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I mostly agree with what you are saying. The reason we are having a discussion here is that there are at least two ways to look at the fact that Apple enjoys bo
by fspeech 14y ago
I mostly agree with what you are saying. The reason we are having a discussion here is that there are at least two ways to look at the fact that Apple enjoys both mass volume and high margin:
1. Apple has an amazing business.
2. Despite 1 it is not sustainable to have both mass volume and high margin.
I am trying to come up with counter examples of point 2. Coca Cola, McDonald's and Microsoft come to mind, but they share a common characteristic in that these companies control a small but high margin part of their respective value chains. The end products that consumers actually buy (Coke, burgers and PCs) are mass volume and low margin.
- simonh 14y agoI'd agree that mass volume and high margin is hard to pull off, and often proves unstable. I think this is why Apple often doesn't try to address all of a market. They only produce a handful of desktop and laptop models, they have resisted producing a large format phone (though I do expect that to change), etc. They value product consistency over feature and form factor proliferation. They are perfectly happy to occupy the high end of the market, and leave the low end to others.