LFS going extinct?
- Thread starter seth the wine guy
- Start date
I have been to 2 lfs store recently and to tell the truth didn't see anything worth buying, some of the lfs have the same old thing week in week out. Wanted some emeralds a d a pistol, store didn't have it said he can get it, i waited. Want a green goby anybody have 1 within 30 minutes of me? If i have to drive an hour each way i have 20 dollars in fuel plus my time, sometimes it's hard to not just order online. Nobodies missing hundreds of dollars in sales from me i don' t buy that much, but when i want something i'll check locally first. Waiting for a mated pair of gold banded shrimps now, no hurry i'll wait. There was a super deal of crabs the other day 3 emeralds and 40 hermits $14.99, if i didn't think half the hermits would have ended up wrasse food i would have been on it.
On-line stores fill the 'big box' store model in the saltwater aquarium business.
What do I mean by that?
You give up service for price.
I have never ordered livestock online.
Shopping for 'that one' specimen is half the fun in this hobby, to me!
What do I mean by that?
You give up service for price.
I have never ordered livestock online.
Shopping for 'that one' specimen is half the fun in this hobby, to me!
I didn't read any other response so sorry if this is a repeat, but I buy:
fish at lfs,
dry goods accessories (carbon test kits etc) at lfs;
food at lfs;
big dry goods<u> used</u> or parts to build (online);
coral usually second hand or frags from atlanta aquarium on sale or reefworks;
This is an expensive niche hobby and there is a surplus of good suppliers within like 2 counties. The market will decide if they are viable. The store near me is WAY to pricey on coral. (10x what I'd spend on the north side or from another member), but their fish and other goods are fair so I buy from them. If I made more than my measly 40k income, I may consider buying new tanks and equipment, but right now, used is the way to go.
the lfs just needs to adapt and take risks or be weary. I don't have the income to spend to keep them afloat just for that intention. I don't take my arc discount unless its a big item to help them out, and I try to buy local, but...sometimes it just isn't worth 90 minutes of driving to spend twice as much, luckily jenn ships when I need something small and can't get near me.
fish at lfs,
dry goods accessories (carbon test kits etc) at lfs;
food at lfs;
big dry goods<u> used</u> or parts to build (online);
coral usually second hand or frags from atlanta aquarium on sale or reefworks;
This is an expensive niche hobby and there is a surplus of good suppliers within like 2 counties. The market will decide if they are viable. The store near me is WAY to pricey on coral. (10x what I'd spend on the north side or from another member), but their fish and other goods are fair so I buy from them. If I made more than my measly 40k income, I may consider buying new tanks and equipment, but right now, used is the way to go.
the lfs just needs to adapt and take risks or be weary. I don't have the income to spend to keep them afloat just for that intention. I don't take my arc discount unless its a big item to help them out, and I try to buy local, but...sometimes it just isn't worth 90 minutes of driving to spend twice as much, luckily jenn ships when I need something small and can't get near me.
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I like buying fish at the LFS but it's a tough call because they only offer 24 hour guarantee on fish. Is there really that high a mortality rate? Just doesn't make sense to me that you can get a 14 day guarantee from an online retailer after shipping a fish overnight in a bag for 3000 miles but driving 1 hour home is too harsh?
You know how they give you one of those add on warranty's at best buy or home depot when you buy stuff? Why can't the LFS say something like "... for 10% more we increase our 24 hour guarantee to 14 days providing your water quality is reasonable"
Seems like a pretty good solution to me, maybe i'll get lucky and one of the LFS's will give it a whirl
(hint*hint*)
You know how they give you one of those add on warranty's at best buy or home depot when you buy stuff? Why can't the LFS say something like "... for 10% more we increase our 24 hour guarantee to 14 days providing your water quality is reasonable"
Seems like a pretty good solution to me, maybe i'll get lucky and one of the LFS's will give it a whirl
(hint*hint*)
I enjoy walking through the LFS looking at the tank setups and fish. I get lots of ideas from them, more than just looking at static photos or surfing YouTube. Plus I get the bonus of being able to ask questions as I'm seeing the corals and fish and get instant answers and advise. I know a lot of people have had good luck purchasing live fish online but for me, I'd rather be able to see them first hand before I make the purchase.
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I support my LFS 100%. I know that all businesses are in it for profit but let me tell you some of our sponsor stores are really friendly and they like to know that the animals they are selling go to a good home. Take for example JennM, I have never been to her store but I must say she is the most active sponsor on the forums. She doesn't care if you buy from her. If you have a question, she will tell you what she knows. Simon at Nemo's will tell you in a heartbeat that the beautiful fish you are gawking at is not reef safe. He will also tell you which corals are hard to keep. They establish trust and as a result repeat business. There is this other store that is no longer a sponsor, that will give you free coral babies for your repeat business and the owner is really nice. Mail orders don't care what you keep and they will sell you anything you want without asking questions about your setup. Yes we must do our own research but it is good to know you can trust the LFS.
petco in buford matches their online prices in store. plus I get a 15-30% discount even on top of sales. since the website is almost always doing a 20% off on something, tends to make things a lot cheaper than what you see on the shelf. The fish are rarely the same quality, but it's way closer to me than any LFS.
