Olan Mills, Inc. was a privately owned American company founded in 1932 by
Olan Mills Sr. and Mary Mills which was headquartered in
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020 ...
. It provided
portrait photography
Portrait photography, or portraiture, is a type of photography aimed toward capturing the personality of a person or group of people by using effective lighting, backdrops, and poses. A portrait photograph may be artistic or clinical. Frequentl ...
and church directories through its two main corporate divisions: Olan Mills Portrait Studios and Olan Mills Church Division.
Its
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
division, based in
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by
two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...
and with numerous studios based in
Mothercare
Mothercare plc is a British retailer which specialises in products for expectant mothers and in general merchandise for children up to eight years of age. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE SmallCap In ...
stores, stopped trading on December 26, 2008. That was in preparation for the firm being placed into
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, admini ...
.
On November 9, 2011,
Lifetouch
Lifetouch Inc. is an American-based photography company headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, Eden Prairie, Minnesota, with its Canadian operations based in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
It was founded as National School Studios (NSS) in 1936 by Eldon ...
Inc. announced that it had purchased the Olan Mills photography business, Olan Mills Church Directories and Olan Mills Portrait Studios, its corporate functions, and the production operations in Chattanooga.
In January 2012, Lifetouch announced the closing of two of Olan Mills' three facilities in Chattanooga with 383 job losses.
References
Photography companies of the United States
Companies based in Chattanooga, Tennessee
Design companies established in 1932
1932 establishments in Tennessee
Design companies disestablished in 2011
2011 disestablishments in Tennessee
2011 mergers and acquisitions
Publishing companies established in 1932
Publishing companies disestablished in 2011
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