Calumet

I know what you mean but Calumet, for me, has been the last bastion of brilliant Photography shops particularly for high end studio kit and I have more money probably invested in that stuff than cameras and lenses

Well - there is certainly no other similar establishment in Glasgow

Though I feel for the staff. All I can say is So what... Another poorly run business that fails to give the market what it needs.

Never heard of them

Calumet are one of the leading professional dealers in photographic equipment and materials. Their loss would be pretty similar to, say, Tesco suddenly closing.

The UK and mainland Europe are still open, so we'll see.

It's a loss to the professional market, but let's not forget it's a catastrophic loss to all the employees who suddenly have no job. Their futures will now look bleak and uncertain, so I certainly feel for their situation.

I wonder when they actually split the companies into a N American and a European operation. Did the directors see this coming a while back and wanted to ensure investors/shareholders still had something?

For those who have not see some of the stuff - this came to me late last night

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It's a real shame for the employees concerned. The London stores are very professional, and I know some of the staff moved into them after their own previous shops went bust over the past few years (eg Kingsley photographic which used to be a great shop on Tottenham Court Road). Let's hope they don't have to go through the same thing again over here.

A company closing is always going to be a loss to it's employees. I've personally been the victim of such a closure and made redundant myself in the past so I have first hand experience of this and naturally empathise.

However ... Similar to Tescos closing? I frequent photography media on a daily basis and have done for many years. I constantly hear about the BHPhoto/Adorama cabal and they don't even have a UK retail presence yet I've never heard of Calumet. Maybe that's a tell tell sign of why they have folded? not enough awareness.

After all I've never heard of them on this forum in all the 5 years I've been hanging out here, yet SRS for example have been a ever present and positive force.

Even bricks and mortar retail outfits have to keep a good web presence. SRS do this well. Maybe that the was the downfall of Calumet?

No Smeggypants, just a totally different market that they worked in. If you had wanted lighting, studio backgrounds, large format cameras, shop sized printers, etc., then you would have heard of them.

Apart from anything else, they aren't Pentax dealers, so why would you hear of them here.

However, the UK operation continues. Ken buys from them in Glasgow, I buy from them in Manchester.

The Tesco comment is just that, in relation to the size of the respective markets, it's a similar devastating loss. A major player in other words.

In the trade and professional press, Calumet is a major presence. In the US I suspect their issue was taking over the likes of Ritz (like a run down version of Jessops) who aimed at a very different market. They are somewhat invisible at the amateur/enthusiast end of the market.

After the service I received last time I was in Edinburgh I won't be going back to them.

Which is a shame as they were always a good company before.

Tesco did close its U.S concerns. No one batted an eyelid. This professional outlet you speak of, borrowed millions of dollars. it cant now repay. If it was giving its customer base what it needed. It would be open..

More info I have just received [ it does help having a source of good reliable info in New York ]

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Stuart, I was comparing what might be a comparison if Tesco closed here, not as a tiny player in the USA. They wouldn't bat an eyelid in the USA case.

It wasn't meant literally.