Category Archives: Economics

In a stunning display that there are markets for everything, a group of entrepeneurs have “invented” Polaroid film:

NEW YORK – A group of engineers and enthusiasts who leased an old Polaroid film factory in the Netherlands announced Monday that they had successfully reinvented instant film and will start selling packs this week.

The news gives new life to some old Polaroid cameras. The company, called The Impossible Project, will sell film for SX-70 cameras made in the ’70s as well as more recent cameras that take 600-series film.

Each film pack will cost $21 and produce eight black-and-white images. The company plans to introduce color film this summer, and expects to make 1 million packs in the first year. The film will be sold online initially, but the company expects to make it available in some stores as well.

Amazing.

On a side note:

Had this been the government running the film industry we never would have advanced beyond the Polaroid film.  Instead, we would be looking at ways to cut costs and reduce service.  Rather than re-inventing the old film, we would still be making it, selling it for $31 a pack, yielding 4 pictures per with a successful “take-rate” of about 80%.

How sweet it is.