I visited the Leica store today and for the first time saw everything for the S2 in stock in one locale. I even got to put the 30MM on my S2 and take a shot. I wanted to compare the angle of view to my 35MM. It is REALLY wide.
I wrote a blurb on the visit and posted it on my blog – http://www.everything-foto.blogspot.com
I was trying to link up with Josh at the store but I couldn’t get there last night for the reception. I was sorry to hear he left D.C. so quickly. If you are in D.C. it is worth a visit.
The opening was indeed enjoyable and the Leica staff is to be complimented for making
each visitor feel welcome. The presentation was interesting and well received.Enjoyed seeing David and Josh who kindly introduced me to the leica staff.
I encouraged the Leica executives to have more activities for the S2 owners. I pointed
out that their academies were all focused on the M series and that they needed to
reach out to the S2 users. Also suggested that they expand their emphasis (for the
S2) beyond fashion to include landscape, fine art, abstract, et. al. They were politely
receptive.We can hope!
I was in DC on some other business and checked out the Leica Store for fun.
Meena Yi and General Manager Eric Oberg were quite welcoming and helpful.
The store layout is quite nice, and of course, seeing all the S products in a display is not an everyday situation. The store is within a short walk of the White House, and was under two miles from my hotel.I have no idea of the cost of this Store approach for Leica, but I think it make much more sense to invest in this direction rather than mere advertising. In an age where few camera stores can handle much Leica inventory, I think it makes great sense to let people handle the product. I was there about 20 minutes and there were several other visitors during that time. The welcoming phrase was, something like, “Do you know Leica?”
Very nice display of Peter Turnley’s B&W was in their gallery. An interesting 8.5×11 handout was a reproduced contact sheet format of the images, and an artist statement on the other side.
I had visited the Tokyo Store several years ago, but that was more of a museum. This Store was much more approachable, but till extremely tasty. I include some photos of the DC Store in the M section of images to share.
http://www.reddotforum.com/showthread.php/632-A-visit-to-Washington-DC?p=2514#post2514More on the business approach of the Store strategy is here:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-06-06/leica-debuts-own-u-s-shops-with-27-000-digital-camera-retail.htmlJack
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