Why Bronica went out of business in 2004.

1. RIP Bronica

3. Bronica used
to be one of
the dominant
players in the
medium
format
segment of
the camera
industry.

5. The cameras were mostly used for
wedding, studio and portrait photography.

6. Bronica died in 2004.

7. quot;Since the advent of digital
photography, medium format
sales have declined at a rapid
pace. Imports today are just a
fraction of what they were even
two years ago“
// Mr. Takashi Inoue, president of
Tamron USA (Tamron owned
Bronica)

8. quot;For Bronica, that slip has been
faster since our core customer
base, portrait and wedding
photographers, has adapted well
to digital SLR equipment.quot;

10. quot;These photographers are now
providing customers with a
quality and cost-efficient product
that has virtually eliminated their
need for the higher quality results
that medium format film or digital
backs can provide“
// Stacie Errera, Chief Marketing
Officer

12. quot;While some customers are
faithful to the format, the current
sales volume and devastating
purchasing forecasts cannot
sustain the production of Bronica
SLR products.quot;

13. “I believe we all understand the issues at
hand when it comes to the business of
medium format. We have been struggling
to find the best possible solution for the
medium format camera business under the
Bronica brand, but after careful study and
the comprehensive consideration of the
market situation, we have concluded that
there is no other choice but to end this
business.”
// Kenji Nakagawa, Sales Manager of
Tamron

15. The last model, the Bronica
RF645 was terminated in 2005,
only a few years after
it had been launched.

16. What
happened to
Bronica?

18. Bronica first appeared in 1958
and became an
immediate success.

20. While some people claimed that
Bronica was just a cheap copy of
Hasselblad, the cameras actually
had unique features and were
very appreciated by wedding and
portrait photographers.

21. Well, the
Hasselblad
and the
Bronica are
rather
similar, at
least in their
looks…

23. Just like the Hasselblad system,
Bronica had a great advantage in
the complete flexibility in terms
of changing lenses, film
magazines etc.

24. Bronica later on developed their
own lenses as well and thus
obtained a strong knowledge
base in optics.

26. This may be one reason why
Tamron acquired
Bronica in July 1995.

28. Tamron is a Japanese company,
manufacturing lenses and
optical componentes for
industrial and commercial use.

31. Sony is a major
shareholder in
the company
and the firm has
helped Sony to
gain market
shares in the
camera
industry.

34. Having a foothold in the camera
business and a strong brand like
Bronica seemed like a
good idea to Tamron.

35. Pity that this
was going to happen.
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
Number of film and digital
cameras sold in the United States

36. Before the revolution, digital
imaging actually prospered in
Bronica’s camera segment.

37. ’Digital Backs’ could be attached
to medium format cameras from
the early 1990s and on.

38. These backs were mostly
provided by firms with
little past experience in the
camera business.

39. Leaf…

41. Imacon…

43. Phase One…

45. Kodak also
developed
some digital
backs…

47. In the beginning, digital
imaging did not pose a threat
to Bronica or any of the
medium format players.

48. It was rather an add-on,
which increased the value of
medium format cameras
compared to SLR cameras.

49. It looked like this.

51. Yes, big and bulky.

52. The photographer could
decide whether to be digital
or to use film by simply
removing the film magazine
and instead attach a digital
back to the camera.

53. But the solution with a digital
back was inconvenient,
heavy and expensive.

54. The Nikon D1 from 1999 was the first
true alternative for photographers
who wanted only a digital camera.

55. From this point and on, Canon
and Nikon launched digital SLR
cameras that got better and
better at a furious pace.

56. Within a few years, the SLR
cameras were much cheaper,
lighter and more convenient
than the digital back solution.

57. quot;These photographers are now
providing customers with a
quality and cost-efficient product
that has virtually eliminated their
need for the higher quality results
that medium format film or digital
backs can provide“
// Stacie Errera, Chief Marketing
Officer

58. Needles to say, Bronica’s revenues
collapsed in 2000-2004.

59. Tamron knew about optics and
Bronica was based upon optics
and precise mechanics.

61. Thus, the company had no
competence in electronics and
had to rely on the solution with a
digital back that was
manufactured by someone else.

63. Bronica was trapped, and there
was no way out of it.

65. Their last model, the Bronica
RF645 suffered from the same
problem and was terminated in
2005, only a few years after
it had been launched.

68. Did Bronica have any
chance to survive?

69. Maybe
Tamron didn’t
invest as
much as they
needed to
keep it alive
and execute a
digital
strategy.

70. Hasselblad survived by
collaborating with Fuji and
thereby develop a new camera
system. Once this system was in
place, it was natural to merge
with Imacon, one of the
manufacturers of digital backs.

72. Maybe this solution could have
kept the business running for a
bit longer in the Bronica case,
who knows.

74. But the medium format segment
would still have been very
competitive and
shrinking every year.

75. And fighting the SLR battle with
Canon and Nikon can not be
regarded as a real alternative.

76. The Bronica cameras created
fantastic memories for people
all around the world for more
than 40 years.

78. Bronica is gone now.

80. Image attributions

82. Christian Sandström is a
PhD student at Chalmers
University of Technology in
Gothenburg, Sweden. He
writes and speaks about
disruptive innovation and
technological change.
www.christiansandstrom.org
christian.sandstrom@chalmers.se