The double rifle French market is not high end but low end. However, it is a vibrant market.
The average hunter knows about double rifles (or "express" as it is known locally).
Boars and roe bucks are common and hunted in groups.
You have to shoot in the forest on running game.
It's a great experience that requires a lot of skill as you have a split second to pull the trigger.
It has nothing to do with the English market which was only an upper crest sport and where large game hunting is basically non-existent today.
It has nothing to do with the USA where 99.9999% of the hunters don't have a clue what a double rifle is. Nordmann should not laugh....
It is a market where people *hunt* with double rifles.
The French are not filthy rich and the thought of buying a $95k rifle would sound ludicrous to 99.9999% of the people who actually hunt.$6k is a big number already.
Chapuis and many others (Merkel...) have been around because of the French market.
As Capreolus pointed out, 8x57JRS is the king caliber, followed by the 9.3x74R. Everything else is noise. This is due to the French Law that outlaws any caliber ever been used in an Army of any country. The law dates from 1939.
Best regards,
WC