alfredian
Well-known
I went to local (Rockville, Maryland, USA) Calumet/Penn Photo store on Rockville Pike to pick up 5-6 rolls of Ektar/Portra I dropped off a week ago. I paid in advance - shows up on my bank statement, but the place was shuttered and dark. Single-page generic letter from CEO Garcia plus another one-paragraph note said "after 75 years Calumet is closing." The closing was as of Wednesday 12th March.
News clippings (on-line) state that Calumet filed under USA Chapter 7 (liquidation, not reorganization) as of Thursday morning. News items referred to employee Tweets & FB postings that there was absolutely no warning/advance notice. Employees had personal items stranded in the stores, now locked up. Many customers have gear they'd handed over for cleaning or repair, and people who'd rented high-end professional gear are now stuck with gear they can't return, and more to the point, deposits they need to get back.
One item alluded to an unofficial teaser that hinted "selected locations may reopen".
Locally, in the last 2-3 years, Ritz Camera folded into Penn Camera which in turn folded into Calumet Photo which, apparently, has just folded. I can get raw film from the places in NY City or Hollywood, but quo vadis developing/printing/scanning?--alfredian
News clippings (on-line) state that Calumet filed under USA Chapter 7 (liquidation, not reorganization) as of Thursday morning. News items referred to employee Tweets & FB postings that there was absolutely no warning/advance notice. Employees had personal items stranded in the stores, now locked up. Many customers have gear they'd handed over for cleaning or repair, and people who'd rented high-end professional gear are now stuck with gear they can't return, and more to the point, deposits they need to get back.
One item alluded to an unofficial teaser that hinted "selected locations may reopen".
Locally, in the last 2-3 years, Ritz Camera folded into Penn Camera which in turn folded into Calumet Photo which, apparently, has just folded. I can get raw film from the places in NY City or Hollywood, but quo vadis developing/printing/scanning?--alfredian
