West Yorkshire Cameras, one of the UK’s most popular photographic dealers, has announced it is closing its doors after 12 years.
An announcement was made on Monday (4 November) on the Leeds-based shop’s website.
Owner Howard Parker said the shop would close in November but would continue with online sales until early next year.
He said: “This has been a difficult decision. After an incredible 12-year journey, West Yorkshire Cameras has reached the end of the roll. We are closing.
“Sunday the 17th of November will be the last day the shop will be open to the public. After this, we will continue to operate online as usual whilst we wind down our stock with the intention to close completely by February 2025.
“All of us at West Yorkshire Cameras want to remain a part of the film photography community going forward, so as we finish everything up, we are still committed to providing quality, honest service that we’ve built the shop around for the last decade.”
Launched in 2012, West Yorkshire Cameras quickly built a reputation thanks to its wide range of stock, with the store’s website updated daily.
The store also announced that there would be a goodbye sale from Sunday 24 November until Sunday 22 December, with discounts starting at 10% off the first week and ending with 50% off in the week before Christmas.
The requirement to source, assess, acquire, process, repair and sell tens of thousands of pounds of quality stock every month is a labour and capital-intensive task
“Beginning at 00:01 on Sunday 24th November with our traditional 10% off, every week the discount will increase by 10% increments up to a maximum of 50% off. It will apply to all stock – new and second hand,” Parker said in a post on the West Yorkshire Cameras website.
“Because we are totally clearing out the shop, we’re going to work our butts off to make sure every single thing in our shop is available for sale on that date, no holding back.”
Parker said he and the shop’s team of “camera nerds” had had to deal with rising costs and an increasing workload in order to meet them.
He said: “The requirement to source, assess, acquire, process, repair and sell tens of thousands of pounds of quality stock every month is a labour and capital-intensive task. It’s true that we are really busy, but we have to be, just to stand still. It takes a toll on all of us to manage that amount of demand, on both equipment coming in and orders going out.”
The store will also be hosting a leaving party at the Santiago Bar in Leeds on Saturday 16 November from 5pm.
I'm a New Zealander who has been living in London since the mid-1990s, shooting film seriously since the year 2000. Kosmo Foto was launched in 2012 and has since become a film brand, with the release of my first films Kosmo Foto Mono 35mm (2017) and Kosmo Foto Mono 120 (2019).
I’m doing everything I can to promote film photography in the 21st Century, and help it survive and thrive. If you want to write something for Kosmo Foto, please drop me a line at foto.dowling@gmail.com.
