Why I buy online sometimes....

[Anonymous]

I have a mag 3 on my skimmer, and the volute is worn.

I found it online for 6 bucks, I found the pump for 39 bucks.


I called the LFS closest to me and asked if they had the replacement part for it, they said no, so I asked how much they wanted for whole pump.

180$


8O


what?


Do you think they misunderstood me? They described the piece I wanted....



hell with it, I bought it online....

 

[Kalkbreath]

I sell that replacement part for 32 and the pump for 189.!
At 39 dollars for the whole pump , the online store made ten bucks profit, but I make 150 bucks profit.
They must sell fifteen pumps to make the same profit that I do on the sale of one pump.
Further more when someone buys a pump from me, they also get to chat with other hobbyist and even maybe meet some new friendly fellow reefers.
To customers who shop at their local retailers its an event..... hanging around the fish shop is the best part of the hobby!
Do you complain that the beer at your favorite pub or the ball park is cheaper if you buy it at Costco or Sams Club? Whats the fun in that?
Without reef friends whats the point of reefing?
Hell, you wife couldn't give a crud about your new $450 Acanthastrea. She thinks its a 29.99 brain coral just like you told her..
Your kids never pay attention to the reeftank other then to tell you its shooting bubbles or a your hooded fairy wrasse is dried up on the floor!
Family members are no match for the face to face camaraderie of fellow reefers at the fish store!
Fellow hobbyists share in your excitement when you tell them you just bought the six blue zoo polyps in the frag tank for 120 bucks........your wife would share in your excrement, then get out a knife and do some polyops fragging of her own if she ever caught wind of you spending that much on tiny pimples glued to a rock.
This hobby is more about out doing your fellow reefers then it is enjoying your tank from behind your computor all alone in your basement.
Whats a few more bucks on a pump , when your current reefing tab to date is eight grand?
Lighten up , get out more often , Support your local fish store!
That whole afternoon while you waited for the UPS guy to drop off the mail ordered pump , you could have been spending the afternoon down at the fish store spending quality time with people who appreciate you for who you really are and unlike the online store salesmen or the UPS guy .......the people in your local fish store truly appreciate your love of the hobby and your business. :wink:

 

[bookfish]

Hi Kalk, I find your description is closer to what I've experienced at reef clubs rather than aquarium stores. I have found 1 or 2 stores like what you describe but they're in the serious minority. I do think that what you're describing is a formula that will keep a B&M in business. Much like the old Borders and Barnes and Noble bookstores, LFS' will have to find a way to compete with the e-tailers on a different basis than price point.-Jim

 

[Kalkbreath]

Most of the stores up your way are so snug that one has to turn sideways to pass down the fish isles. Hardly the moose lodge feel to encourage interaction between patrons. Fish store owners down here are kinda like bartenders......we share your pain when your taxifolia spores out and we give you the high five when your clowns spawn. You just cant get that instant hand to hand recognition over the web and when the reef club meeting is three weeks away who ya gona call when your wife gives you permission to upgrade to the Mr 4000 size monster reef? Race Foster?
Not likely.
Your friendly local LFS is ready to share in your dream......... :wink:

 

[Anonymous]

Oh Kalk

I would love to go to a store like that.


Still, 40 to 180 is way to much of a markup.

that would be paying 140 for camadarie, which I wouldn't give 13.5 cents for.......

 

[bookfish]

What you're saying is definitely true and an unfortunate side-effect of high real estate prices. Also, I don't doubt that the community of reefers is smaller in GA than the Bay area. Keep up the good work and I'm sure your customers will continue to support your store. But what about the reefers in the mid-west who might have to drive an hour to get to a Petco-type place for the privilege of paying twice as much as on-line. How can we ask them not to buy e-tail?

 

[Anonymous]

I never buy hardware at any of my local LFS. I can't imagine how much my 300G reef would have cost if I had. Let me venture to say $40,000.00.

I don't buy instant ocean salt at my LFS for $59.00 a bucket when I can get it for $33.00 at the dreaded Petsmart.

I do want to support my LFS, but I'm not into throwing money at them.

I'd gladly pay $49 for a $39 pump. That would be a win win situation for both parties.

I'd have only a gold fish bowl if it weren't for the internet.

I do buy most livestock from my LFS along with fish food and other staples.

