Price increase on M8

[nealf]

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As of July 1 the price of the M8 will go up to $4950 in the USA, so get you order in during the next two months.

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[Guest sirvine]

Finally something for the early adopters.

[ken_tanaka]

As of July 1 the price of the M8 will go up to $4950 in the USA, so get you order in during the next two months.

 

What is the source of this information?

[stunsworth]

It's got to be expected with the doallar collapsing in value. The price in the UK for an M8 is $6000 - that does include 17.5% VAT, so the prices are comparable.

[carstenw]

What is the old US price?

[scott kirkpatrick]

Current American price (no sales tax included) is $4795 at all dealers.

 

scott

[ho_co]

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Nah, it's just a blatant attempt to get us to clear out old stock before the M9 comes out...

[nealf]

Source of the information is a new price list from Leica USA we got yesterday, effective July 1. There are other increases as well.

[leicabug]

How much increase for lenses?

[biglouis]

It's got to be expected with the doallar collapsing in value. The price in the UK for an M8 is $6000 - that does include 17.5% VAT, so the prices are comparable.

 

'ang on, unless I've misunderstood your response, how is that comparable?

 

Firstly, it must cost more money to transport to the US than the UK. Just distribution costs within the US have got to be a helluva lot more than the UK.

 

Secondly, there must be some import duty on the items and there is none between DE and the UK.

 

Thirdly, within individual states there is some point of sales tax.

 

So given it must cost the same and probably more to get a Leica M8 into the hands of a US customer it still sound to sounds to me like the US get their M8s for about $1,000 (GBP 500) less than the UK.

 

I know the standard argument is that the US is a bigger market and therefore economies of sale apply but the M8 is a niche product and I can't believe the European market, as a whole, is any less than the US.

 

So, out of interest, how can Leica defend itself against the acusation that it is part of the 'rip-off' Britain group of manufacturers? I would not mind paying the increased price of GBP 2,475 all in for a Leica M8 rather than the present GBP 2995 (USD 5990) one if given the choice as a consumer.

 

LouisB

[jaapv]

Nothing is stopping you frombuying the camera outside the UK. Schiphol airport for instance - afaik 20% below UK high street prices.

[wattsy]

So, out of interest, how can Leica defend itself against the acusation that it is part of the 'rip-off' Britain group of manufacturers? I would not mind paying the increased price of GBP 2,475 all in for a Leica M8 rather than the present GBP 2995 (USD 5990) one if given the choice as a consumer.

 

I'm not sure why you don't think that the 17.5% VAT is relevant? Leica can hardly be blamed for the sales tax part of the cost of purchasing the M8. The current UK cost of the M8 is £2545 (ex. VAT). This is the appropriate figure for any price comparison.

[sdai]

I don't think the price hike has anything to do with the dollar flunctuation. So if the dollar is on the up side, you think Leica will cut its price?

[hankg]

What was the price on the 50/1.4 ASPH -any increase?

[marknorton]

Louis

 

Ian is correct, the $4950 figure compares to the ex-VAT price in the UK of £2545 which corresponds to about $5100. So, the price is still a little higher in the UK than the US, but this is to be expected. After all, someone has got to pay for the people in Leica UK to sit around on their back-sides doing err... not very much.

 

What we don't know is whether there is any price rise in the UK and Europe - our exchange rate with the Euro is pretty stable. I expect the impact on the US price - only 3% - is due to currency fluctuations. I also expect that they are finding that the M8 is getting cheaper to make because many of the parts will be priced in USD - the sensor, many of the expensive chips, the commodity memory. Of course, they will have forward contracts for the supply of parts and will be hedging on currency but their exposure to the USD falling through the floor is probably still not welcome.

 

Ball park, I'm wondering whether what Leica buys in the US will more or less be covered by the revenue it gets from what it sells there.

[biglouis]

After all, someone has got to pay for the people in Leica UK to sit around on their back-sides doing err... not very much.

 

LOL!

 

The fact is, whether we like to admit it or not, the US consumer demands and gets lower prices on a whole range of goods and services. The argument is that the US is a large homogenous market and there are economies involved in supplying that market which lead to lower prices for the consumer.

 

This argument no longer holds true if you accept that we have a common economic area in Europe. In fact, the European population is larger than the US and therefore we should benefit more from the scale market economies than the US if you accept that argument.

 

But we don't and that is a fact. Mind you, it says more about the perceived value of the EU versus the real value but that is another matter (perhaps for Barnack's Bar).

 

Did not mean to stir things up but for years I have imported stuff from the US because despite where it is made, it is a lot cheaper.

 

LouisB