I workded for Olan Mills a national photography company that had portrait studios in K-Marts and other places around the country. Lifetouch bought them in November 2011 and from what I understand they have closed a bunch of the Olan Mills branded studios around the country.
A report on CNN I saw today reports that portrait studios in Walmart and Sears are closing too. Personal digital photography has impacted the business of studios around the country. I think that lack of disposable income has hurt business in the portrait business.
Its sad to see this happen because the photographer in a studio can provide a great portrait that will last a lifetime and create many memories. It will be interesting to see how small, independent studios fare down the road.
The Tumblr Years of Tony Burgess 