Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/09/27
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]All this bad financial news can only mean one thing.... It's time for a new LEICA COMMEMERATIVE!!! Jonathan Lee - -----Original Message----- From: Bill Erfurth [mailto:m6rf@yahoo.com] Sent: Sunday, September 26, 1999 11:07 PM To: leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us Subject: [Leica] I am very concerned. I have been quite busy and have not been following Leica stock like I usually do. Today I had a chance to take a look at it, and the picture is not good. As I recall, a couple months ago Leica was at about 13 or 15 Euros, now it is a 8 and some change. What this means is that Leica stock has lost, at least, one third of it's value in the past couple months. And, it was down last week again over 11%. That is not good. Imagine your house loosing 30% to 40% of it's value in a couple months. You can look at the data yourself at: http://profiles.wisi.com/profiles/scripts/cos01.asp?cusip=C28084720 I believe that Herr Cohn has made the necessary business decisions in cost cutting and reorganization, but he does not have a feel for the photographic industry, nor does he have the experience or expertise to sell to this nitch market. A 30% to 40% drop in Leica stock means that the financial community has lost faith in Herr Cohn's ability to turn the company around by himself. Those are harsh words, but I can't help but believe that they are accurate. Herr Cohn (or the board of directors) needs to bring in someone with the knowledge and insight to reverse some of the problems that still exist and bring new products to market IMMEDIATELY. I can think of a half dozen things, off hand, that should have been done that have not been done. There are very simple changes that haven't been made. There are missed opportunities for marketing and promotion that have slipped away by default. There is one relatively simple change that could be made to the M6TTL, that would send sales through the roof, that hasn't been made, and there is no indication that anyone has even considered it. This change should have been made months ago, and the improved M6TTL should now be sitting on the dealers shelves, but it isn't. Another major problem that exists at Leica is the R8. If, as reported, there are 5,000 R8s sitting on the shelf (roughly a 2 1/2 year supply), and if the unit cost of these items is say $400 (US), that is $2,000,000(US)in dead inventory. That is $2,000,000 that could be put to good use in other areas to generate much needed profits for the company. But, here again, there is no indication that anything is being done about it. I believe that these can be sold at a substantial profit in a relatively short period of time. What is the answer? The simplified answer is to 1) bring in someone who will jump-start sales through immediate product introduction and promotion. Second, Herr Cohn (or the board of directors) needs to find some "Silicon-Valley" types who will come in and work for little or no salary in exchange for a share of the profits if the company can be turned around. The longer they wait the greater the chance is that the company will fail. Make no mistake about it. There is a point of no return. A point where the stock is going to drop like a rock and the assets of the company will have to be liquidated. I truly believe that the company can be salvaged and that it can grow and prosper. But, that is not going to happen unless drastic changes are implemented, and implemented immediately. Someone in Solms has some very difficult but necessary decisions to make. Let's hope that they are up to the task. My personal opinion is that Leica is the Mercedes-Benz of the 35mm photo industry. Although it will take some had work by dedicated people, Leica can be restored to it's previous position of leadership and profitability. Regards, Bill Erfurth m6rf@yahoo.com __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Bid and sell for free at http://auctions.yahoo.com