Price gouging?

[kdogg85]

All who read this may want to set down. I was at a fish store in Knoxville today to get some more snails and I seen prices that made me pass out almost. The store is called Aquarium. They wanted $5 for nassarious snails, $70-$90 for blue tangs(none over 3 inches in length), powder blues were over $100. I asked if someone had made a pricing mistake and was told that there was no mistake. Another store named The Coral Reef was way cheaper and I personally love that store, (healthy livestock, excellent advice, great prices, can't beat it) It absolutely amazed me that they(Aquarium) would charge this much. I mean this place had a selection that would make people drool with envy, but with prices like that, wow!!!!!!!!!


If I'm not supposed to mention store names, I apologize, but this was just highway robbery.

 

[Zer0]

I think it really all depends on what's going on at the store. I mean.. they have to make their money back somehow right? Either they were getting ripped off by their providers, so they were trying to make their money back.. or they are are just trying to charge more money right off the bat. Either way.. those prices are definitely ridiculous.

 

[ilostnemo]

they also have cheaper stuff.. i mean i shop in the aquarium and the coral reef.. they both charge crap loads for certain stuff.. for instance i can get a light that costs 200 at coral reef go two miles away at the aquarium and get it for 160.. its all just according to what you get.

 

[ilostnemo]

may i also suggest becoming a vip member at the aquarium? its free and you get coupons via email.

 

[ilostnemo]

and i dunno where you saw blue tangs for 70-90 i was also in there yesterday and saw them for 30...

 

[mgamer20o0]

some times a bag comes in bad and they will up the price to make up for the loss. i know this is done on the fw side i am sure its done on the sw side. if they can get people to pay that more power to them. now sure how much those prices are off then normal but i know stores that charge 7-10 for a cherry shrimp which you can get onlienf or 1-1.50.

 

[ilostnemo]

yeah and they QT all their fish before they place them to sell. so they was probably runnin low on blue tangs and raised the price until they get the next ones in the tank. and yeah one of my lfs charges 10.99 for glofish when you can go to walmart and get them for 3.. lol

 

[melosu58]

I dont know but those prices are about what we pay here in Richmond Va. Maybe a little but not by much.

 

[mgamer20o0]

hard to compare walmart prices vs lfs prices since lfs are in the business to make money off their fish and walmart isnt.

qt isnt cheap. wouldnt you rather pay extra for a fish you know that wont be sick or less and take the chance. like i said i dont know what normal price is vs they charge so not sure how much they are "gouging".

 

[AMDPhenomX4]

Supplier is also a factor. Some are more expensive than say a local breeder.

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

Stores will charge what they can - LFSs are no different than any other business. I've seen some Scolys at a store by me for $200. Pretty much the same Scoly at a store within 15 minutes I've seen for around $600. And they both end up selling them to someone, so go figure.

 

[Zer0]

I'll never pay 600$ for a fish or coral. Never.

 

[thincat]

It's all relivent to what you want and how much you want it. A lot has to do with overhead and how much they have to pay out for location,location, location,....

 

[ilostnemo]

i know you cant really compare i just found it funny. yet he said once i dunno why these things wont sell lol. and id rather pay more for a fish that i know is healthy. of course the other is owned by a breeder so of course they will have cheaper fish but ive seen dead fish in the tank for over a week.. not something i like to see.

 

[thincat]

Yes, there are allot of things to take into consideration. There is one LFS in my area that normally has good prices but the guy has no personality so I refuse to do business with him. As the end comsumer we are the ones who make the final decision to buy or not to buy.

 

[kdogg85]

I know neither of them are big box stores by any means. But, I called beforehand and asking about some snails and I was told they had just got the shipment in. It takes me about 1 1/2 hrs to get there. The livestock was being priced and that was just rediculous. A fish in your sales tank does no good if it never gets sold. I went to Coral Reef and got my snails. The main ones I want are trochus and he only had 3. Other than 1 store close to me, they are my only two oprtions for quality fish and I saw no problems with either except the prices. I'll say this, compared to what I have access to locally, they are both far better in selection and quality. But, I will not pay that kind of money when it is cheaper and just as good a quality elsewhere. Surely they go out and compare themselves with other places.

 

[ilostnemo]

well also look at the aquarium has been around for 24 years and the coral reef maybe 2.. and if you want i mean im going by them everyday during the week if you need to know about a price you can tell me and ill look for you

 

[mrg02d]

This just makes me appreciate my LFS even more! Their prices are BELOW internet prices! And everything seems so generous there. I can get a nice sized rock covered in mushrooms and other odd creatures for $26.00. Almost all my corals come from this LFS. I was asking about micro brittle stars and the guy spent a good 15mins going through one of their huge tanks looking under rocks for me! I bought a shroom colony and as he picked it up, he saw it had numerous extras (crabs and whatnot as well as more micro stars) and just smiled as he put it all in the bag.

They seem like experts when asked questions. I wouldnt be surprised if they were members on here somewhere. (High Tide Aquarium for those near Tallahassee).

They always ask what you have in your tank if the item in question could be a problem.

Id say that all LFS should have that kind of attitude and be very competitive with prices. Ive spent a good deal of $$$ at this one store simply because of their honesty and generosity!

Matt

 

[ilostnemo]

ive spent my money at the aquarium we are talking about and they seem to be pretty nice if they know you.

 

[kdogg85]

They are very polite but, what they charge on some fish is just rediculous. I'll give a guy an extra 5 bucks if he is helpful and has a good reputation over someone cheaper but has sorry livestock and gives advice to get you out of his hair for the day. But there is no way I will give 70-90 dollars for a 30 dollar fish. That is why I do not order fish, the shipping charges just destroy the value.