Series 2, Volume 1, Number 1.
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Originally
Published in The Minox Memo Series 2, Volume 1, Number 1. |
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MINOX RENAISSANCE John Watson Vice President / Technology Manager Over the past twenty years Minox has struggled to maintain its place in the industry, and recapture its glory days. While there have been significant successes, factors ranging from politics to technology have plagued these efforts. This seems to be changing. Under the caring hands of Thorsten Kortemeier and Don Thayer, Minox GmbH and Minox Processing Labs are making great strides in guiding both endeavors back from obscurity. This has created a very eventful year, and much to look forward to. In separate interviews, the future of Minox was lain out. Minox GmbH Perhaps the most significant event of the past decade was the Management buyout of Minox from Leica. In doing this Leica retains a 49% stake, while management hold a 51% share. This arrangement still maintains the support of Leica and its distribution channels, but gives Minox the freedom to develop in its own best interests. Several shifts in the product assortment have also been beneficial. The sports optics lines have increasingly grown in importance and respect, while the classic cameras and MX series have brought badly needed revenue and new markets. Recently Minox made its first foray into digital photography, with plans to grow this segment in the future. The Minox binoculars are almost universally heralded as one of the best values in optics. With excellent design, fantastic performance and reasonable prices, hunters and sportsmen around the world have been spreading the news. To capitalize on this, Minox plans to expand its range of binoculars with the introduction of a new series of 58mm binoculars in 5,10, and 15x magnification. Additionally, spotting scopes are in the works, with rifle scopes considered a possibility in future introductions. Current plans are for eyepieces in 20-45x, and fixed 22x or 40x. By growing its line of offerings, Minox hopes to maintain the excellent reputation it has built in this growing product category. As a parallel project, Minox is teaming up the technology of the Windwatch series with their monoculars into a fusion project. Expect to see the 6x16 monocular sporting many of the Windwatch features. At this time the size penalty in only about 2mm for the added functions. It is projected to be named the MD6x16A. "8x11 is not dead!" say both Thorsten Kortemeier and Don Thayer. To make the point, look forward to the broadening of the classic camera series. These miniature reproduction cameras are a partnership between Minox, Asanuma and Megahouse of Japan. Minox and Asanuma provide the parts, while Megahouse does the final assembly. Surprisingly to many, these cameras are very often used as shooters with respectable results. (See "The 'Cute' Minoxes" in The Minox Memo, Series 2, Volume 1, Number 1, Page 7) The MX and classic cameras have become a very significant growth market for the company. By fostering this entry-level market, more resources are being made available to develop the enthusiast lines. This partnership will also provide the possibility to grow the 8x11 offerings beyond the "collector" cameras. |