could one-time large purchases hurt ilford, etc?

With all the turmoil of film manufacturers, I've seen a number of people state that they are going to buy a large amount of film and then freeze it. But I would think that intermittent large puchases would do more harm than good. Wouldnt a manufacturer need a steady flow of business in order to properly plan output?

If a signifigant amount of the market make large purchases, they would not need to buy any more film for a considerable amount of time. Thus creating a dry spell which could really do some damage.

I am not a business owner, or even a business person, just a concerned citizen.

Darinwc

Hi Darwin,

I certainly agree. A steady flow of smaller more frequent purchases makes more sense. Sometimes, a manufacturer introduces a new improved product, leaving the high volume purchaser stuck with a freezer full of the old out-moded product. Michael and Paula, with their lifetime supply of SuperXX film in their freezer, are an exception. SuperXX was dicontinued, and the new improved product did not live up to expectations.

Coating film is a large scale high speed process. Ilford's smallest size run is likely a roll of film that's at least 1.0 m wide, and 1.0 km long, more or less. This they cut into whatever sizes and formats they need. The total amount of film is thus huge compared to the amount of film any one individual could use in a lifetime. I doubt seriously that any of us could make a buy that would be big enough to make a blip on Ilford's radar.

I agree with you Bruce, but if we all buy a freezer full when ever a panic rumor starts I am sure it registers in their supply chain.

I would not even give it a second thought unless Bill Gates, Warren Buffet or a number of other wealthy folks join the group. My experience is that the majority of LF shooters are middle income hard working folks that do not have much free cash after their other financial commitments and as a result are pay as they go. The weekly sales oscillations normalize at the end of a fiscal year as they enter the corporate ledger as net cash is still king.

Keep shooting on your schedule and stop worrying about the LF film train leaving the station without you.

Cheers!