Last week we lost a hero in our industry. Henry Froehlich, age 85, passed away on January 24th. Henry was the kindest and most sincere man that I have ever met in the photographic community. Whenever I had the chance to speak with him, I would stretch it as long as I could (and Henry always obliged!) just trying to gain a fraction of his wisdom and experiences. The labels of mentor, leader, and pioneer were never more justly used in reference to anyone else. To me, he was a treasure that is irreplaceable, a light and a smile that changed your day for the better when you had the chance to say hello. Goodnight Mr. Froehlich, you will be missed greatly.
Born Hans Froehlich, August 7, 1922, in the town of Rottweil, Germany, his memoirs indicate that he grew up in a loving family in a picturesque setting. Germany, however, was in economic chaos after the war, and at the age of 5 he learned his first big lesson in business and writes: “My own child bank account, which I proudly kept track of in a diary, had several hundred marks on deposit. When I found out that this would not even buy an ice cream cone, I knew my first economic lesson – I was wiped out.” Life in Nazi Germany became increasingly difficult for Jewish families. In 1937 the Froehlich’s moved to Stuttgart where there was a more sizeable Jewish community. Trying to make a living as a teenager, he worked as a retail assistant in his father’s shoe store, then as a paper hanger in the summer, and a mattress maker in the winter. He writes “And then it happened. My boss told me one morning that he could not continue with me as an apprentice as he received jobs which required his certifying that he had no Jewish employees. It was either keeping me on and lose jobs, or let me go, and stay in business.” During “Kristallnacht”, Henry’s father was taken away to a concentration camp. He writes that “I rode my yellow bicycle to travel all over and warn Jewish men to get away from their homes as fast as possible.” His family was separated and never completely reunited again. In 1940 he was allowed to leave Germany with 10 DM, the equivalent of $4 and was able to enter the United States. “I had exactly 38 cents in US currency left, after having spent some of the $4 getting to Italy and some on the ship.”Although he planned to become a writer, and even brought his Alder typewriter from Germany, things didn’t turn out that way, especially after he realized it would take him some time to learn to speak, read and write English. He also brought along “my little Agfa camera and some film”. After some time, Froehlich was able to join his mother and brother Max in Philadelphia, PA, where he held a number of jobs, often at the same time in order to make ends meet. He took his first job in the photo business with a company called Landes Brothers who manufactured “bank lights” where he worked as an assembler. As he states in his memoirs “somewhere along the way, I started an import/export business”. Henry was among the first to recognize the potential in photographic products made in Japan. He concentrated his efforts on Japanese companies that had good quality products but lacked US representation. The rest is history.Froehlich founded Konica Camera Company in Philadelphia in 1951, having previously acquired the sole U.S. distribution rights for Konica cameras from Konishiroku Photo Industry Company, Ltd. of Tokyo, Japan. As one of the pioneers who introduced Japanese quality cameras into the United States after World War II, he participated actively in the Japanese Camera Inspection Institute’s U.S. “Japanese Camera Center” to conduct industry-wide promotions and create consumer acceptance for Japanese cameras. He was subsequently elected to membership in the Pioneer Club in Japan, an honor bestowed on a few leading Japanese camera industry leaders and only 10 foreigners. He merged Konica Camera Company with Berkey Photo in 1962 which also marketed other Japanese photographic products. He went on to become President of Berkey Photo, a position he held until 1982.As his next business venture, he founded the Froehlich FotoVideo Corporation. There he pioneered the concept of film-to-tape transfer, and developed unitized equipment systems which could perform this service within the retail environment of camera stores and minilabs.In 1987, when the exclusive distribution rights for Mamiya Medium Format cameras and Toyo Large Format cameras became available, he formed a partnership with Paul Klingenstein and Jan Lederman to establish a new company called Mamiya America Corporation (MAC). Within the next few years they made these products the market leaders in their respective fields. At its 1988 convention, PMAI (Photo Marketing Association International) presented Henry Froehlich with its Distinguished Service Award.His interest in photography was not only business, but was on a deeply personal level as well. He formed many long-term relationships with retailers, photographers and other industry members, some of who became close personal friends. From its inception, he was an advocate of The International Center of Photography because he believed it its principles. He became involved in their activities and was a member of its President’s Council.As the years went by, the name of the MAC company was modified to MAC Group, and more lines were added to its product offering, such as Prototo, Leaf, Sekonic, PocketWizard, X-Rite, Eizo, Pantone, Multicart, Tenba, and Induro. In each case, Froehlich assisted these brands in improving their market position. Froehlich’s vision never wavered: “Our mission is to supply professional photographers and the educational community with the tools they need to create an image”. That, and his credo to “Under promise, and over deliver” serves, to this day, as a model for his associates to follow. In 2006 Froehlich retired as Chairman of the Board of the MAC Group.He will be remembered for his philanthropic efforts on behalf of numerous organizations including The Blue Card, whose purpose is to provide financial assistance to needy Holocaust survivors, as well as award winning Theater by the Blind.He is predeceased by his brothers Albert and Max. He is survived by Marian Froehlich, his wife of 57 years, his son Peter Froehlich, daughter Carol Froehlich-Hull, grandchildren Lindsey, Max and Sarah, and great granddaughter Alexandra.