buying from LFS

[ilostnemo]

it directly affects the price of fish in the store. some people dont look at it that way, they just think thats twice the price blah blah blah. plus i think its better to look at the fish you buy than not seeing it

 

[jetajockey]

Sure, shipping costs a lot when you order in a ton of fish to a LFS. So what? It'd cost me a lot to have large boxes of fish shipped to my house also. I looked into importing for a while and I am well aware of the process/costs.

If you break it down, their actual shipping cost is way lower than it is for someone buying a few fish online, because they are getting hundreds per box.

I do agree that it's nice looking at the fish before you buy it, but generally I know what I am after before I start browsing online for something to buy, and most of the time I can get actual pictures/video of the fish being sold to me.

One other thing to factor into the cost of buying at the LFS is the cost of transportation to get up there and back. If you work there then you likely get a discount and have to be there anyway, so it works out for you, but for a retail customer not so much.

 

[ilostnemo]

this is why lfs cost more. cost of item shipping work of employees feeding waterchanging the tanks. my store actually loses money on about 70 percent of what we sell. and i was a retail customer there for 6 years before working there. its still a convince to buy healthy fish that you can see before you buy. in persons better than online. i have bought stuff online and it actually wasnt to good any of the times i purchased offline. coral was dead, fish was dead etc

 

[slitherbomb]

this is why lfs cost more. cost of item shipping work of employees feeding waterchanging the tanks. my store actually loses money on about 70 percent of what we sell. and i was a retail customer there for 6 years before working there. its still a convince to buy healthy fish that you can see before you buy. in persons better than online. i have bought stuff online and it actually wasnt to good any of the times i purchased offline. coral was dead, fish was dead etc

One great thing about buying online is the 2 week guarantee. Even if my lfs sells a fish for $75 and it's $100 online, I'll still buy online because of that guarantee that the fish won't die. Anyways, most online stores have discount shipping for floridians lol

 

[ilostnemo]

some stores offer a 2 week guarantee my work does. plus we qt everything

 

[slitherbomb]

Mine sure doesn't

 

[jetajockey]

I still don't understand why people should pay more to buy from a LFS rather than online.

It's just like walmart putting small stores out of business, either they adapt or they go extinct, you can't blame people for wanting to pay less for things.

 

[TheCrazyFishLady]

I personally don't trust buying online. I have had my identity stolen amoung knowing plenty of people having any range of issues. I would much rather hand the cash/card to a physical person who swipes it.

 

[slitherbomb]

I would pay a few more dollars to get it right away from my lfs, instead of buying online. You can also see the fish eat and if it's sick or something. The people at my lfs know me already, so they give me discounts on things and just give things for free. It's really cool.

 

[ocean]

I did some checking online for a canister filter, after my LFS showed me what he uses on all his tanks. His price was almost $200, Petco (in town) was $169 Ebay was $105. I realize the small mom and pop LFS have to make money to stay in business but crap!!! That is a big price difference.....and so what it boils down to I'll be buying online, but will still get my fish from the LFS.

 

[foster53]

I did some checking online for a canister filter, after my LFS showed me what he uses on all his tanks. His price was almost $200, Petco (in town) was $169 Ebay was $105. I realize the small mom and pop LFS have to make money to stay in business but crap!!! That is a big price difference.....and so what it boils down to I'll be buying online, but will still get my fish from the LFS.

One factor here is the big guys buy hundreds at a time, and some buy directly from the manufacturer. Small LFS buy one or two from a wholesaler, so one more set of hands that get paid for the product. Most on line sellers never touch the product. It is drop shipped to you directly from the manufacturer or a wholesaler, so they have very little overhead to cover. The days of small mom & pop stores are limited. Big box and online will eventually put them out of business. The only ones likely to survive are the larger well established shops with a devoted following. It's sad because a GOOD LFS is a wealth of knowledge. Most of the big box store employees don't know a Goldfish, from a livebearer, from a Cichlid. If you have time just hang out in a big box store and listen to some of the advice that's given., and watch some of the sick fish that are sold to customers that are not very knowledgeable. Those fish will go home to an established tank and possibly wipe it out. Ok. I'm done ranting now, I just remember the days when I had my store, and get a little upset when think How afew dollars difference in price could make so much difference in loyalty

 

[Aces11]

I've never bought anything fish related online. I've never had to. I have a pretty good family owned pet store by me that's pretty reliable. They hand raise their birds and have people that are pretty knowledgable about fish. They even offer to test your water for free with a liquid test kit! But other chain stores can be iffy depending where you go

 

[Alfredoman]

I will never buy fish online. Im not lettim them mail me my fish

 

[ilostnemo]

i remember one day i was in petsmart correcting a employee (about a african cichlid being able to live with cardnial tetra) when the customers started asking me for help lol

 

[adadkins1]

Some employess are just oblivious/don't care.

Foster is right, LFS's don't order hundreds of filters like say Wal-Mart, so they can't sell them for the same price. In the end I will still probably never buy anything online unless it is from SM and HN1.

 

[bruinsbro1997]

In the end I will still probably never buy anything online unless it is from SM and HN1.

Same here! I'm going to be ordering some fish from them in a week or two. They are honestly some of the only fish I would never worry QTing, I have heard nothing but great reviews about their fish. Can't wait!

 

[jetajockey]

I will never buy fish online. Im not lettim them mail me my fish

I noticed with most people that I speak to about mailing fish that they are very surprised that people ship fish in the mail.

But after finding out that this is how all of the pet stores get their fish, it's not really that far fetched.

As far as the loyalty thing goes, I don't go to the pet store to get advice. I don't feel a moral obligation to treat a local business as a charity case if they're unwilling to be even remotely competitive.

I don't see it any different than shopping at walmart versus a mom and pop grocery store.

Thankfully, some fish stores have adapted by cutting some corners and being more competitive.

 

[Alfredoman]

How do they ship them

 

[jetajockey]

My friends that import fish have to go to an approved airport cargo area to get their stuff because everything has to be checked off by customs.

I've seen LFS use everything from UPS, DHL, and USPS for their shipments. The fish sent to pet stores are crammed in like sardines, hundreds to a bag often times.


I personally use USPS because it is the most cost effective, priority shipments typically take 2 days, sometimes 3, and most small fish packages are less than $10 to ship.

Mishaps do happen when shipping fish, but it's rare. Good shippers insulate their packages and add heat/cold packs if needed, and most give some kind of live arrival guarantee. Since this is primarily a word of mouth type thing, most hobbyist level fish sellers are going to do everything they can to give the customer a good experience, a good report goes a long way.

 

[ilostnemo]

My friends that import fish have to go to an approved airport cargo area to get their stuff because everything has to be checked off by customs.

I've seen LFS use everything from UPS, DHL, and USPS for their shipments. The fish sent to pet stores are crammed in like sardines, hundreds to a bag often times.

I personally use USPS because it is the most cost effective, priority shipments typically take 2 days, sometimes 3, and most small fish packages are less than $10 to ship.

Mishaps do happen when shipping fish, but it's rare. Good shippers insulate their packages and add heat/cold packs if needed, and most give some kind of live arrival guarantee. Since this is primarily a word of mouth type thing, most hobbyist level fish sellers are going to do everything they can to give the customer a good experience, a good report goes a long way.

My store only recieves about 20 to 30 a bag and that's usually a big bag. Sometimes one fish per bag. And we use delta air. No usps ups or fedex here