Leupold business confusion

Z

zoomie

New member
So I'm in the market for a low-power scope. I always start my shopping with Leupold because, well, I don't know, just because. I know they just came out with the new Mark AR line with a 1.5-4x20 and a 3-9x40, in addition to their already popular Mark 2/4 line. Now the Mark AR 1.5-4 and the Mark 2 1.5-4 are the exact same, but the Mark AR sells for ~$150 less. Even with a mil/LEO discount on the Mark 2, the Mark AR is still less.

My question is I guess a business/marketing question. Why undercut yourself with a new line? Why not just drop the price of the Mark 2, advertise that, and not go to the expense of marketing a whole new line of product. Can anyone business savvy explain it? I even called Leupold to ask the differences between the two, and the guy straight up said, "Nothing; they're the same."

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scopes

while leopold scopes are good. I dont see the need if your not shooting long distance.I get my scopes from CDNN."cdnnsports.com"I pay $20 for short AK/SKS scopes.
 
Sounds like a good strategy to me. Leupold probably wants to capitalize on the huge numbers of AR style rifles sold of late, but doesn't want to cannibalize sales from the existing Mark 2. Many AR guys insist their scope say "tactical" while many pure hunting types stay away from the tactical stuff. Combine that with the poor economy, and you have a "new" product that appeals to all the new AR owners with no design cost and without devaluing the Mark 2 line by cutting the cost drastically.

It will be interesting to watch and see if they continue the AR line as the economy improves, probably with less expensive components, or just slowly integrate it back into the original Mark 2 line with perodic price increases.
 
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