Innovation, novelty keep some photo studios going, others giving up

KATHMANDU, Nov 5: Around a dozen big photo studios have closed down as price of raw materials like photo paper and photo processing chemicals soared by 15 percent, raising the cost at a time when they were already finding it difficult due to heavy influx of digital technology.



Digi Plus, Janaki Color Lab of Photo Concern, Hicola Color Lab, Fuji Express, Riddhi Siddhi Color Lab are among the studios which have been closed down lately.[break]



As photo studios face survival threats, some of the studios like Studio 1 Day have added new services to lure customers and sustain in the market. "We have introduced new services of printing photo on dinner plate, tiles and wall clock apart from offering silk photo print at a reasonable price in order to encourage the customers to print their photos," said Pawan Joshi, Managing Director of Studio 1 Day.



Joshi has also mobilized email marketing and social media marketing in order to publicize his offers and attract new customers.



Under this service, customers can get their photos printed on a tile at a rate ranging from Rs 300 to Rs 650, dinner plate at around Rs 500, wall clock at Rs 400 to 600 depending upon the quality of materials used and the size of the photo.



"For tiles printing, we are importing special tiles from China as tiles available in local market are not heat resistant and does not support printing of pictures on them," informed Joshi.







Likewise, Foto Hollywood has installed Noritsu -- high quality digital image equipment -- for the first time in Nepal which allows the customers to order up to 42-inch wide and 30-feet high pictures. Foto Hollywood, which has 6 branches, also offers services like canvas printing at Rs 4 per square inch and silk printing at Rs 2.5 per square inch.



"With the introduction of digital technology, it has been easier for the people to carry their photos in storage devices and this was already hurting our business. On top of that, the price of raw materials shot up. This ate up the margin, leading to the closure of many studios," said Surendra Shah, Managing Director of Foto Hollywood and founding member of Digital Color Lab Association Nepal (DCLAN).



"As it is difficult for us to survive as a mere photo studio, we also acquired the dealership of Apple products seven months ago and we have an outlet at our main office at Durbar Marg," said Shah.



According to DCLAN, around 25 studios are on the verge of closure and 60 percent of total photo studios will be closed down within 2 years.

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