BLAST FROM THE PAST: Fotomat (story has a twisty ending)
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| Photo: The Urbanist.com |
When film photography was used in the old days, it meant that you had to drop it off to get it developed. Yes kids, his is how photographs were made before digital cameras. Unless you had your own dark room, a person was left with one option: taking the film to a store (drug, grocery, or camera store store). That is until Fotomat hit the scene.
Fotomat Corporation was founded in 1965 by Preston Fleet, a rich dude who was into aviation. The company got its start when Preston met Clifford Graham, a serial entrepreneur. Preston was looking for a business opportunity. When he met Clifford (who had a reputation for dubious business practices), Clifford told him about something he saw in Florida. It was a drive-up kiosk that people would drop off film for development and then they would return the next day to pick up their photos. The idea originated with Charles Brown who opened a location in 1965. Clifford and Preston decided to buy out Charles’ company and arranged for him to receive a royalty as part of the business arrangement. Preston and Clifford proceeded to create the Fotomat Corporation in 1967.
Within the first 18 months, they had 1,800 Fotomat sites. The drive-up kiosks were painted bright gold which resulted in people associating it with Kodak. Kodak filed a lawsuit that forced Fotomat to change its design in 1970. In 1971, Clifford was forced out of the company for misusing company money on personal spending, including payments to political campaigns that included President Richard Nixon. After Clifford was kicked out, Preston continued to expand the company. By 1980 there were over 4,000 Fotomat locations. They were wildly popular because it made it so convenient for people to drive up, drop off their film and then pick it up their photos later. In 1980, Fotomat was acquired by Konishiroku Photo Industry, better known as Konica.
The demise of Fotomat started when one-hour photo mini labs came on the scene. Grocery stores, drug stores, and independent store owners looking to start their own one-hour photo lab could do so with as little as $50,000-$100,000 investment in the equipment. One-hour mini labs exploded from 600 locations in 1980 to over 14,000 in 1988. It killed Fotomat’s business who could not compete with them, nor did they have the space in their kiosks to install the equipment.
Fotomat tried to diversify by offering the service of converting home movies to VHS video tape and even offering VHS rental during the VCR boom. But the writing was on the wall. By 1990, Fotomat was down to 800 locations and by 2009 the company ceased all operations. By 2009, one-hour mini labs were also becoming a relic because of the popularity of digital photography. When Fotomat disappeared some of the their locations were sold and repurposed as drive-ups for coffee business, smoothie stands, cigarette stores - you name it.
| An old Fotomat converted into a retail stand. Photo: Snapshots of History, Quora |
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| Repurposed Fotomat as a cigarette stand. Photo: Vintage Everyday |
In case you’re wondering whatever happened to Clifford and Preston:
After Clifford was ousted, he started a bogus gold mining operation. He was accused
of fraud, wire fraud, and tax evasion in 1986. He mysteriously disappeared and
has never been located. Authorities suspect he was killed by one of the
investors he swindled. The US government still has an open criminal case against him and he's a wanted man.
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| Clifford Graham and his wife in 1967. Photo: San Diego Reader |
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| Preston Fleet (standing) with his dad, Reuben Fleet. Photo: Find a Grave.com |
As for Preston: He lived in San Diego and enjoyed his wealth. He co-founded the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center and Space Museum in San Diego to honor his dad who WWI pilot, trainer, and an aviation pioneer. Preston went on to invent Omnimax film projection which was installed in theaters all over the world by their Canadian manufacturer, IMAX. Preston passed away in 1991 at the age of 61 of cancer. If you enjoy watching movies in IMAX, you have Preston to thank.
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| IMAX theater in Branson, MO. Photo: Jen Around the World |
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