| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Photographic products and services |
| Founded | 1918 |
| Headquarters | Beltsville, Maryland, United States |
| Key people | David M. Ritz (Chairman) Stephen M. LaMastra (President) Tom Hermann (CFO) Richard Tranchida (EVP) |
| Website | www.ritzpix.com |
Ritz Camera & Image is a photographic retail and photofinishing specialty store, headquartered in Beltsville, Maryland. The company currently owns and operates a chain of approximately 300 locations throughout the United States. While the company has maintained the names of other retailers it has acquired such as Wolf Camera, Kits Cameras, Inkley’s, The Camera Shop, Inc., Cameras West, and PROEX, the stores are all owned and operated by Ritz Camera (officially now known as Ritz Camera & Image, LLC). Ritz Camera & Image (the retail stores) were affiliated with marine and boat supply store Boaters World, until the chain was liquidated during bankruptcy.[1]
Contents |
The family-owned company (Ritz Camera Centers, Inc., predecessor in interest to Ritz Camera & Image, LLC) was founded as a portrait studio in 1918 by Benjamin Ritz, in the Ritz Hotel Atlantic City, New Jersey.[2] In 1936, Benjamin and his brother Edward opened the first Ritz film-processing lab in Washington, DC. Ritz Camera is currently headed by Edward's son, David Ritz.
Ritz Camera Centers, Inc. owed much of its expansion to the acquisition of its competitors. Ritz Camera's largest acquisition was Wolf Camera, which it acquired out of bankruptcy in 2001. Wolf Camera's financial difficulty was largely due to its own unprofitable $64.5 million acquisition of the 450-store Fox Photo chain from Eastman Kodak.
Wolf Camera had grown to approximately 700 locations, half of which had been closed by the time it was acquired by Ritz.
After the acquisition of Wolf Camera, Ritz Camera Centers claimed nearly 1,200 camera store locations. Due to the decline of film and with the strained economy, the company closed a number of stores between 2002 and 2005. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on February 22, 2009.
Ritz Camera was the first chain photo-finishers to offer 4x6 prints from 35mm film, as well as free bordered prints as standard. Ritz Camera is also the first national chain to offer 4.5x6, commonly known as 6D, prints. Unlike the traditional 4x6 prints used for film, Ritz's 6D prints reflect the different aspect ratio of 4:3 digital images. Ritz stores stock 6D sized frames and albums.
In July 2003 Ritz Camera introduced Ritzpix.com, which also offers customers online ordering and in-store pickup within an hour. Ritzpix.com is currently powered by Lucidiom. In 2010, customers had an option on ritzpix.com to have an online order delivered next day to their home at no extra charge.
In May 2006 Ritz Camera announced a partnership with YesVideo to start offering same day DVD Transfers in select stores nationwide. These stores can transfer VHS, SVHS, MiniDv, Digital 8, and digital media to DVD's in about the time any particular tape takes to play.[3]
In 2007 and early 2008, Ritz began installing Oki and Xerox equipment in their locations to enable the production of hard-back photo books, photo calendars and custom greeting cards by customers via in-store kiosks or through RitzPix.com for in-store pick up. Ritz, along with Motophoto, are the only two national retailers to offer these services in a one-hour lab.
Beginning in 2008, Ritz began installing lamination/mounting machines in many of their stores to offer foamcore mounting and laminating up to 24x36 inch prints in store.
In February 2010, Ritz started offering Metallic Printing up to 30x40 size on Kodak Professional Endura Metallic Paper.
In May 2010, Ritz Camera started the Ritzpix Network, which for up to $20/month in imaging products, customers could get up to $100 off any qualifying camera. After multiple request from customers, Ritz Camera & Image created the Ritz & Wolf Photo Patrol. Photo Patrol consist of Private Tutoring, 4 FREE Photography Classes with camera purchase, and 2 hr. seminar classes.
In 1999, David Ritz and others founded Ritz Interactive, Inc., an Irvine, California-based e-commerce company formed to bring the retail store brands to the internet. Despite the fact that the two companies share warehouse space and some personnel, Ritz Interactive and Ritz Camera Centers are officially separate companies.
In 2003, Amazon.com formed a sales alliance with Ritz Interactive, Inc., in a deal to broaden the online retail giant's selection of camera products and accessories.[4] In December 2008, it was discovered that Ritz Interactive engaged in legal bribery in an attempt to curry positive amazon reviews with its customers.[5]
According to the Wall Street Journal, Ritz Interactive Inc., which operates the websites for such retailers as Ritz Camera and Boaters World, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on August 19, 2011. The Irvine, Calif., company reported assets of about $809,000 and debts of $7.2 million in its bankruptcy petition, filed Friday with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Santa Ana, Calif. Court papers show Ritz Interactive’s executive committee of its board of directors deemed the Chapter 11 filing “in the best interests” of the company, its creditors and stakeholders. Court papers show that David Ritz holds an 18.55% stake in the company, while the Fred H. Lerner & Carol A. Lerner Family Trust hold an 18.19% stake. (Fred Lerner is the company’s chief executive and president.)Neither Lerner nor the company’s bankruptcy attorney was immediately available for comment Monday. Among Ritz Interactive’s debts are a $3.55 million secured claim held by Ritz Camera. Ritz Interactive’s top unsecured trade creditors include American Express, owed about $434,000; Federal Express, owed nearly $104,000; and Google, owed more than $45,000.
On February 22, 2009, Ritz Camera Centers, Inc. filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Chief Restructuring Officer Marc Weinsweig cited the 2008 ongoing recession caused Ritz's 2008 holiday sales to be "materially lower" than a year earlier. Boater's World also suffered heavy losses in 2008 as gas prices soared.[6] On April 2, 2009, it announced the closure of more than 300 stores nationwide and the liquidation of its Boaters World subsidiary in an attempt to reorganize and emerge from bankruptcy.[7]
On July 21, 2009, Reuters reported that a group called "RCI" had agreed to purchase the firm's remaining 375 stores for $33.1 million; the group included David Ritz. The group said it would attempt to keep all 375 stores open. The purchase agreement required approval of the bankruptcy court which was scheduled to hear the case on July 23.[8]
In November 2009, the new company, Ritz Camera & Image, LLC (RCI) opened five new stores, with a total open of about 300, with a wider range of products, including televisions, compact laptop computers, and smartphones.[9]