CVS/pharmacy builds photo retailing leadership position through Kodak Innovation

The agreement enables CVS/pharmacy to build on its leadership position within the photo retailing category by providing customers with multiple in-store photo service options and an expanded portfolio of premium, high-value photo products, such as Kodak Picture Movie DVDs and Photo Books. The renewed agreement ensures that CVS/pharmacy will continue to bring customers the newest, most innovative Kodak solutions well into the next decade.

“CVS/pharmacy has a long standing reputation for quality products and services, and consumers recognize and trust the quality associated with the Kodak brand. We believe our strong relationship with Kodak will continue to resonate with our consumers and help us to continue our growth in this important category,” said Grant Pill, Vice President, CVS/Pharmacy.

An integral strategy for CVS/pharmacy will be to implement Kodak’s latest G4X consumer kiosks in stores and to significantly expand its fleet of Kodak APEX dry lab systems. The Kodak APEX system is a modular, behind-the-counter thermal dry lab system, which combines a number of new products into one powerful, integrated and industry-leading retailer solution. APEX provides CVS/pharmacy with unprecedented adaptability, ease-of-use, flexibility and scalability to quickly and easily produce high quality photo products, while dramatically reducing costs and complexity.

APEX also provides an environmental lift to CVS/pharmacy. The systems are energy efficient, consuming 70-90 percent less energy than today’s wet-labs. Since its initial roll out in 2008, CVS has deployed hundreds of APEX units in its stores and has plans to significantly increase its dry labs in 2009.

“CVS/pharmacy has been a great business partner for Kodak. This new agreement will build on our already successful partnership by enabling more growth in premium photo products and by broadening the reach of Kodak’s state-of-the-art APEX system at CVS/pharmacy locations,” said Mike Saturnia, Vice President of Sales, Eastman Kodak Company. “Kodak is proud to be working with this innovative retailer to optimize its photo services fleet with advanced dry lab and photo kiosk systems.”

In 2008, CVS/pharmacy was the first national retailer to offer customers both Kodak Picture Movie DVDs and Photo Books. These innovative photo processing products turn customers’ photos into hard-cover books and movies in minutes using the Kodak Picture Kiosk. Both of these products are now available in more than 5,600 CVS/pharmacy stores nationwide.