Topic: It's a sad day for photography in Montreal

[Francois]

I guess it had to happen one day. One of the biggest (if not the biggest) camera store in Montreal officially closed it's doors after 95 years of operation.
I learned the news this morning, they officially locked the doors yesterday.
In 2019, they had sold to the large photo chain Henry's Photo. But the parent company has not decided to pull the plug.
The photography business in Montreal was more or less split in half with Lozeau taking the northern part and Photo Service the south. But with the pandemic, combined with supply chain issues and extensive road work were just too much for the now fragile company.
In 2019, at the time where Henry's bought the store, they had 125 employees...

It was one of my favorite places to shop. They had loads of stuff and OK prices. Their staff was pretty knowledgeable.
I got countless things from there...

Here's an old photo of their store.

[Kai-san]

I'm only surprised there are any photo stores left to close. With 125 employees it must have been a large business, I suppose they did film processing and enlarging too. In my my area there is one shop that has an enthusiastic staff, they do B+W and C41 processing, scanning and printing. They have a used section, but it's mainly digital these days. In addition there is a chain store that is not very interesting. We should be supporting the few physical stores that still exists, but it's very tempting to use web shops when you're looking for something special. Every physical store closure is a real loss.

[Bryan]

That's too bad Francois, I think that's going on just about everywhere.  We still have a few good local stores that deal in film.  Glazers in Seattle has a really good selection of film, paper, chemistry, used cameras and darkroom supplies.  A store near me called Kenmore camera still has developing, used cameras, and a limited selection of chemistry and film.  I just discovered a new store in Seattle that deals only in film, it's called the Shot on Film Store.  They also do in store processing.  I haven't been in there yet but it looks like they have a great selection.  I don't think my wife wants me going in there so I'll have to sneak off without her.  She may have given them a photo of me and told them not to let me in. 

https://www.shotonfilmstore.com/

[Francois]

She may have given them a photo of me and told them not to let me in. 

🤣 You never know, but the only way to be sure is to try and pay them a visit.

This morning, there was a lot more news about the closure and it's making a lot of noise.
It turns out that the employees learned that they were out of work at the same time that the clients learned that the store was closed. There was no warning from the employer, nothing.
And to add insult to injury, when all the employees had left on the eve of the closure, the parent company sent moving vans to empty the entire store by night so that nothing would be left in the morning.
The owners of the building, the Lozeau family, even received some letters from attorneys to force them to cancel the lease "or else".

And the commercial development corporation is also very disappointed as Lozeau was their flagship store for the entire commercial street. They occupied the southern corner, the exterior was always mint, it brought in a lot of foot traffic to that section. But now it's gone.

It was still possible to make the store profitable by downsizing or simply moving next door since the building also belongs to the same family. They could  have held a big end of lease sale, but they decided to just run like thieves.

In the meantime, Google suggested me another place: Studio Argentique (https://studioargentique.ca) that is closer to home and also has great reviews. And best of all, it's a film lover's heaven! I'll have to pay them a visit.
But still, the entire Lozeau ordeal is leaving a sour taste in my mouth. I don't think I'll be buying from Henry's any time soon...

[Bryan]

That happens a lot when businesses close.  I guess they don't want the employees looting the place on their way out.  That happened to me when I was in High School.  I was working as a busboy at a restaurant when I showed up for my shift.  They said "we're closed, here's your last check", and that was the end of it.  Also, if they make the decision to close because they're loosing money, why stay open a little longer to keep loosing money.  It's a tough business decision. 

That Studio Argentique looks like an interesting store.  Don't tell my wife, shell send them my picture.