Louey

 

[dizzy]

Hi Kalk, I find your description is closer to what I've experienced at reef clubs rather than aquarium stores. I have found 1 or 2 stores like what you describe but they're in the serious minority. I do think that what you're describing is a formula that will keep a B&M in business. Much like the old Borders and Barnes and Noble bookstores, LFS' will have to find a way to compete with the e-tailers on a different basis than price point.-Jim

That formula doesn't always work to perfection. On more than one occasion I've overheard one customer telling another not to buy something we had for sale because it could be had cheaper online. And we aren't that high on stuff. If that pump cost us $30 we would have it priced at $50-60. The fellow hobbyists like to try and impress each other and one way to make fast new friends is to help the other save money. I personally don't like hearing someone come into my store and tell people not to buy from us. I also don't like to hear people trying to sell their stuff to other hobbyists in my store either. And I don't like to see people try and jump in and buy something that a customer brought in to sell to us. I'm afraid we are creating a situation where there will not be any good stores in the future because there is not enough profit involved to make it worthwhile to even operate a store. There aren't any aquarium societies real close to here. Also I don't see a lot of socializing and customer interaction at our Barnes and Noble. It's more like a library. Things must be really different in the Bay Area.
Mitch

 

[bookfish]

I was actually referring to the fact that Borders and Barnes and Noble changed their approach or atmosphere to a more cafe like setting. I believe this was in response to the fact that the same books could be purchased from Amazon for considerably less. I wasn't actually commenting on whether it had become a social destination. -Jim

 

[Kalkbreath]

Music stores will be gone in few years, American Auto builders, American aquarium product manufacturing.
Wondefull Book stores like B&N might last a few more years but online sales will do them in as well.
But when it comes down to it , they will browse the isles at B&N then go home to buy the book online.
Just look at the reefers, many will still buy salt at a place they on one hand despise and state should be shut down for killing hundreds of fish (big box) and then drive out of their way to support the same big box by buying their cheap salt.
I wonder if Hitler had salt buckets for 19.99 people would over look the big picture and still buy from him as well?
We all complain that American manufacturing companies are being pushed out by China .......but then we still buy the cheaper Chinese products?
The American consumer is creating their own destiny.
Soon the only option might be to work for Toyota and buy from Chinese online companies!
GM and Ford lost the support of the American people, next Americans will be turning on their own friends and neighbors ........trading them in too for cheaper immigrant buddies.
Most hobbyists dont realize that not only is 70 percent of the aquarium dry goods like pumps lights etc made by China now ..............but 70 percent of the corals come from Chinese owned companies in Indonesia.
Wont it be funny when those Chinese decide to eliminate on the middle men and sell direct to the consumers over the web! Gone are the American wholesalers on 104th , gone are the brick and mortar, gone are the "good doctors" having been replaced by the "good chinamen" with their direct from the source connections.
Be careful what you wish for reefers..........

 

[Anonymous]

How many B&M folks shop at Wal-Mart, Home Depot or Lowes instead of locally owned stores; or eat chain fast food instead of eating at the Mom & Pop cafe?

The B&M's, locally owned stores, and Mom & Pop cafes of the world can only make it only by providing better service, keeping prices reasonably in-line with the chains, providing unique/superior products, and providing specialty services that the big stores do not.

Not being rude, just telling the truth.

 

[Anonymous]

a pump that wholesales for 29 marked up to 189? 700%. i have never purchased anything online but that pricing practice would get me there in a heartbeat. i totally agree with the "kindred spirit" feel of my lfs but if they marked up dry goods that much, i wouldn't buy there. if you sold it for 90.00 would you sell more? i imagine that somebody would still buy it locally because of the waiting factor and shipping cost. i don't expect my lfs to be competitive with online vendors and i don't mind paying 25%-30% more for that luxury but 500% more would put me online. i think instead of telling the reefers to be careful what we wish for, i think those types of pricing force people who otherwise would prefere to buy locally to buy online. a new setup costs big bucks and if i knew my 5k would get me a 220 instead of a 125 i would be hard pressed not to go for it. would you have repeat buisness from somebody who bought that 189.00 pump and later found out they could get it for 39.00? i doubt it. i would go so far as to say that this kind of pricing created the online market and it will thrive as long as people feel they aren't getting a deal locally.

 

[clarionreef]

These are interesting times;
Catering to and defending the infinite demand placed on marine livestock by the multiplying chain-store and on-line sales machines.....
and mouthing the mantras of limits, quotas, restrictions, sustainable yield and conservation.