Lots of websites offer free shipping. Petsolutions.com offers free shipping over $49 plus low price guarantee.
Does any of this mean I will stop going to privately owned LFS? Of course not. I try to find excuses to drive to duluth just to look at all the amazing stuff. If I do not find anything that I really want or can have, I try not to leave empty handed and make a small purchase, like some parrot treats for a lady I know or whatever.
It's like walmart. It's not a good thing, but most of us cant honestly say we dont shop there.
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I couldnt of said it better myself
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I love going to all the sponsors aka lfs. After awhile u know where to go for specific items. Like drygoods. Coral and fish. Its nice to have that relationship with the owners. But then again i cant just jump in the car to drive hours to places like reefworks. So i enjoy ordering from them. Ryan gives u the same great service but long distance. So i do both. M2c
I get a majority from either of my two lfs in augusta. I am lucky and both are within 5 minutes of my house. One of them is a club sponsor. I go to Ryan at Reefworks for most of my coral and some dry goods as his selection increases. I get my fish, most dry goods, and cuc from the other store. At that one, I have been a customer for over 20 years and they got me hooked to the hobby. I know all their names and they know mine. I love having the stores around for the atmosphere and seeing what I am buying. Sometimes it is cool to just chit chat and we always bounce ideas off each other. The extra 20-30% cost at one is worth it to me for the experience. Reefworks has a much lower markup and who wouldn't want to go hang with Ryan at his shop? I use online for dry goods only that I would have to special order from the lfs or for items that the markup is just too much.
That's a good point to bring up, and we try to go out of our way to 'show some love' to LFS' (sponsors).
It is a regular topic with the BOD. We have plans to help include them more in future activities.
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I agree with this and is what i do
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If I had a say, that would be including our sponsors in more activities is imperative.
I really love buying local. About the only thing I buy online is bulbs!! They are so dang hard to find locally. I ALWAYS buy fish local... And I love the conversations we get going at LFS!! I will always support the independant dealer, even when it come to automotive repair... BUY LOCAL!
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I would say somewhere between 75-90% of my livestock come from a LFS. I am a firm believer of supporting small business, as this is what ultimately drives the economy in a direction worth taking. I also have tried a couple of times the internet thing. However, personally I like the satisfaction of going to a LFS to see the product in person before I buy. On top of this, I enjoy talking to my LFS and making more than a business relationship with some of the LFS. I will continue to buy all my drygoods from my LFS as I am not one to wait on shipping. However I can say from my work experience that the internet is a killer of all businesses in some form or another. What I do for a living is install pay-per-view movie systems in hotels across the country. The number one source of the companies income came from adult films. Since the internet has an overwhelming number of amateur sites for free it drives the demand down as the hotel is no longer selling the movies. Everyone carries a laptop with them for business travels. In one given year I would make $90000+ on installs, and with the cost of everything going up Ill be lucky to break $40000 this year. As a club member, I would like to think everyone should go to the LFS, as if they had never existed how many of you would have got into the hobby? I completely understand buying used in this hobby is way cheaper than buying new, but remember before you got that item used... someone had to suck it up and buy it new.
I have to say , I hope LFS stay around, online vendors are ok but what about when you have a problem and need something right away. And just how many times do you go to a store and just look and find something youmhave never seen before and had to have it. Plus just the fact of going to the store in fun in its own.
I started out buying 100% from a LFS until I got a bad taste in my mouth from the owner (employees were awesome). Then I started buying everything online until ARC came into to my world, thanks to Gary) and its my #1 source when possible. ARC also introduced me to our "better" sponsors that I visit for most all livestock.
Supplies I still purchase online often because of the time factor. I would prefer to purchase everything from a LFS and usually try but end up not having the time to go and order online because I'm low on something. Then I end up putting together an order of everything that needs restocked.
I guess it boils down to "what I make time for", if its livestock it's exciting and I "make time" to go to a LFS. When I do go I try to buy everything I need from them.
Supplies I still purchase online often because of the time factor. I would prefer to purchase everything from a LFS and usually try but end up not having the time to go and order online because I'm low on something. Then I end up putting together an order of everything that needs restocked.
I guess it boils down to "what I make time for", if its livestock it's exciting and I "make time" to go to a LFS. When I do go I try to buy everything I need from them.
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