Historic chemicals producer, Tetenal, has roared back to life with new online shop

After facing imminent closure, Tetenal is back with a vengeance and has relaunched their online shop. This is fantastic news for analog photographers, as Tetenal has been producing critical photochemicals since 1847, making Tetenal the oldest active company in the photo industry.

In January 2019, we reported that Tetenal Europe faced closure. After going into voluntary insolvency protection in 2018, Tetenal Europe GmbH failed to find new investors and was preparing to close its doors. In February 2019, an employee-led management buyout was accepted and Tetenal lived on.

In an announcement at the time, one of the leaders of the employee-led movement, Burkhardt Mueller, said, 'We respect the heritage and the responsibility for 172 years of photo history that we inherit. Together with the global photo community and commercial partners from the analog photo industry, we will relaunch proven products to ensure reliable sustainable supply for film and photo studios, while developing new business models, products and services.'

A screenshot from Tetenal 1847's new online store.

Jumping ahead to the current day, the wheels are in motion at the new Tetenal. The company is offering a 5% discount on all purchases from their online store using the discount code 'tetenalpromo09'. The company offers worldwide shipping.

Tetenal's relaunch includes new black and white chemistry, including film and photo paper developer, stop, fixer, photo paper tones, stabilizer, wash aids and wetting solutions. If you're interested in traditional wet plate photography, there's emulsion available for that as well.

Tetenal is not content to simply keep producing more of the same, however, it is also working on new products. Tetenal has nearly completed the development of Tetenal Developer Tablets. These E6 and C41 developer tablets are dry chemicals you can dissolve in water to make your own solutions at home. This has two major advantages over traditional liquid concentrates. First, tablets have a lower shipping weight and volume. Secondly, liquids can oxidize, which limits shelf life when using chemicals in small batches. Tablets, on the other hand, are easier to store and have a longer shelf life.

Tetenal has nearly finished the development of effervescent tablet forms of E6 and C41 developer. Click to enlarge. Image credit: Tetenal

It is a big deal for Tetenal to survive. While the company is perhaps best known for its film processing chemicals, it is also a producer of source chemicals for many other companies throughout the world. Tetenal also contributes to digital photography by supplying chemicals to companies such as Epson, Eizo and other inkjet and dye sub media distributors. Tetenal's chemicals are also critical to the motion picture industry.

In an article for PetaPixel, Ludwig Hagelstein wrote an excellent in-depth look at Tetenal since its 19th-century beginnings. It is well worth checking out for those interested in photographic history and analog photography.

Click to enlarge. Image credit: Tetanel

To learn more about Tetenal's history and its product offerings, head to its website. It's excellent to see the company continuing to survive and innovate amid challenging market conditions.