Last orders for Velvia 50 QL in UK

[Dave Tolcher]

Not unexpectedly I gather that there are no further planned imports by Fuji UK of Velvia 50 QL from the end of this year. It will only be available via personal import or through dealers like RW who import via one of their suppliers in Japan with the higher prices as a consequence. The problem appears to be the short date nature of the film and the minimum order quantities make it un economic. I am sure Fuji could do what Ilford do with ULF film and take a couple of orders per year to batch up and fulfil.

[Paul Arthur]

This is a bit of a disaster - how did you hear about this?

[timparkin]

I'm a bit concerned about this - I spoke to the head of marketing at Fuji and they said Velvia sales were great in the summer. It sounds like we have a case of internal communication problems.

Having researched buying from the states recently, although it won't be as cheap as it has been, the prices aren't stupidly expensive. e.g. £60 for a box of 20 QLs if you buy in batches of 10 ... which is as cheap as buying one box of QL from Fuji and cheaper than RW by miles... (and those prices include tax and shipping)

Tim

[Dave Tolcher]

After a discussion with RW about their ad which states that the last shipment will be in December.

[Paul Arthur]

Just to see if I could get an official line on it I asked if it was in stock yet and whether it was being discontinued - I got this response:

"Hi Paul, that stock will be in the UK mid December. I'm not aware of discontinuation.

Thanks,

Darron"

on reflection I may have asked the went question though. Have replied askng about plans to continue importing it.

[Dave Tolcher]

Yes, to be clear no one suggested it being discontinued, just not imported into UK by Fuji UK.

[Paul Arthur]

Righty. Had a reply that denied that they were stopping importing I and that there would be plenty of stock.

Let's hope it's true.

[timparkin]

Righty. Had a reply that denied that they were stopping importing I and that there would be plenty of stock.

Let's hope it's true.

Thanks for doing some legwork (fingerwork?) Paul - it won't be the first time Robert White have been a little confused ...

It is all a little concerning but I think we're on edge because of things like 50 box sheet films (kodak) and QL Acros being discontinued (QL Astia is still available in the US so I'll be making an order sometime soon, probably for a combination of sheet and QL)

[Joanna Carter]

I have just spoken to my contact at Fuji and have been told that there are no plans for discontinuing Velvia 50 QL but, due to low sales, they will only be importing 100 boxes in December.

Of course, the reason they have not been seeing sales of the new emulsion over the last couple of years could well be down to the fact that V50 fans have massive freezers full of the old emulsion stockpiled; something that could take a few years to consume.

It looks like Fuji have put themselves in an awkward position, in that they created a massive demand for a product that they decided to discontinue, only to experience a slump in sales due to the previous massive demand. Methinks they would have been better off announcing the possibility of the new emulsion before discontinuing the old.

So, if you want to get a bite out of that 100 boxes, you may have to move fast

[timparkin]

I have just spoken to my contact at Fuji and have been told that there are no plans for discontinuing Velvia 50 QL but, due to low sales, they will only be importing 100 boxes in December.

Just to reiterate this (I think I was talking to Fuji's Product Development director just after Joanna).

Fuji UK have no plans to stop importing Fuji Quickload in any formats currently in production (Astia and Acros are not in production!)

If it did happen (and there was no suggestion at all that it would), Fuji UK would make sure that they import a good 6 months supply to satisfy any demand.

Fuji Astia Quickload does appear to be discontinued and quite possibly Fuji Astia sheet film (although there wasn't a specific mention of sheet film).

Fuji Acros Quickload has already been discontinued but a supply is available from Japan via Robert White

If Fuji UK were to stop importing, a minimum order of 500 boxes would be required in order to get more into the country.

My personal suggestion would be to stop worrying about Velvia & Provia quickload being discontinued - sufficient advance notice would be given and there are enough people to spread the message.

If you are interested in Fuji astia for large format work or Fuji Acros Quickload - buy some now!! you probably have a month or so before it's all gone..

Tim

[Dave Tolcher]

So now we all know..... Fuji UK dont seem to know arse from elbow and they confuse everyone in the marketplace, consumer & supplier alike.

[timparkin]

So now we all know..... Fuji UK dont seem to know arse from elbow and they confuse everyone in the marketplace, consumer & supplier alike.

Communication is certainly breaking down somewhere... I still appreciate you passing the message on as I wanted to check up on this anyway.

[Charles Twist]

It's a shame to see Astia go: it certainly seems to be discontinued in all sheet forms. It was a film with a really wide dynamic range for reversal film - it seems strange that Fuji should want to discontinue a product that occupies such a specialist niche. I have found the film particularly useful for interior architecture photography. Provia is next best.
In the meanwhile, might it be worth lobbying Fuji to point out the error of their ways? It worked for Velvia 50.
Best regards,
Charles

[dave_whatever]

I'm not really surprised to see Astia discontinued - afterall its primarily aimed at commercial portrait and product photographers, and how many of those use 4x5" these days? Probably not many, apparently not enough.

Is kodak E100G low contrast enough to consider as a replacement? I'm guessing not.

[Patrick Dixon]

I have just spoken to my contact at Fuji and have been told that there are no plans for discontinuing Velvia 50 QL but, due to low sales, they will only be importing 100 boxes in December.

Just to reiterate this (I think I was talking to Fuji's Product Development director just after Joanna).

Fuji UK have no plans to stop importing Fuji Quickload in any formats currently in production (Astia and Acros are not in production!)

If it did happen (and there was no suggestion at all that it would), Fuji UK would make sure that they import a good 6 months supply to satisfy any demand.

They didn't appear to do that with Acros QL.