Harman Technology purchased by Pemberstone ventures LTD

[Roger Hicks]

Wow, this thread needs a bit of balance.

Folks, a bunch of people with a lot of money SEES the potential of young people using more film.

This is a great news!

I say 'Go Ilford!' with a new wind on your sails!

No.

They say they do. In the short term. Lauffray and Colin have it right.

I wish them every success, and will work to help them. But to see them as inevitably being photographic visionaries, instead of possibly being short-term financial gluttons, is naive. They may have friends who can sell on the Ilford site for housing. Have you ever been there? I have. It's big.

I'm happy to work on the assumption that they are REALLY ready to back B+W film, paper and chemicals. But as you say, this thread needs balance, not pie-in-the-sky dreaming.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Nokton48]

"Our new owners will assist us to connect more effectively to this younger generation in the future, and we will prioritise this as our main goal over the next five years"

Since they are doing very well is this surprising?

 

[sevo]

They may have friends who can sell on the Ilford site for housing. Have you ever been there? I have. It's big.

The current (or now past) owners will have asked for more than the Ilford property value (or they could have disbanded with a higher personal profit here and now), so the immediate plan of the buyers must be to keep the company alive and profitable. But being owned by a VC investor might take a bad turn the next time film drops out of fashion - in a crisis they are doubtlessly more likely to pull their exit option of selling the site than the past manager-owners...

 

[Roger Hicks]

The current (or now past) owners will have asked for more than the Ilford property value (or they could have disbanded with a higher personal profit here and now), so the immediate plan of the buyers must be to keep the company alive and profitable. But being owned by a VC investor might take a bad turn the next time film drops out of fashion - in a crisis they are doubtlessly more likely to pull their exit option of selling the site than the past manager-owners...

The key word was "friends". No, I don't think the new buyers are cheerfully able to corrupt the local authority, but alas the possibility exists. When you are dealing with people whose only interest is money, then their only interest is money. As I say, I assume the new owners are not like that. But equally, unlike the management buy-out team, their primary commitment is not necessarily to B+W photography.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Ranchu]

It's a bust out. Everybody switch to Kodak, and let them watch their sales keel over and cough.

When you are dealing with people whose only interest is money, then their only interest is money. As I say, I assume the new owners are not like that.

That's a pretty slim possiblity, almost nonexistent..

 

[xayraa33]

Wow, this thread needs a bit of balance.

Folks, a bunch of people with a lot of money SEES the potential of young people using more film.

This is a great news!

I say 'Go Ilford!' with a new wind on your sails!

This is like CBS buying Fender musical instruments in January of 1965.

Beat groups were big back then, so the sales of amps and electric guitars were a highly profitable venture.

Let us hope the quality of Ilford products stays the same.

 

[Rayt]

I have been shooting Foma and Adox and like their films so if there is a post Kodak and Ilford then it isn't the end of the world. But why can't these smaller companies make a decent 400iso film? I am just concerned over HP5+ mostly.

 

[colyn]

Same load of garbage we heard when digital came along..."O NOOOOO.. FILM IS DEAD!!!!"

It would be nice if the dooms dayers would go away...

I said it then and I'll say it again.....film IS NOT dead....

 

[Rayt]

Same load of garbage we heard when digital came along..."O NOOOOO.. FILM IS DEAD!!!!"

It would be nice if the dooms dayers would go away...

I said it then and I'll say it again.....film IS NOT dead....

As a 100% film shooter these threads don't bother me because it is clear film is still widely available with ample choices. It is those persistent lies that X-ray exposure from carry on luggage ruins it and then say digital is the solution irks me to no end.

 

[JChrome]

Considering that all of this is utter speculation, I don't really see that much reason to get heated about it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[andersju]

Speaking of Ilford, this was just announced: ADOX acquires Ilford´s medium scale coating line (nice video too)

"In order to develop and produce a larger variety of analog products in the future ADOX has acquired Ilford´s 52cm medium scale coating machine in Marly, Switzerland in February 2015.

Having in house coating capabilities not only closes a gap and make ADOX a full analog factory- they also enable us to make all the products we ever dreamed of but never could due to high minimum coating volume restrictions."

The timing is however "pure coincidence" according to this APUG thread.

 

[sevo]

The timing is however "pure coincidence" according to this APUG thread.

More than that - there is no causality at all between the two events. That is the OTHER Ilford, that is, the (now closed) Cibachrome colour paper makers from Switzerland.

 

[Antielectrons]

I refuse to panic about this news... Was printing a week ago on the new MGIV FB Classic. What excellent paper.

 

[JHutchins]

Probably unrelated but...

http://www.adox.de/Photo/adox-acquires-ilfords-medium-scale-coating-line/

edited to add, -- whoops, I'm the idiot who didn't look a few posts up...

 

[Skiff]

This means good news as someone is willing to invest in the future of Analogue. Yipee.

Exactly.
1. Pemberstone is neither a bank nor a venture capital firm.
They are a private equity firm, and that is a big big difference. And if you look at in what companies they have invested, most are small, innovative companies in interesting markets.
Like Ilford, which is a profitable company, a market leader in BW, and in an again growing BW market (that are all saying, Kodak, Adox, Foma, the big distributors).
A perfect investment for a sustainable investor at the right time.
2. Only three persons have left Ilford, all others stay.
3. I trust the Ilford management that they have carefully looked for an investor who is really interested in strenghtening the business. The Ilford management are not idiots to give the company to someone who wants to ruin it.
4. The target to get more young people interested in film is right. And that has nothing to do at all with Lomography. Most young photographers have interest in normal photography.

So, be relaxed.

 

[photomoof]

"normal photography"

Now there is something to define... 😱

 

[HHPhoto]

Exactly.
1. Pemberstone is neither a bank nor a venture capital firm.
They are a private equity firm, and that is a big big difference. And if you look at in what companies they have invested, most are small, innovative companies in interesting markets.
Like Ilford, which is a profitable company, a market leader in BW, and in an again growing BW market (that are all saying, Kodak, Adox, Foma, the big distributors).
A perfect investment for a sustainable investor at the right time.
2. Only three persons have left Ilford, all others stay.
3. I trust the Ilford management that they have carefully looked for an investor who is really interested in strenghtening the business. The Ilford management are not idiots to give the company to someone who wants to ruin it.
4. The target to get more young people interested in film is right. And that has nothing to do at all with Lomography. Most young photographers have interest in normal photography.

So, be relaxed.

+1.

And furthermore:
So far in the end Harman technology belonged to banks. When the management buy out took place in 2004 of course the managers had not enough private capital of their own, they had to borrow it from banks.
If something would have gone wrong, the creditors, the banks would have been the decisive factor.

Now instead of the banks a private equity company with experience in running small, innovative firms is in responsibility.
So in fact not so much has changed.
Again "much ado about nothing" here in the forum and in other forums.
Don't worry, just use the time better and go out shooting (with Ilford film, if you like it).

Cheers, Jan

 

[Dpingr1]

4. The target to get more young people interested in film is right. And that has nothing to do at all with Lomography. Most young photographers have interest in normal photography.

So, be relaxed.

Purely anecdotal, but encouraging nonetheless: In a camera store in Pontiac, Michigan last week to buy some chemicals, I witnessed something that used to be very common around this time of year. A teenager with her mother were buying the things she needed for her analog photography class (an SLR, lens, film, other items.) She was no trendy Lomographer -- she was very enthusiastic about learning how to shoot film. Made me feel good to see this, even though it was only one kid. Excited about B&W film at 16 is a good thing to see!