[Elecraft] Elecraft's Business Model

[Jim Brown]

On 2/25/2012 1:04 PM, Oliver Dröse wrote:
> But what do monitors/displays have to do with amateur radios/transceivers?

The key here is that products that are high volume items that can be 
sold to a very large market are CHEAP because they are built and sold in 
very high quantities.  This means that design, manufacturing, sales, and 
support costs can be spread over hundreds of thousands of pieces rather 
than the 5,000 or so that is typical of a popular ham radio rig.   It is 
also true that mass market products are sold with very low mark-ups over 
their cost.

For these reasons alone, it is pointless for Elecraft to manufacture or 
market anything  in product categories for which high quality products 
can be bought in the mass market.  This includes products like 
microphones, headsets, computer monitors, and so on. We can buy CM500 
headsets for $40-$50 -- Elecraft would have to add $20 or so to that 
cost to sell it to us, and they still wouldn't be making money on it.

It also does not make sense for Elecraft to build products in categories 
that are well covered by other high quality manufacturers.  One big 
reason that there IS a KPA500 is that Alpha does not sell a 500W amp. 
Another is most  other 500W amps aren't great. And Elecraft is building 
the KAT500 because other options in that product category either aren't 
so great or that the KAT500 can provide much better integration with the 
KPA500.

73, Jim K9YC