Foto Hut

The Foto Hut was a photography store chain started in 1972 by Frank Sklar^[1] (March 22, 1921 – December 1, 2009) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The chain eventually went out of business in 2003 because of competition with larger retail corporations such as Walmart and Target and because of the popularity of digital media.^[2]

Customers would deliver rolls of film negatives to local Foto Hut stores, then return to collect their finished photographs. The Foto Hut business model included hand delivery of photographic film from franchised retail outlets to a central developing factory and then redelivering processed images to the Foto Hut franchisees. The franchisees also offered camera sales and repair services. The factory was located in an 1881 Victorian Renaissance building on East Carson Street in Pittsburgh.^[3] The factory closed abruptly in 2003. Final customers had to wait over a month to receive their photographs.^[4]

In popular culture

In That '70s Show the character Leo owns a Foto Hut franchise.^[5]

The follow-your-dreams dramedy, Gypsy 83, features a vulnerable goth heroine who works at a Foto Hut in Sandusky, Ohio.^[6]

References

1. "Obituary: Frank Sklar / Businessman developed former Foto Hut chain". Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
2. Hammonds, Don (December 4, 2009). "Obituary: Frank Sklar / Businessman developed former Foto Hut chain". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2011-10-19.
3. "Spotlight On Main Street | Beneficial Building". Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation. Retrieved 2011-10-19.
4. "Business News Briefs: 5/20/03 – Good news for Foto Hut customers". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. May 20, 2003. Retrieved 2011-10-19.
5. Cullen, Jim (2021-04-16). From Memory to History: Television Versions of the Twentieth Century. Rutgers University Press. ISBN 978-1-9788-1383-0.
6. Kehr, Dave (April 16, 2004). The New York Times. Arts and Entertainment section, p. E22