Wichita’s oldest camera shop to close, but the business isn’t completely disappearing

Wichita’s oldest — and last — family-owned camera store is closing its physical location but leaving part of its online services up and running.

Moler’s Camera has provided visual and audio services for nearly 80 years. Owner Bob Moler, who took over the shop after his father’s death, said the decision to close has been on his mind for the past few years.

Initially, Moler said, he was “really torn.” The final push came with the death of his two brothers and a close friend last summer.

“I’m tired, and business isn’t really supporting itself,” Moler said. “It just makes good sense; this is just the time to close.”

Moler cited big box and online stores as the reason for decreasing profits.

“The profit margins are just pathetic,” Moler said. “You could buy cameras at any big box store for about the same price or … literally less than I have to pay to buy them from the manufacturer.”

With the closure of Moler’s Camera retail side, the store’s resale products will be 20% off through the end of May and June. The sale doesn’t include film, processing and audio-visual work.

The shop will continue to offer online audio-visual services, which include taking outdated material, such as VHS tapes and vinyl records, and converting them into digital formats.

Moler hasn’t pinned down an exact date for closure, but “there’s no point dragging it out too long.”

The hours of the store, at 2609 E. Douglas, will remain the same: Tuesday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Despite the partial closure, Moler has plenty to fill his schedule.

“I’m not too unhappy about it because I’ve got a lot to do; I play with old antique cars and old antique guns, paper money and books. I’ve got 10 grandkids in town, eight kids and their spouses,” Moler said. “I’ve got plenty to do.”

This story was originally published May 30, 2024 at 4:27 AM.