Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2002/07/04
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]I always wonder who could be so stupid as to post a quote with no response. Now I know! What I meant to add was that retail prices are set by what the market will bear. If Swiss people are willing to pay the price then it is reasonable. If not, they will not sell any. A good example is the price of Leica accessories. Leica USA keeps the prices of its cameras and lenses lower than nominal list by the use of rebates and Leica Day discounts. It also tries to raise perceived value using Passport Warranty and inexpensive warranty extension options. All this is to stay competitive with the grey market. Now with accessories there is not the same quantity involved and there are many items to stock. This makes it unprofitable for grey marketers to compete with Leica USA. Leica USA then is able to use higher than normal accessory prices to offset the narrow profit margins on cameras and lenses. Leica in Canada does not have the same competitive pressures from grey marketers so their retail camera and lens prices are similar to nominal Leica USA list. Leica Canada does not have to make its money elsewhere so accessories are much more reasonably priced. I typically pay less than the US nominal price and in $CAN too! So in short, the Swiss Leica distributor is not ripping anyone off. They are balancing sales with profit margins. Often you are better off lowering your sales slightly but getting a good profit margin than you are if you reduce your price to the bone and sell cameras by the bucket full. John Collier On Thursday, July 4, 2002, at 09:29 AM, John Collier wrote: > > On Thursday, July 4, 2002, at 09:34 AM, you wrote: > >> It is simply the >> Swiss importer and Swiss dealers ripping customers off. - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html