Photography Studios
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Industry Structure, How Firms Opertate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Quarterly Insight, Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 8,400 photography studios in the US sell professional still, video, or digital portrait photography products and services. Major revenue categories include general individual and group portraits, school portraits, wedding photography, and special event services. Firms may offer related products and services, such as yearbook, directory, or memory book publication or commercial photography and print production services.
Competition from Amateurs
Falling prices for photographic equipment allowed many amateur photographers to produce high quality work, effectively reducing the need for professional services.
Seasonal Peaks in Demand
Demand for photographic services is highly seasonal, with peak periods varying depending on specialty.
Industry size & Structure
The average photography studio operates out of a single location, employs 4-5 workers, and generates about $529,000 annually.
- The photography studio industry consists of about 8,400 firms that employ about 38,000 workers and generate $4.5 billion annually.
- The photography studio industry is concentrated at the top and fragmented at the bottom; the top four companies account for about 38% of industry revenue. The top 50 companies account for about 54% of industry revenue. Some freelance photographers work out of home studios.
- Large companies include Lifetouch (Olan Mills), Picture People, and North American Theatrical Photographers.
Industry Forecast
Photography Studios Industry Growth
Coronavirus Update
Apr 23, 2022 - Price Increases Meet Wedding Surge
- The Wedding Report forecasts a total of 2.47 million weddings in 2022 with an average cost of $24,300. Some 2.24 million weddings with an average cost of $24,900 are forecast for 2023. The number of weddings and the average cost is expected to decrease to pre-pandemic levels in 2024. The average cost of a wedding was $24,675 in 2109, according to The Wedding Report.
- The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) is inching toward conclusion as 90% of two years’ worth of loans to small businesses nationwide have been forgiven. As of March 20, $708 billion has been forgiven, meaning that the recipients don’t have to repay the money, according to the latest data from the US Small Business Administration which manages PPP. Of that total, $209 billion — more than three-fourths, or 77% — of the $270.6 billion in PPP granted in 2021, the program’s second round — has been forgiven. That percentage stood at 63% in late December.
- Demand is strong for its traditional loan programs now that the Paycheck Protection Program is winding down. “In our footprint, we’re seeing a significant uptick in both the number of loans and dollars disbursed for our microloan and 504 loan programs,” said Angel Marschik, deputy district director for the SBA’s Western Pennsylvania District Office in Pittsburgh. “Our flagship 7(a) loan program numbers are on pace with second-quarter data from fiscal year 2021. As more lenders move away from PPP forgiveness processing, we anticipate those number to increase as well.”
- Total 2022 advertising spending across 16 media platforms serving local audiences will reach $173 billion in 2022, according to BIA Advisory Services. Over half (51%) will be spent in digital media, primarily Google and Facebook. Mobile ads on smartphones will get the largest portion at $36.7 billion. Photography studios serving the advertising industry are likely to benefit from the continuing rebound in advertising spending.
- The window to apply for Small Business Administration (SBA) COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) loans, Targeted Grants, and Supplemental Targeted Grants closed on December 31, 2021. The SBA had $11.8 billion in funds remaining across all of its programs as of December 24, 2021, according to The Business Journals. The SBA has been making billions of loans a week, which means the money could run out soon. The SBA will continue processing loan applications received before the deadline, including requests for reconsideration, and Targeted EIDL Advance (grant) applications, including requests for reconsideration. Small business owners who are still struggling with pandemic-related problems will have to look strategically for other grants and COVID-19 relief programs. Options may include private small business grants, state and local government grants and relief programs, and traditional SBA loans.
- Some businesses that took PPP loans in 2020 but don't apply for forgiveness soon will need to start making payments on the loan plus interest. The PPP loans will automatically convert to a standard loan at 1% interest if a small business does not apply to the SBA for forgiveness within 10 months of the end of the covered period under which they had to spend the money. For some businesses that received a loan when the PPP launched in April 2020, there was an eight-week covered period, which would put the forgiveness application deadline in the middle of July. For most loans operating under the more popular 24-week covered period, that meant a deadline in September.
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