Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/12/15

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Subject: [Leica] WAS: Driver R8 now Leica prices!
From: Ted Grant <tedgrant@islandnet.com>
Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 14:02:30 -0800

Peter K wrote:

>Just sell your car and F5 and take out a small loan you will be all set ;-)
>Those prices are ludicrous. I can buy a Contax 645 with zeiss lenses for the
>price of those two and get a neg nearly 3 times as large.  Geeeezzz.  I hope
>Leica wakes up one day and realizes their prices are insane.>>>>>>>

Hello Peter,

As was explained to me in 1988 after my Winter Olympics "road testing" of
the prototype 400 2.8. I put in my after Games report, "But why make them
at that price...$20,000? What's the point of making them if we can't afford
to buy them?"

Response! "Mr. Grant because you can't afford a Mercedes, does that mean
they shouldn't make the Mercedes car?"  In other words, "because you can't
afford the $20,000 for the 400 2.8, we shouldn't make them?  However, there
are those who can, so we must make them for those who can." :)

I guess if you can cut the price that's cool, but those who can't afford
the price, that's their problem, not Leica's! I don't think Leica need to
wake-up on their pricing as long as there are those who can afford and will
spend for Leica quality.

I guess if Leica find they aren't selling and go tits up, we can figure on
buying alot of cheap lenses. However, I think that's highly unlikely in the
foreseeable future.

ted

Ted Grant
This is Our Work. The Legacy of Sir William Osler.
http://www.islandnet.com/~tedgrant