Olan Mills, Inc. was a privately owned American company founded in 1932 by Olan Mills Sr. and Mary Mills that was headquartered in Chattanooga, Tennessee. It provided portrait photography and church directories through its two main corporate divisions: Olan Mills Portrait Studios and Olan Mills Church Division.
History
In 1932, Olan Mills Sr. and Mary Mills founded Olan Mills, Inc., in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. In 1941, Mills relocated the company to Chattanooga, Tennessee.[1]
On December 26, 2008, the United Kingdom division of Olan Mills, based in Northamptonshire and with numerous studios based in Mothercare stores, stopped trading, in preparation for the firm being placed into administration.[2]
On November 9, 2011, Lifetouch Inc. announced that it had purchased the Olan Mills photography business, including Olan Mills Church Directories and Olan Mills Portrait Studios, along with its corporate functions, as well as the production operations in Chattanooga.[3]
In January 2012, Lifetouch announced the closing of two of three Olan Mills facilities in Chattanooga, with a loss of 383 jobs.[4]
In 2019, Lifetouch closed the third remaining facility, with a loss of an additional 150 jobs.[5]
See also
- Lifetouch
Bibliography
External links
References
- Olan Mills Studios in Alabama Encyclopedia of Alabama, retrieved 2026-01-19^
- Photography studio ceases trading BBC News, 2008-12-30, retrieved 2008-12-30^
- Mike Pare. Lifetouch Acquires Olan Mills Chattanooga Times Free Press, 2011-11-09, retrieved 2011-11-09^
- Mike Pare, Carey O'Neil. Lifetouch closes Olan Mills photography facilities: 383 jobs lost Chattanooga Times Free Press, 2012-01-31, retrieved 2012-12-02^
- Mike Pare. Lifetouch to close Chattanooga operations, with shutdown of Bonny Oaks facility to cost 150 jobs Chattanooga Times Free Press, 2019-02-05, retrieved 2025-03-24^