Times have changed - Very disappointing

[vetteguy53081]

Ive seen what's going on and have been tracking various vendors to try to stick with one or two as there are so many out there.
For me- NONE !!! I will buy from private parties or patiently wait for other RAP and MACNA shows.
Over the last 18 weeks, prices have gone up 36-39% with certain vendors (cant say names) and THESE SO CALLED BLACK FRIDAY AND XMAS DEALS are a joke- prices have jumped to as much as 50%.
MERRY XMAS TO THE VENDORS BECAUSE ITS NOT US !!
BE CAREFUL FOLKS AND NOT JUMP ON SOMETHING VIA IMPULSE BUT SHOP CAREFULLY. These 10%-20% off are merely off increased prices- Such a Shame !!

I owned an LFS and realize mark-up, profit margins and expenses but would not do this to my customers who work hard for their money. Very disappointed (but not fooled)

 

[tundraguy1106]

Ive seen what's going on and have been tracking various vendors to try to stick with one or two as there are so many out there.
For me- NONE !!! I will buy from private parties or patiently wat for other RAP and MACNA shows.
Over the last 18 weeks, prices have gone up 36-39% with certain vendors (cant say names) and THESE SO CALLED BLACK FRIDAY AND XMAS DEALS are a joke- prices have jumped to as much as 50%.
MERRY XMAS TO THE VENDORS BECAUSE ITS NOT US !!
BE CAREFUL FOLKS AND NOT JUMP ON SOMETHING VIA IMPULSE BUT SHOP CAREFULLY. These 10%-20% off are merely off increased prices- Such a Shame !!

I owned an LFS and realize mark-up, profit margins and expenses but would not do this to my customers who work hard for their money. Very disappointed (but not fooled)

Well said… I’ve noticed the same things and even our most popular vendors rarely give coupons or discounts that are even worth it. Now I can’t say ALL because there have been a few who’ve offered some really good sales but for the most part I’ll buy from other members.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Well said… I’ve noticed the same things and even our most popular vendors rarely give coupons or discounts that are even worth it. Now I can’t say ALL because there have been a few who’ve offered some really good sales but for the most part I’ll buy from other members.

Speaking of coupons- a thing of the past

 

[Jeeperz]

Ive seen what's going on and have been tracking various vendors to try to stick with one or two as there are so many out there.
For me- NONE !!! I will buy from private parties or patiently wat for other RAP and MACNA shows.
Over the last 18 weeks, prices have gone up 36-39% with certain vendors (cant say names) and THESE SO CALLED BLACK FRIDAY AND XMAS DEALS are a joke- prices have jumped to as much as 50%.
MERRY XMAS TO THE VENDORS BECAUSE ITS NOT US !!
BE CAREFUL FOLKS AND NOT JUMP ON SOMETHING VIA IMPULSE BUT SHOP CAREFULLY. These 10%-20% off are merely off increased prices- Such a Shame !!

I owned an LFS and realize mark-up, profit margins and expenses but would not do this to my customers who work hard for their money. Very disappointed (but not fooled)

Black Friday "deals" have not been deals for years. Normally vendors/retailers start marking stuff up going into holiday seasons, then offer discounts on say black Friday that still are a markup from prices 6 months previous. It's a scam basically from greedy businesses who have zero moral compass and explains why everything is so expensive

 

[jimk60]

Ive seen what's going on and have been tracking various vendors to try to stick with one or two as there are so many out there.
For me- NONE !!! I will buy from private parties or patiently wat for other RAP and MACNA shows.
Over the last 18 weeks, prices have gone up 36-39% with certain vendors (cant say names) and THESE SO CALLED BLACK FRIDAY AND XMAS DEALS are a joke- prices have jumped to as much as 50%.
MERRY XMAS TO THE VENDORS BECAUSE ITS NOT US !!
BE CAREFUL FOLKS AND NOT JUMP ON SOMETHING VIA IMPULSE BUT SHOP CAREFULLY. These 10%-20% off are merely off increased prices- Such a Shame !!

I owned an LFS and realize mark-up, profit margins and expenses but would not do this to my customers who work hard for their money. Very disappointed (but not fooled)

Agreed! I think it's time to name names especially for the newer members who only hear so and so is the best ever. Lots of people don't realize what they could be paying.

 

[I.AM.MR.MIKE]

Have you bought a family sized bag of Doritos recently?

 

[spsick]

Vette guy is taking the high road but I say name names.

I can confidently say Battlecorals and Coral Euphoria do NOT pull this bs as I browse their sites regularly.

 

[damsels are not mean]

I don't think it's greedy vendors. Costs are way up as is demand while supplies remain low. It's not like the days when you could just go out and mine a bunch of live rock and collect whatever you wanted to sell. Several places shut down completely and some reluctantly allow controlled harvests. Aquaculture is still expensive and slow. Shipping is through the roof, both the shipping to vendors and the loss they eat to offer competitive shipping costs to customers. Certainly there are greedy vendors out there but they aren't all colluding to push prices up. Otherwise somebody could make bank offering a better deal. I've visited a couple local sellers and although the shipping is free (minus the gas) the prices are not really any better than online. I don't think all these guys are greedy. I've known some for a while.

edit: I want to be clear I don't mean there aren't greedy vendors, I actually just had a long convo with a fish store owner about the boom in reef hustle/grind culture.

 

[Jeeperz]

Have you bought a family sized bag of Doritos recently?

