Hilco / Gordon Brothers acquires Polaroid brand, assets and dignity

After filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy (again) in December of last year, Polaroid may have just made its last shakeable memory. Today, the Federal Bankruptcy court for the district of Minnesota has approved a motion for "substantially all the assets of Polaroid, including the Polaroid brand, intellectual property, inventory and other assets," to be acquired by Hilco Consumer Capital and Gordon Brothers Brands. If those names sound familiar, have a cookie on us. You see, this very same joint venture picked up The Sharper Image around this time last year, and while it's still unclear what these suits plan to do with the 72 year-old name, we are told that it doesn't plan on shelving it anytime soon. In fact, it's hoping to "partner with a number of global institutions in the ongoing development of the Polaroid brand." Personally, we would've used "revival" rather than "development," but we'll refrain from bursting any bubbles here.

[ivanotter @ Apr 17th 2009 8:49AM]

*sigh* so ends a dynasty.

Seeing what I have seen with the Sharper Image name (I know, it was crappy already) and the cheap crap sold at Bed, Bath and Beyond with the name, I am waiting for cheap, subpar crap with the Polaroid name slapped on it.

On a totally unrelated note, It's snowing/raining here in Denver.

[Major4Play @ Apr 17th 2009 9:46AM]

It's cloudy/not cloudy in Edinburgh.

If you were looking for the name of stuff halfway between rain and snow it's called sleet

[Skeezle @ Apr 17th 2009 9:46AM]

Very sad.

I was raised Polaroid - my father (as well as other family members) worked for them throughout the 70's & 80's. I remember hoping to work there as well someday. That was THE place to work for around here. That company had crazy benefits and treated it's employees very well. To see them fumble as bad as they have over the last 2 decades is unfortunate. They went from 'cutting edge' to 'joke' rather quickly.

They should have embraced the coming digital age when they had the chance.

[Guy @ Apr 17th 2009 10:45AM]

Unlike Sharper Image, Polaroid actually has substance to the brand, albeit more as a memory than for anything recent. I think they will try to revive the brand as it can probably bring in cash, and considering all the other companies around the world who were looking to jump in to save the old instant film, I think they can work out some sort of cooperation thing with others.

Its sunny here in San Diego, slightly chilly at 50 degrees F.

[chadow @ Apr 17th 2009 8:56AM]

I just hope they put some effort into the instant films. There are a lot of camera collectors like myself that will always have a need for it.

[Skeezle @ Apr 17th 2009 9:50AM]

The plants they had around here (so N.E.) manufatured the film. I know that they no longer produce film under any name there, so if you do find it somewhere - hoard it. I have the feeling it will be more & more difficult to get.

[chadow @ Apr 17th 2009 10:16AM]

I did read that a manufacturer somewhere (might have been Norway or Sweden) was given the go ahead to make the various instant films for Polaroid cameras. I have the link somewhere, but I don't think they are even doing it yet. Its really hard to ever find the 600 series film with the battery in the film pack, which is what I need. They were supposedly going to carry this film.

[Skeezle @ Apr 17th 2009 10:23AM]

That was pretty amazing that they had the battery built in. I had so much of that film around my house when I was a kid. I used to tear apart the empty film carts to get the battery & use them for other things.

[Thunda Chunky @ Apr 17th 2009 8:57AM]

Wait these guy own Sharper Image too? So when do we see 42" plasma screened 30+ megapixel cameras?

[Thunda Chunky @ Apr 17th 2009 8:59AM]

Never mind...

[Hackettman @ Apr 17th 2009 9:28AM]

Here I thought that Polaroid was going to bring us into the era of digital camera installed printers....... And lead the way.....

[stereobot @ Apr 17th 2009 10:29AM]

Awww come on, Polaroid should get a government bail out!

[whiskey @ Apr 17th 2009 10:45AM]

Polaroid Netbooks that come with,
Polaroid Webcams that can print,
Polaroid Pictures of Polaroid Snapshots

I can totally hear this as a song!

Just my kind of luck though... I always wanted one of this and now the tech is going dead

[Eadwacer @ Apr 18th 2009 8:29AM]

Sharper Polaroid Image?

[Timmy @ Apr 17th 2009 11:12AM]

Pretty soon we will see Billy!!! Mays!! selling Oxy-Orange-Polaroid hemorrhoid stain remover, but wait, there’s more!

[AdamT @ Apr 17th 2009 11:29AM]

This is the way it's supposed to work instead of wasting trillions of our tax dollars bailing out failing companies that will fail sooner or later anyway. Private investors pick them up and re-tool, get rid of the garbage business practices, etc. This is the free market in action.

[Skeezle @ Apr 17th 2009 12:53PM]

Do you have any idea how many people lost their jobs before it got to this point? Polaroid is just a name now, nothing more - they had already failed. That is what was bought, the name. No one is continuing any type of manufacturing, the plants are all still closed as they have been for several yeas now. No cameras or film is being made. Nothing is being re-tooled.

Not that I think that any company should get a bail out either.

[reuben @ Apr 17th 2009 5:38PM]

For those of you who don't know, certain polaroid films are crucial to attaining exposure when setting up elaborate lighting schemes and sets when using large format cameras. It's too expensive to guess when you're spending thousands on materials and many dollars on each sheet of 4x5 or 8x10, + film and then developing those. I'm a digital guy myself but work at a camera store where I know many photographers that would love to see polaroid once again reach a size where it's practical for them to make these films.

[brn @ Apr 17th 2009 1:19PM]

If Madoff hadn't made news, you'd all know about Tom Petters. Petters pulled off his own multi-billion dollar ponzi scheme. Petters owned the Polaroid name and used it has part of his ponzi scheme.

Polaroid, as you remember it, hasn't existed in years. It's sad.

[Jimmy @ Apr 17th 2009 1:40PM]

This group is trying to reengineer Polaroid's instant film-

http://www.the-impossible-project.com/

[Max @ Apr 17th 2009 5:47PM]

"...Polaroid may have just made its last shakeable memory."

Are you telling me that even Engadget doesn't yet understand that you should not shake a modern Polaroid?

[M @ Apr 20th 2009 1:45AM]

I think you're wrong, Polaroid was acquired by Patriarch Partners LLC, not by Hilco Consumer Capital...

http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS14057+03-Apr-2009+PRN20090403
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polaroid_Corporation#Auction_for_Polaroid_Corp.27s_Assets