I guess this have your cake and eat it too "philosphy" ebbs and flows with lunar cycles.
One week; conservationist...next week free marketer!
Steve

 

[Anonymous]

a pump that wholesales for 29 marked up to 189? 700%. i have never purchased anything online but that pricing practice would get me there in a heartbeat. i totally agree with the "kindred spirit" feel of my lfs but if they marked up dry goods that much, i wouldn't buy there. if you sold it for 90.00 would you sell more? i imagine that somebody would still buy it locally because of the waiting factor and shipping cost. i don't expect my lfs to be competitive with online vendors and i don't mind paying 25%-30% more for that luxury but 500% more would put me online. i think instead of telling the reefers to be careful what we wish for, i think those types of pricing force people who otherwise would prefere to buy locally to buy online. a new setup costs big bucks and if i knew my 5k would get me a 220 instead of a 125 i would be hard pressed not to go for it. would you have repeat buisness from somebody who bought that 189.00 pump and later found out they could get it for 39.00? i doubt it. i would go so far as to say that this kind of pricing created the online market and it will thrive as long as people feel they aren't getting a deal locally.

The knuck said that it retails online at $39 and the LFS sells it at $180.

Thus, the percent difference would be:

% dif = |A - B|/A * 100%

or,

% dif = |$39 - $180|/$39 * 100%

which works out to a % dif of aprox. 361.5%, when A = $39, and B = $180. Of course, all of this depends on my failing math skills. :lol: I'm also figuring that sales tax for the purchase at the B&M offsets the P&H from the online store.

I doubt that most of the B&M retailers here would defend that large of a mark-up as a realistic value in most U.S. markets. Bottom line in this case: the retailer had a mark-up that the market wouldn't bear, ended up trying to sell something other than what was wanted, and was unwilling to offer the service of trying to obtain what was requested.

Personally, I would have pulled the part that was needed off of the pump I had in stock, ordered a replacement for my pump and charged $10-15 for the part that was needed; or would have volunteered to obtain the part that was needed as a special order. Special orders are nice because they get people back in the store.

Knuck, would either of those options have made you happy?

 

[aquaticvet1]

Hi Steve ,
Since it has been stated all over this board that online sellers do nothing to create new customers ( according to some of your previous posts online sellers only take sales from Bricks and Mortar ---right ?) , how do we add to the sustainability issue ? If, in your opinion, online sellers are not creating a market then please do not put us in the equation of sustainability.
I personally feel that online sellers DO create a market and sustainability is all of our problem . I refuse to believe that DrsFosterSmith.com can mail 20 million fish catalogs and do nothing to create interest in the hobby.
Steve , the real fact is that your company is too micro to support companies such as LiveAquaria.com . You have no choice but to sell your "holy" concept to the retailers ignorant enough to buy it.

Dr. Race Foster

 

[Kalkbreath]

Hi Steve ,
Since it has been stated all over this board that online sellers do nothing to create new customers ( according to some of your previous posts online sellers only take sales from Bricks and Mortar ---right ?) , how do we add to the sustainability issue ? If, in your opinion, online sellers are not creating a market then please do not put us in the equation of sustainability.
I personally feel that online sellers DO create a market and sustainability is all of our problem . I refuse to believe that DrsFosterSmith.com can mail 20 million fish catalogs and do nothing to create interest in the hobby.
Steve , the real fact is that your company is too micro to support companies such as LiveAquaria.com . You have no choice but to sell your "holy" concept to the retailers ignorant enough to buy it.

Dr. Race Foster

Just thought I would quote this , so you cant remove it from this board should you chose to come off your high hourse. :wink:

 

[bookfish]

Race, while everyone is certainly entitled to their opinion, please find a slightly less offensive way to phrase yours. You have complained about being bashed in this forum and I'm trying to keep all threads positive (or at least not blatantly negative). I appreciate your help in this regard. I will say the same to anyone who I think is taking an insulting tone.
Thx-Jim

 

[Kalkbreath]

Not selling dogs or cats nor aquariums, kinda puts you at the mercy of people that do.
Your failure to admit this speaks volumes.

 

[aquaticvet1]

BookFish,
I will stay off your board . I urge all to watch me continue the quest of catering to " your" customers needs . It will be exciting as the online market continues to grow.
l
Good luck--------Race

 

[Kalkbreath]

oops, sorry bookfish.
On a perky note,
Were all glad to have you sharing your thought hear on this board (good doctor).
Please tell us more about your hopes and dreams!
Do you plan on following in mr Millers footsteps when you get your own wholesalers/ online mailorder Flying fish dream combo?
Can I hire Rebbecca when you fire the crew at QM? :wink: