Bringing photos to life with an instant film camera

Polaroid's cooperation with JNBY is also due to the photography passion of one fan－the fashion brand's founder, Li Lin.

As a mother of two, Li is fond of taking analog instant film photos of her children.

More than 10 years ago, she received a Polaroid camera from her younger brother and was quickly addicted to it.

"I met their people three months ago and soon worked out an agreement of cooperation," says Li, adding that both their targeted consumers love art, design and photography.

Under the agreement, Polaroid Originals' products will be displayed in JNBY's stores. The cooperation with Chinese artists is also being planned.

Smolokowski says his company will keep working with more Chinese artists, mainly photographers, similar to what Polaroid did in the last century. Iconic US pop artist Andy Warhol was perhaps the most famous die-hard fan of Polaroid. Many of his artworks were Polaroid photos of celebrities, film stars and himself.

The popularity of Polaroid in the art world is also felt in China. Huo Nina, Asia managing director of Polaroid Originals, says that many celebrity Chinese artists she knows, such as Jiang Pengyi, also use it as a medium for their creations. Jiang once put fireflies in a box with a large-size instant film to record their life circle.

The instant camera market is set to grow and it is a lifestyle trend that people in the West are following, says Smolokowski.

The "feeling of reality" offered by instant film is also what maintains his belief in Polaroid, says Smolokowski.

Polaroid was founded in the United States in 1937 and ended its production of instant film in 2008. The Impossible Project was set up in Germany and had its factory in the Netherlands to continue making Polaroid-style instant film for instant camera owners. In September, the Impossible Project bought the brand and relaunched it as Polaroid Originals.