[LRflex] The Future of Leica and why Ted is wrong.
- From: David Young <telyt@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: leicareflex@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 19 Oct 2006 07:55:31 -0700
Ted Grant complained:
>"THEY NEVER LISTEN TO US WHETHER YOU BELIEVE THEY WILL OR NOT!"
Good Morning, Ted!
In past, this was absolutely true. Today, it is not and I'd like to
tell you why.
In two words... Stephen Lees. But, before we get to him, let's take
a quick look at Leica's recent ownership history.
Starting in February, ACM Projektentwicklung GmbH (a 100% subsidiary
of SOCRATES Privatstiftung) have been acquiring stock in Leica-Camera
AG. By March, they had acquired a majority interest and with the
purchase of Hermes' 31.5% stake on September 25th, they held more
than 88% of the firm. SOCRATES Privatstiftung is the firm of the
Kaufmann family of Austria, who made their fortune in the paper
business. ACM stands for Austria Capital Management.
They have used their money to become turnaround specialists. They
buy a badly managed firm, make it profitable and, later, sell it for
a huge profit. If they fail to turn it around, they lose a
bundle. These are experienced people, who know how to do this... and
so far, they've not lost at the game.
Enter Stephen Lees. Stephen is an American, who looks much younger
than his 52 years, He is bright, very pleasant, and has a drive not
seen at Leica in many decades. For the last 6 years, until coming to
Leica, he was the VP for Emerging Business and Strategic Development
at the very successful American electronics & photo retailer, Best
Buy. Prior to that, he had designed two successful global startups,
one in computers, the other in the audio industry. And all of this
after a very successful career at IBM. The man is no slouch!
Though he has only been at Leica since September 1st, there is
absolutely no doubt, within the factory, that he is the undisputed boss!
ACM has been shaking up Leica since spring, when they first started
to have influence. They have been hiring the youngest, brightest
stars, straight out of university. Much of the old, stodgy
management is already gone. For instance, the average age of the
optical design team is around 35! And that includes it's head man,
Herr Peter Karbe, who is 49! The chap who designed the stellar, new,
w/a Tri-Elmar (and who's name now escapes me) has only recently
joined the optical design team, and it was his first commercial design!
Similarly, the young lady who is now the head of 'R' development team
joined Leica in April at the tender age of 28.
Stephen Lees, btw, is a long time 'R' user, having bought his first
SL some 30 years ago! Not surprisingly, he's presently using an R9 with a DMR.
There is little doubt that the M8 will be a successful and profitable
item for Leica, but Leica is certainly not content to stop
there. Mr. Lees realizes that the last time Leica shook up the
photographic world was with the introduction of the M3. And ever
since, Leica has been "a day late and a dollar short". It is their
intention to build a new Leica "R" that will have the same effect on
the photographic world as the M3 did in 1953!
To do this, they need input... and for the first time, ever, Leica is
listening. This is, indeed, something new. It is not Leica's way of
doing business, but it is Mr. Lee's, and ACM's way. And they are now
in charge.
At Photokina, I had the pleasure of spending 2 1/2 hours
with Stephen Lees, Stephan Daniels and Maike Harberts, discussing
(along with 4 others) ideas for future R development. Although a
non-disclosure agreement prohibits my telling anything of what was
said, there is no doubt in my mind that Leica are, at last, on the
right track. A later meeting with Mr. Lees, in Solms, confirmed my
impressions.
So, Ted, just because things always WERE that way, doesn't mean that
they always will be.
That being said, I will expect your survey, properly and
thoughtfully filled out, on my desk, in the morning. ;-)
Cheers!
---
David Young,
Logan Lake, CANADA
Wildlife Photographs: http://www.telyt.com/
Personal Web-pages: http://www3.telus.net/~telyt
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