn't enough more to change around, considering I'd have to use different films in 35mm and 120 in that case too.
If it comes in at $15 a roll or less no whining, just buy some.
(All prices for 135-36, 120 tends to be a bit less.)
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