Store

On March 14, 2015 - Leica Store Bologna, located at Strada Maggiore 8/B, 40126 Bologna, Italy is set to open! They will be hosting a Grand Opening event from 10:30am to 10:00pm at the store, with a host of activities throughout the day! Check them out and get more info on their Facebook page.

The title is somewhat tongue in cheek of all those that have forecast Apple Inc. as going the way of the dinosaur Any Day Now(TM) over the years. However, the sudden change of Leica Camera AG's CEO from Alfred Schopf, who's been in the position since August of 2010 - to Oliver Kaltner effective April 1, 2015 - is just another signal that things are not well currently. Read more below...

B proudly covers the German camera brand, Leica. From its origins as a microscope maker, Leica made photography a part of everyday life by introducing the first 35mm camera in 1914. Based on this century-old heritage of quality cameras and lenses, the Leica brand highlights the true essence of what a camera is, setting the company apart from powerful Japanese DSLR brands.

Back in November we reported that UK-based Jessops was to become a Leica dealer. They are in fact now selling Leica gear in a dedicated online store. The pickings are still a bit slim, but this should improve.

Because of Leica Camera AG's growth, despite general industry trends, they will be reorganizing their sales units. To further increase the efficiency and create potential for additional growth, Sales and Retail operations in the future will be separate organizational structures. Effective immediately, the Global Sales Director will be Steffen Keil (47). At the head of the German subsidiary will be Falk Friedrich (41). Tim Pullman (43) will assume the newly created position of Head of Retail Stores - Leica Germany and Austria. He will be responsible for the Leica Stores in Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich, Berlin, Vienna and Wetzlar. Read more below for press release.

You may have heard of the recent price increase on M system and accessories set to drop at the end of January - effectively putting an end to the currently running $750 discount on Leica M and $250 on M lenses. Leica has extended this discount until March 31, 2015, which only makes sense as that's how long the You and Leica M test drive runs, which was renewed for this year.

Leica is now also offering the $750 discount towards the purchase of a new Leica M Monochrom (in silver or black) - this offer is only valid in the U.S. and Canada, however. What this means is that, like we've said earlier - there's no new M Monochrom model coming just yet (as some sites might have you believe). It's very likely that Leica is clearing their inventory, however... It was supposed to be announced at Photokina, so way late.