Lifetouch Photography Closing Two Chattanooga Operations; 383 to be Laid Off

image: Lifetouch management just "expressed itself" to some of its workers - GTFO

This time it was a merger rather than outsourcing which caused a mass layoff action. Here is the Columbus Republic with the details:

The Lifetouch photography company is cutting 383 jobs in Chattanooga as it closes two facilities acquired in its recent purchase of longtime competitor Olan Mills.

A spokesman for Eden Prairie, Minn.-based Lifetouch said Monday that the two locations to be closed over the next several months, a photography lab and pre-press facility and a separate printing facility, were acquired when Lifetouch bought Olan Mills in November.

The article didn't give many other details, but I found this little tidbit from Wikipedia about the company to be interesting:

In 1978, 100 percent of the company's ownership was transferred to its employees, and it now promotes itself as the largest employee-owned company in the photography industry.

So I guess the "owners" of the company didn't want any more competition. Actually, it's amazing that in this modern age of digital photography that such a company is even still viable.


Bonus: Portrait photography, like Def Leppard, seems SO 1980s