38 year old fish price list

[KorD]

I got online to check out the old LFS store I used to visit.
why are their prices so low compared to places where I live now.
I’m debating making a 19 hour one way trip back to the old store.
plus not to mention I’m extremely disappointed in the service at all stores here in texas

 

[Dark_Knightt]

Yo you could buy mandarins for $15 (spotted mandarins werent even available,) all damsels were $3, and a blue ribbon eel was only $30. Today those are like $150

 

[Haydn]

All the corallivore butterflies make me cringe. Goes to show how people would do anything to make a buck. They simply shouldn’t be exported / imported at all.

I had left the marine industry maybe a year or so earlier after some 10 years in the trade. I can relate to the list and honestly say 'Goes to show how people would do anything to make a buck' is not only totally wrong but IMO without the dedication of those guys back then, this hobby would not exist.

Mostly back then we had little idea how to keep fish in captivity, which fish fed on what. We were learning by trial and error. When we, as importers, made a list, we looked in the few books available, many were just fish identification books for scuba divers with drawn illustrations. There was very little husbandry information, you just went through the exporters list, ordering stuff you had previously and adding a few 'I wonder what that is' fish.

Then when the fish boxes arrived 10 to 1 it was filled with stuff you hadn't ordered anyway or was misidentified. You then tried the fish on a variety on different foods, some survived and (I'm afraid) some didn't- the ones that didn't you didn't order again (but you still got them). Don't forget we the importers had all the risk we paid for the fish if it died or not.

@Zionas - You are lucky to have the resources you have, books, internet, forums like this one, you are able to make informed comments, us oldies just had experience, instinct and sheer, blinking luck to fall back on. Be grateful we did.