Casio has left the compact camera market, Nikon has stopped development, and Sony and Fujifilm have significantly scaled back their lineups. Some may fear that the category itself will disappear as it is pushed aside by smartphones. The bottom line is that it is not dead at all. Compact cameras still account for more than 60% of camera sales. Although their sales value composition ratio is small, ranging from the upper 20% to lower 30%, a certain level of sales continues.
The average price is also rising, just like with interchangeable lens cameras. In particular, the increase in the proportion of relatively high-priced models over 50,000 yen stands out. As of September 2021, this was only 6.8% of the total number of units sold, but this September it had risen to 33.2%. This is thought to be largely due to the impact of inflation, but at the same time, it is also highly likely that there are an increasing number of users who want better products even if they are a little more expensive.
Year-on-year sales of interchangeable lens cameras fell significantly in both unit volume and value. Although the decline narrowed in October, sales remain below the previous year’s level. Compact cameras are also showing a slowdown, with unit sales declining slightly in September and October. However, sales value remained above the previous year, with October sales value increasing by double digits to 115.3%. With prices of mirrorless cameras rising, it could be said that even relatively high-priced compact cameras are now looking cheap.
The compact camera market structure has changed significantly in the past few years. Canon is by far the top five in terms of sales volume in September, with a large share of 31.1%, backed by the PowerShot and IXY series. Meanwhile, Fujifilm, in second place, took a 13.4% share, largely due to the huge sales of its instax mini Evo. Kodak and Kenko Tokina, in third and fourth place, moved into the “vacant lot” left by major manufacturers. They are the main players who have expanded their market share by leveraging their good cost performance, and have greatly changed the market. And Ricoh Imaging, with its GR series, has made it into the top five with a modest single-digit share. The GR brand, which has been around since the film era, still has many die-hard fans.
On October 9, 2024, OM celebrated the fourth anniversary and held the “OMDS JAPAN DAY” in Hachioji, Tokyo. OM Digital wrote an article about this. Here are a couple of passages:
There was also a slide show of messages from photographers celebrating the 4th anniversary of the company’s founding. The words of the photographers who trusted OM SYSTEM cameras and who watched over and encouraged us, sometimes with strictness and sometimes with kindness, gave us a lot of energy, including in the special lectures. We will never forget this gratitude and strongly feel that we want to continue to meet their expectations.
He spoke about the specific initiatives and roadmap for the company’s core camera business, as well as the solutions and EMS businesses that will be drivers of growth.
CEO Sugimoto speaks passionately
The announcement clearly indicated the path we should take and greatly boosted the morale of all employees. Furthermore, the CEO’s passionate message, “Let’s continue to work hard together to become an even better company and contribute even a little to everyone’s happiness,” was filled with deep gratitude and hope for the customers and colleagues who support us, and it struck a chord with us.
OM added this positive forecast note at the end of the event:
Our company has achieved solid growth over the past four years, but this is still just a milestone. Going forward, we will continue to move forward as a team to provide our customers with experiences that enrich their hearts. OMDS JAPAN DAY was a day of renewed spirits, where we vowed to further grow together with our colleagues. With OM SYSTEM’s brand tagline “More Adventure in Life” in mind, we will continue to take on new challenges.
