alarm:clock

eCommerce - Wednesday, December 14, 2005

Disney Invests In A Custom Photo Gift Site

Petaluma, CA-based PhotoTLC closed $10M in new venture capital from Disney's Steamboat Ventures. The company is yet another vendor of personalized photo shwag and gifts. Also participating in the round are the company's existing investor, El Dorado Ventures, and another new investor, the Bay Area Equity Fund, managed by JPMorgan. PhotoTLC also acquired Club Photo, its largest outsource supplier of photo gifts.

PhotoTLC ostensibly competes with Shutterfly, Kodak (Ofoto), CafePress, Spreadshirt, Zazzle and many others. However, rather than provide services via its own site, it has partnered with bricks-n-mortar retailers like Walgreens. With the investment from Disney's venture firm, PhotoTLC indicates that it will gain access to retail with Disney properties like ESPN and ABC.

PhotoTLC Has A Focus on Photo Restoration and Colorization

As it happens, we just talked with a mid-level employee at one of these companies who related that sales volume is large, but because competition has leveled prices, nobody can understand how they can make a profit.

Read - PhotoTLC Closes $10 Million in New Venture Capital Financing TMCNet