PhotoBox Invests in Kodak Digital Printing

Kodak nexpress 2100 Digital Production Color Press Takes Photography To New Levels Of Quality

The Eastman Kodak Company reports that PhotoBox in Park Royal, London has installed a Kodak Nexpress 2100 digital production press with a fifth imaging unit and the Kodak Nexpress intelligent glossing solution plus a Kodak Nexglosser glossing unit.

The investment will drive the award-winning firm's business strategy to expand its leadership role as a provider of on-line digital photographic services.

PhotoBox has achieved impressive growth under the direction of Graham Hobson, CEO and Mark Chapman, Managing Director.

It was founded in 2000 to tap into the increasing popularity of digital photography and Internet-based image storage and delivery services.

The firm's offerings enable people to store and share their photographs over the Internet for free, along with the option of having photographic prints or gifts delivered to their door.

The entrepreneurs have grown the business by choosing a highly skilled staff and the right technology.

"Each year we have doubled in size and have gone from a staff of two up to 55 employees today".

"This rapid and ongoing expansion required that we carefully consider market trends in relation to our investment in digital technology," explains Graham Hobson.

"Consequently, we bought the Nexpress 2100 press at an opportune time in our company's growth." The capacity to handle increasing job volumes also prompted the acquisition.

A large share of PhotoBox's product turnover is in the greeting card and calendar market.

During peak periods, such as Christmas, the busy firm was outsourcing very high volumes and needed to rely on external print providers to keep up with the flood of orders.

PhotoBox urgently needed a solid technical solution that could reliably handle its' increasing job volume.

Graham Hobson admits that he and his partner had "some preconceived notions" about digital technology when they first began to evaluate the various solutions on the market.

"But then we saw first hand what Nexpress 2100 press could do for us and we were sold!" he states.

"The Nexpress 2100 press gives us superior photographic quality and a better product for a very affordable price." Following the installation, Hobson has carefully monitored the monthly operating costs.

"Agreeably there is a higher initial cost, but running costs are looking good".

"Over the last few months since installation, I can honestly say that we have seen a 300% return on our investment over that period," says Hobson.

"We are delighted - the Nexpress 2100 is has been making us money from day 1." The Nexpress 2100 press has proven to be extremely cost effective on short run full colour jobs.

Hobson notes that there is virtually no waste of consumables, and the high speed and flexibility of substrates provide greater choice of design.

"The Nexpress 2100 press does not depend on click charges, which matters a great deal for us and well suits our business," explains Hobson.

"In the card and calendar business you do not always cover the full page".

"We offer a very wide range of print sizes but now we can image on as low as A4 sheets on this digital press and not just the larger sizes." The flexibility of the Nexpress 2100 has enabled PhotoBox to satisfy the increasing demand for creativity from its customers, while offering greater possibilities than any of its competitors.

PhotoBox are now in the process of planning a new initiative to produce fully customised hardbound coffee table books.

With the present trend for personal choice and presentation, customers have shown a strong interest in the opportunity to upload their personal photograph collections and have them presented in personalized, highly desirable, gift form such as calendars up to A3 size, packs of personalised greeting cards and postcards.

The Nexpress 2100 press with Nexglosser glossing unit will enable PhotoBox to deliver superior added value to their customers range of products.

"The Nexglosser glossing unit gives perfect, durable high gloss for posters and high quality photographs and is also environmentally friendly," says Hobson.

"With the intelligent glossing solution we are able to offer our customers high-gloss materials, which is particularly desirable for this sector." The future looks promising, and profitable, for PhotoBox".

"We believe that, very quickly, the Kodak Nexpress 2100 digital production colour press will constitute one third of our revenue and by the middle of next year it will have doubled," concludes Graham Hobson.

"We could be looking at repeating the investment in the near future.".

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