Freestyle's "Hot Deals" or harbinger of doom?

[ItsReallyDarren]

Think back to Neopan 400 in 120, then Legacy Pro 400 and 100, then Neopan 1600, then the great deal on short dated Arista Premium 100(36exp). It seems when a film is listed under the Hot Deals on Freestyle's website sooner or later it becomes discontinued.

I logged on to Freestyle to order some more Arista Premium 100 36exp, hoping to get some while it was short dated, only to see it missing among the Arista Premium lineup. I called Freestyle and spoke with Mark to find out if any more would come in only to hear that Arista Premium 100 has been discontinued. "Once sold through, will be no more."

100ft rolls and 24exp of Arista Premium are still there for now.

The last time I spoke with someone from Freestyle was back in November when they were waiting on a shipment of Arista Premium 400. Also around the same time Legacy Pro 400 started drying up. I can't recall her name but the representative said the Arista Premium films were here to stay for the foreseeable future.

We might be facing a horrible fate for Kodak Plus-X and Tri-X...paying regular price for them.

 

[Gumby]

Kodak Plus-X and Tri-X...paying regular price for them.

Worse things have happened!

 

[RayPA]

Ugh! I *just* bought a 100ft roll of the stuff this AM. I adjusted that quantity down at the last minute.


/

 

[Keith]

I think these re-branded specials that Freeestyle have been offering us for the last few years were tied directly to Kodak and Fuji's need to reduce bulk stocks.

The carnival may be over as they say!

:slightly sad but not gutted:

 

[Nikon Bob]

OP

You may have something there about paying regular price or even higher. We might be close to having to face up to what playing with a niche product entails. That would be ever higher costs. Then again the realists knew the glut could not last.

Bob

 

[PKR]

Film is made with silver. I think the cost of film is tied to the price of silver. Over the past couple of years (6 to 10 if you track this stuff), as the Dollar and Euro loose value, the cost of Gold and Silver (their value is sort of fixed) increase. The price paid for products made with gold and silver will also increase. Stock up now.


http://www.kitco.com/charts/

 

[Bob Michaels]

I have always viewed the introduction of Arista Premium and Arista Legacy Pro as signs of a impending problem. Now I did stock up as any intelligent person would do.

But, that is an indication that the economically logical production levels of Kodak, Fuji, and Ilford black and white films combined exceeds the current market needs. Film is not something that one can produce in smaller quantities. Either your production line runs or it does not. Taking delight in the fact that your manufacturer is having to "fire sale" it's production may feel good short term but is a real negative to long term availability.

I see this as a sign that one of those big three will have to eventually cease manufacture of black and white films simply because the market is no longer big enough to support all of them.

 

[ItsReallyDarren]

Yes, at the end of the day that is what sits in my mind with the recent offerings and disappearance of re-branded film. The climb in the price of silver certainly doesn't make the situation brighter.

Hopefully the manufacturers have worked out their production and inventory levels for now. Whats important is that we still have options and that we can always adapt.

I have always viewed the introduction of Arista Premium and Arista Legacy Pro as signs of a impending problem. Now I did stock up as any intelligent person would do.

But, that is an indication that the economically logical production levels of Kodak, Fuji, and Ilford black and white films combined exceeds the current market needs. Film is not something that one can produce in smaller quantities. Either your production line runs or it does not. Taking delight in the fact that your manufacturer is having to "fire sale" it's production may feel good short term but is a real negative to long term availability.

I see this as a sign that one of those big three will have to eventually cease manufacture of black and white films simply because the market is no longer big enough to support all of them.

 

[DonaldJ.]

how about just giving them a call and asking? rather then starting a worry/rumor

 

[ItsReallyDarren]

how about just giving them a call and asking? rather then starting a worry/rumor

Take a look at post #1, paragraph 2, sentence 2. I called them, Mark from Freestyle said this was news to as well because he has not heard anything about it from the company.

 

[NLewis]

If I were Fuji or Kodak, I wouldn't sell my film under generic rebranded names. The hypothesis that it was a one-time inventory drawdown makes sense to me. Film is still a profitable niche for Kodak though. The company is having problems mostly because of its legacy pension commitments.

There are, for the most part, too many films out there. Yes, we enjoy the choice, but it would probably make sense for Kodak and Fuji to trim their lines a bit more. Do we really need Velvia 100F or Kodacolor Gold? Maybe Kodak and Fuji will strike a deal, Fuji gets color transparency and Kodak gets B&W, or something like that.

 

[photogdave]

According to some, one of the reasons Agfa went under was because they underpriced their film and didn't draw enough profit from it. I recall it was about 25-30% cheaper than everything else.
i think film shooters should be prepared to pay what film is worth. I don't mind paying $6 a roll or so. I think it's pretty good value for what film gives me (quality and archival properties).

 

[sepiareverb]

There are, for the most part, too many films out there. Yes, we enjoy the choice, but it would probably make sense for Kodak and Fuji to trim their lines a bit more..

Kodak just did, and spun it as improvements to the line- One Portra not two.

 

[nightfly]

So is Portra 160NC discontinued?

 

[Brian Legge]

Only the 400 nc/vc have been discontinued as far as I know. Unless there is a much bigger marker for the slower variants, I don't know why a similar change wouldn't happen there at some point - particularly if the Portra 400 consolidation goes well and makes financial sense for them.

 

[photogdave]

Only the 400 nc/vc have been discontinued as far as I know. Unless there is a much bigger marker for the slower variants, I don't know why a similar change wouldn't happen there at some point - particularly if the Portra 400 consolidation goes well and makes financial sense for them.

Yes, and the new film promises to have less grain and more resolution than either of the old Portras.

 

[imokruok]

Film is made with silver. I think the cost of film is tied to the price of silver. Over the past couple of years (6 to 10 if you track this stuff), as the Dollar and Euro loose value, the cost of Gold and Silver (their value is sort of fixed) increase. The price paid for products made with gold and silver will also increase. Stock up now.


http://www.kitco.com/charts/

Well, it's not just the value of the dollar, but the price of silver (and gold) has surged this year on greater demand as an asset. Yeah, with the chain of distribution, this doesn't show up on store shelves immediately, but we can all bet that if the price of silver sits where it currently is for a while, it's going to have an impact - potentially very significant.

 

[bwcolor]

Film photography will certainly get much more expensive before it vanishes from the planet. I view the culling of film stock to be a positive thing. Companies focus on lines that continue to make money. If that were not done, we might find a sudden catastrophic loss of film choices.

 

[shadowfox]

Film photography will certainly get much more expensive before it vanishes from the planet.

How do you know that film will vanish?

 

[bwcolor]

If nothing else, the human race will go extinct. I use tea leaves.