Franke & Heidecke, maker of the legendary Rollei cameras, is closing down. The company was once the pride of the German photographic industry.
Together with Leica, Rollei once ranked among the world’s leading camera makers. Then, in the 1960s, Japanese manufacturers made their definitive breakthrough with more reliable engineering, greater ease of use, and more modern technology, all at a lower price.
The two brands continued as smaller high-end manufacturers, but their survival has been threatened several times over the years. The British Journal of Photography now reports that the 131 employees of Franke & Heidecke were told last week that their company will close in September.
Does this mean the definitive end of Rollei? The company relied heavily on its digital medium-format SLR system, the Hy6 camera, also produced for Leaf and Sinar. Now that PhaseOne/Mamiya and Leaf form a strong alliance, the system’s prospects have weakened. Sinar naturally hopes the system can continue, while Leaf has not yet made a decision.
Rollei was still making the camera that established its reputation, the Rolleiflex 2-lens reflex, which originated in 1929, as well as a range of slide projectors, but these had become such small niches... On the other hand, it is hard to imagine that a ‘Feinmechanische Werkstätte’ will not emerge somewhere, with a few men and women in white coats assembling products built to last forever. Think of the Swiss watchmaking industry.