Yup, you can get a 2x size at Costco for the same price, ridiculous, same with bread, beef, etc... Everything anymore is beholden to investor profits and speculators which equals price gouging

 

[Jeeperz]

I don't think it's greedy vendors. Costs are way up as is demand while supplies remain low. It's not like the days when you could just go out and mine a bunch of live rock and collect whatever you wanted to sell. Several places shut down completely and some reluctantly allow controlled harvests. Aquaculture is still expensive and slow. Shipping is through the roof, both the shipping to vendors and the loss they eat to offer competitive shipping costs to customers. Certainly there are greedy vendors out there but they aren't all colluding to push prices up. Otherwise somebody could make bank offering a better deal. I've visited a couple local sellers and although the shipping is free (minus the gas) the prices are not really any better than online. I don't think all these guys are greedy. I've known some for a while.

That may be part of it in this hobby, the other part is greed for the almighty dollar so the owners of the company can buy new fancy cars, houses, clothes, etc...

 

[Sean Clark]

Mark it up to mark it down. Not to mention the diminutive size of "frags". No thanks.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Have you bought a family sized bag of Doritos recently?

$2.79 to $5.29 and just on sale for 3 for $12 by me - BUT . . Must buy 3

 

[rc8t6353]

Thank you guys for this post!! Coming from someone that's been in the hobby but never bought coral online before.

 

[vetteguy53081]

I don't think it's greedy vendors. Costs are way up as is demand while supplies remain low. It's not like the days when you could just go out and mine a bunch of live rock and collect whatever you wanted to sell. Several places shut down completely and some reluctantly allow controlled harvests. Aquaculture is still expensive and slow. Shipping is through the roof, both the shipping to vendors and the loss they eat to offer competitive shipping costs to customers. Certainly there are greedy vendors out there but they aren't all colluding to push prices up. Otherwise somebody could make bank offering a better deal. I've visited a couple local sellers and although the shipping is free (minus the gas) the prices are not really any better than online. I don't think all these guys are greedy. I've known some for a while.

edit: I want to be clear I don't mean there aren't greedy vendors, I actually just had a long convo with a fish store owner about the boom in reef hustle/grind culture.

Greed was not mentioned but rather the rate of increase in several weeks and ironically as we approach the holidays. I knpw pricing as I too were a retailer and know wholesale prices and never challenged any store on what they charge. There is NO WAY their pricing has gone up weekly.

 

[BroccoliFarmer]

Yup, you can get a 2x size at Costco for the same price, ridiculous, same with bread, beef, etc... Everything anymore is beholden to investor profits and speculators which equals price gouging

Simple answer to most of this...stop buying it. Blaming 'greedy corporations' is a nice tagline, but ultimately, most of the business here are small 'mom and pop' hobbyist who have had success and made a business out of it. Their costs have gone up so too. If you think that some of the vendors here are price gouging, dont buy. It is pure economics at play here...pricing will be what the market will bear. and if the consumer is willing to pay more, the seller is going to be willing to increase their prices.

sorry..I hope you dont think of this as an attack. I promise you it is not meant to be. But there are some real issues at play here that extend beyond someone taking advantage of people in this industry..which to be honest, is a luxury industry.

 

[Lavey29]

Have you bought a family sized bag of Doritos recently?

You mean a bag of air

 

[Battlecorals Verified Sponsor]

I feel your pain, and for what it's worth. As a vendor, and I can probably go on the record as speaking for any other vendor as well that everything I have to buy, from shipping supplies to fragging supplies and everything in between including the actual cost of shipping has gone up. It's a very "feel-able" affect from where i am sitting believe me. does that justify some of the excessive gouging going on. absolutely not

But part of me wants really bad too say "screw it" and jack everything up 10-15% as well but, you know it just doesn't really work that way. Especially with my battleboxs that are by far my biggest seller. If anything my prices have gone down. lol. while the rest of the worlds has gone up. I know, first world problems for the most part. I am not complaining.

 

[ninjamyst]

It's not just vendors. It's hobbyists too. Local hobbyists are charging $100 per named SPS frag. At that price I rather pay the big ones. But I will say price fluctuate and depends on what's trendy. I have seen price gone down for some corals and gone up for others. There are still good deals to be found with live sales and black Friday specials. You just have to wade through the crap to find the gems.

 

[StatelineReefer]

You just have to wade through the crap to find the gems.

This is true of a lot of things, but it shouldn't be true in our hobby, especially among people who supposedly share our passion for reefkeeping in general (Lookin' at you BRS!!! Lookin' RIGHT AT YOU). This time of year used to be celebrated as an unofficial Upgrade Day, not as a chance to scalp the hobby.

 

[Jeeperz]

Simple answer to most of this...stop buying it. Blaming 'greedy corporations' is a nice tagline, but ultimately, most of the business here are small 'mom and pop' hobbyist who have had success and made a business out of it. Their costs have gone up so too. If you think that some of the vendors here are price gouging, dont buy. It is pure economics at play here...pricing will be what the market will bear. and if the consumer is willing to pay more, the seller is going to be willing to increase their prices.

sorry..I hope you dont think of this as an attack. I promise you it is not meant to be. But there are some real issues at play here that extend beyond someone taking advantage of people in this industry..which to be honest, is a luxury industry.

I wasn't really implying about reefing, just out in the world in general. I don't really look at many reefing website. Most small business owners own fancy brand new vehicles and super spendy phones, etc... I've never met a small business owner who drives a 20 year old vehicle. Contractors come to mind. They never have vehicles more than 2 or 3 years old, and we are talking 100k trucks, ever wonder why housing is so expensive? The consumer paid for that.