Kodak Expands Its Imaging Portfolio
P. N. Raghuvir, Vice President- Marketing,
Kodak India Pvt. Ltd
Never one to be out of sight, Kodak now has launched
schemes to make photo printing and other value added services easily available to the consumer.
Mathew Thottungal interviews P. N. Raghuvir, Vice President- Marketing of Kodak India Pvt. Ltd to fi nd out more about the services Kodak has to offer.
Companies find ways to increase profi ts beyond cutting costs, in order to survive in today’s challenging environment. This automatically implies that it is pertinent for print providers, digital imaging vendors to
focus on a superior customer experience to help drive
revenues. Comment
We completely agree with this statement. While cost is still the focus, we understand that superior customer experience, is the way we stand apart from the rest. Kodak has been concentrating on this for quite some time now. For example, our initiative is evident in emerging new channels such as Modern Trade. Kodak Express outlets in various formats have been installed in shops such as Croma, Reliance Digital, Hamley’s etc. The motive here is to bring a superior printing experience to consumers at the place they shop. New products such as Royal Luminous Paper and Photo Book paper have been availed to provide a better end result to consumers.
Social networking sites are a popular platform on which users share their images. To make this experience easier, Kodak has launched cameras with a ‘one touch’ upload feature. We have seen our market share increase in the last few months, and as per the latest GfK report, we continue to have a
strong #2 share in digital cameras.
The market for specialty photo applications and merchandise is strong enough to generate revenue streams, as well as strong return of investment. How does Kodak view this opportunity, especially with its innovative Apex Dry Labs and Digi Album Pro Version 3.0 to provide solutions to garner revenues for providers?
The market for photo printing and applications are growing and generate strong ROI. This has been made possible because of the introduction of products like the APEX dry lab. These enable retailers to offer a wide product range and numerous services such as prints, photo books, collages, calendars
etc. with a small investment and retail footprint. This enables retailers to open outlets at high-traffic locations such as malls. Existing retailers can renovate their outlets and dedicate more space to retailing or for a studio, thus improving profi tability.
What is exciting at the Photofair’11 for Kodak, and what is the strategy adopted?
We are unveiling a range of new products at Photofair 2011. In our consumer business, the important new products we are introducing are :-
1. Kodak Photo Booth : A new and innovative concept aimed at creating and widening the market for instant prints at events. Products such as PYNK will allow retailers to offer new and exciting products to consumers easily.
2. Two new Color Negative Papers : National roll out of two new papers – Kodak Photo Book Paper and Kodak Luminous Paper.
3. Kodak Pulse : This is a revolutionary touchscreen WiFi enabled digital frame. It has its personal e-mail ID, to enable consumers send pictures wirelessly to the frame from any device.
For the first time in India, we will be showcasing the Kodak Nexpress Digital Press at a photo exhibition.
Kodak customized solutions to drive photo products for retailers is path breaking, but it is basically
centered around weddings. How do you propose to enlarge the activity while helping retailers to garner volumes via a simple click of a button. Comment
While stressing on weddings as a segment – mainly because of its vastness – we have also maintained a focus on the consumer segment. As you pointed out, we are driven to help retailers garner volumes through simple, one-click type solutions. A few examples of these activities:
1. Introduction and consistent marketing of Dry Minilabs and kiosks that enable consumers to make prints, photo books etc. easily.
2. Introduction of Kodak’s range of Internet friendly Digital Cameras which enable easy image sharing.
3. Introduction of Kodak Photo Booth and services like PYNK at Photofair 2011.
Kodak’s mission has always been to help consumers and customers “make, move and manage images and information in life and in work”. All our products and strategies are moulded around this idea.
