When I’m talking with our staff and need someone to run back to our USPS station, I’ll often say “run back to the photo counter and grab…” which is met with a look of puzzlement. Understandably so! When we moved out to Naperville Plaza in 2004 from Downtown Naperville, the back register of the store was our ‘photo counter’. Nothing like the Post Office counter it is today. In fact, when we moved to the Plaza we didn’t even have a full-service USPS station!

Developing Photos at Oswald’s

       Back in 2004 Oswald’s was still taking undeveloped film in for processing (fun fact: we started this in the 1910s!). We didn’t do the processing in-house but sent it off to local film processing companies to do the prints, reprints, or enlargements. Shortly after opening in our ‘new’ location at Naperville Plaza, we purchased a Sony Picture Station to print photos from digital cameras. We had our feet in both the old and new world of photography.

An old photo development form from Oswald’s.

       By 2008 we were only taking in two or three rolls of film per week. This was way down from hundreds of rolls per week in the previous decades. The film processing industry for independent pharmacies had come to an end. We still had our Sony Picture Station but by 2012, with the way photo technology was rapidly developing, it was outdated and not working very well. With the removal of the digital picture printing station, the photo counter officially became ‘the postal counter’ many of you know today! I’ve mentioned our USPS station before in the Ozzie Gram and our post office regulars still call it their ‘best-kept secret’ for getting things mailed!

       Attending this year’s virtual trade show’ for our drug wholesaler McKesson, I came across a Kodak Alaris digital photo kiosk. The price was right, and after being out of the photo business for almost a decade, Ozzie’s decided to hop back in. We’ve located it at the front of the store this time around, as it’s about 4x smaller than the early 2000s Sony Picture Station!

Developing Photos in the 21st Century

       Sure, this new setup is a far cry from our old photo counter of the 1910s-1990s as far as volume of film processed, enlargement sizes offered, and camera and film selection go. Our full-time photo manager Arnie took care of our customers from the 1980s-2010s with photo tips, tricks, and repairs. With the changing times, so must our approach to physical photographs. No need to sell cameras and film when we all have a camera in our pocket. If only my great-great-grandpa Oswald could see someone in 2021 connecting wirelessly to a digital computer and printing out pictures!

       As we approach the holidays, beyond our thoughtfully curated gift and toy selection where you’ll find something special for each and every one of your family members and friends, we’re also offering free 4×6 or 5×7 photo prints with the purchase of any frame over $10.00! Round out the perfect gift this holiday season with a memory captured on ‘film’ and printed and framed at Oswald’s.

Stay Safe & Healthy for the Holidays

        Beyond the excitement for the upcoming holidays, we’re still keeping a close eye on all things COVID-19 to keep our community safe. We’re continuing to offer boosters with both the J&J and Moderna vaccines. We’re looking into the pediatric dose of Pfizer, but no hard date has been set. Please visit oswaldspharmacy.com/covid-19-vaccine/ for the latest information, or give us a call.

       On the other side of this month’s newsletter, you can read an article from our pharmacist Joanna on a new rapid 1 hour PCR test we’ve recently started offering at Oswald’s. Our lab staff is very excited to offer the gold standard of COVID-19 testing! There’s plenty of free, locally funded testing sites we encourage our patients to visit but if you need immediate test results, we’ve worked closely with our lab director to find the best test we can offer in an immediate fashion.

       Getting your prescriptions filled, printing a photo, doing some of your holiday shopping, or getting your booster shot at Ozzie’s truly means a lot to me. Trusting my family to take care of yours, the way we have for the last 5 generations of this town, is pretty incredible. Thank you and have a wonderful November! ℞