The German dye sublimation printer market is mature in the European region and has been a critical focus for the photo division over the past few years. Our Official Reseller in the region, Nordfoto, has been an important strategic partner for the business since 2016. Here, we catch up with Managing Director, Uwe Schneider, to learn more about the business in 2022.

Based in Werkstraße 8, 22844 Norderstedt (Gewerbegebiet Harkshörn), Germany, Nordfoto has established itself in the German photographic industry as a trusted reseller across the region since opening its doors for the first time in 1983.

Uwe started the business as a small photographic retailer in Norderstedt near Hamburg, mainly dealing with analogue photographic material, which quickly developed into a much larger business supplying photographic printing and thermal materials. Uwe and his colleagues quickly found that the retail business was rapidly being overwhelmed by the trade supply that had quickly developed once the business started to wholesale and ship products in the region. In 1990, after 7 years in business, Nordfoto established a wholesale business in a new commercial location with a space four times larger than that of their retail business. With the advent of the internet and eCommerce, which Nordfoto was fast to adopt, the new wholesale building filled quickly as Nordfoto continued to develop and grow. In 2001, Nordfoto designed and built their very own building, which gave them around 1,000 square metres of space for all of their warehousing and office requirements. 

Citizen’s professional relationship with Nordfoto was established in 2016 when the photo division approached Uwe with the opportunity to represent the brand and its market-leading products in the German market. Uwe said: “When we were approached by Citizen to resell their products in Germany, it didn’t take long for us to agree. Although we have been involved with other brands throughout the history of Nordfoto, we were all aware of the quality of Citizen’s dye sublimation photo printers and the regard in which they are held across the user community and the industry as a whole. Quite simply, they are some of the most robust, reliable printers in the market and the print quality is second to none.”

Uwe continued: “We’re really pleased about how our business has developed with Citizen and our customers have adopted the products for a broad range of applications across the photographic spectrum. We have clients in the photobooth business, where reliability is crucial, who operate multiple printers, along with retail applications and, with the CZ-01, people buying for home printing.”

Nordfoto’s more recent exploits in the photo market have seen the company broaden its services into producing end-to-end solutions for the experiential market. This has included the complete development and ongoing management of the photo solution at Vienna’s famous Ferris Wheel, called the Wiener Riesenrad, or Riesenrad for short. A 64.75-metre tall wheel, the Riesenrad was originally built to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Emperor Franz Josef I.  It has stood at the entrance of the Prater amusement park in Leopoldstadt since 1897 and offers breathtaking views over the rooftops of the city. One of Vienna's most popular tourist attractions, the wheel is one of the most recognisable landmarks in the city and is held in extremely high regard by locals and visitors alike.

Uwe explained: “This project has been a fantastic opportunity for us at Nordfoto to demonstrate our ability to meet our client’s needs, no matter how large or small. It was imperative for the photo solution at the Riesenrad to operate flawlessly and with very little maintenance and so the obvious choice was to install Citizen CY-02 printers. These printers are unbeatable; not least do they have an extremely high capacity, offering up to 700 6 x 4” prints per roll of media, but the reliability is unprecedented with exceptional print quality every time.”

Gary Andrews, EMEA Business Manager, Photo, Citizen, said: “Overall, Nordfoto has been trending positively throughout the past year and, with the exception of the years 2020/2, which were adversely affected by the global health pandemic, Nordfoto sales have increased positively year-on-year. Citizen is an increasingly well-known brand in the German market and Nordfoto is now one of Citizen Europe’s strongest photo customers.”

Find out more about Nordfoto: www.nordfoto.de

Find out more about the Wiener Riesenrad Ferris Wheel: www.wienerriesenrad.com