[Leica] M8 and the Future

[firkin at ncable.net.au (Alastair Firkin)]

These are indeed very dangerous times for a smaller niche company. Even
one which is able to produce desirable goods and has a "following" can
fall prey to bean counter politics. Family companies can survive low
profit times, staying afloat just to break even, and in my opinion a good
business does not have to change the world BUT things move quickly and the
"market" has little sympathy

Cheers


> The issue isn't just how many M8 bodies Leica will sell - and I'm going to
> guess 2500-3000 the first year, and less in the second - but rather what
> the
> release of the M8 will do to film camera sales. As we know, Leica is
> barely
> afloat; the R8-9 has been a loss leader for some time, and the M6 and M7
> were steady, if modest, sellers. But with the introduction of the M8, one
> has to wonder if the sales of new M7s will dwindle to next to nothing,
> because people are unloading their film Ms at bargain prices to purchase
> M8s, making used cameras much more inviting than new ones. So it's
> unlikely
> the M8 will really add to the Leica bottom line, as, 10 years ago, an
> entry-level M film body might have, but rather will drain film sales. Of
> course it may turn out that the company will succeed in developing a new,
> digital, business model which will revive it and keep it going. It's going
> to be interesting to watch.
>
>
> On 10/25/06 5:47 PM, "Matt Powell" <wooderson@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> On 10/25/06, Steve Unsworth <lug@steveunsworth.co.uk> wrote:
>>> When I bought my M6 I could have bought a Canon SLR with lens for
>>> about a third of the price - probably less. The Canon usd exactly the
>>> same film as the Leica. So why did I spend all that money on a
>>> rangefinder rather than an SLR. Well, the main reason was because it
>>> was a rangefinder rather than an SLR. That was the case in film days
>>> and it's the same in the digital age.
>>>
>>> Steve
>>
>> I'm not saying that the M8 will flop, that no one will buy it, or that
>> it's even a camera I wouldn't like to own. I'm saying that it won't
>> change Leica's stars.
>>
>> Even in the M6 days, you were party of a tiny minority, right? 1 Leica
>> sold for every 100 good Canon bodies. That's no different today - a
>> Leica M8 is simply too expensive to ignite any kind of renaissance for
>> the company. There just aren't that many people who can afford to pay
>> $4800+tax for a single body.
>>
>> Those few with the disposable income and need or desire to buy one
>> will, and everyone else will buy a Canon/Nikon dSLR or wait for the
>> next Cosina digital rangefinder at a price competitive with dSLRs.
>
>
>
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