I'm confused, how much is shipping? And who pays that?
I'll start with my office tank! Killer pic by Johnny Ciotti..
but what would shipping cost if I ordered a $48 coral? I'm not sure I understand how your shipping prices work.. kinda confusing
Yeah, running an online marine livestock business is an interesting way to make a living! As they say, “There’s no business like show business…â€
Even with me out there yammering incessantly almost every day, and with Unique putting out email blasts, social media posts, etc, customers have questions…And some of them are things you may have wondered, but haven’t gotten around to asking. So, at the risk of looking a bit self-serving to my own company in my own forum (Yeha, people have actually criticized me for promoting UC in our own forum..has the world gone completely nuts?), I thought I’d share some of the more interesting “IFAQS†(infrequently asked questions) that we’ve received over the past couple of years with you. I've saved the best for some strange purpose, like writing an "FAQ" thingy. So...These are real questions- and the answers are legit.
Okay, here goes:
What’s your FAX number? Our what?
Are you open on weekends? We are open 24/7, 365…online. We are generally not open on weekends. Gotta give our hardworking staff some time off. Though it’s not uncommon to receive a reply to you email some weekend at 5:00AM Pacific Time.
Do you have corals that aren’t on your website? I think the ratio is like 25-30 corals for every one you see on the site; something like that. Yeah, we have a lot of pieces, so if you want something that you don’t see on the site, there is a better than average possibility that we might have it.
Do you guys sell fish? Ugghhhh (slaps forehead…)
What do you guys have to do with the “Strawberry Shortcake†Acropora? Okay, it’s true. My partner, Joe Caparatta, coined the name some years back, when he saw an Acropora from Australia who’s colors reminded him of that nasty ice cream bar he loved as a kid. So he coined the name at his shop in NY. It has stuck, and that’s how Acropora microclados has forever been called the “Strawberry Shortcakeâ€, and is somehow associated with Unique Corals.
The infamous "Strawberry Shortcake- Acropora microclados.
Do you sell water? (asked by a guy who lives in Tenessee. We are in Los Angeles, remember) You mean, like through the internet? Really?
Your hold music…sounds like static..Did you know that? Oops.
Can I keep (your) Xenia with my Bettas? Priceless. And true (November, 2012).
How big are your raceways? We have 6, 30 foot long raceways full of coral.
Off the deep end, for sure..one of our 30 foot long raceways.
You guys should offer WYSIWYG Snails. That wasn’t a question. (but a true statement from 2013!)
Do you offer Friday shipping? Yes we do..We charge an additional $15 (actually, Fed Ex does, and we happily pass it on to you…)
How long can you hold the coral I just purchased for me before you ship? Our stated policy is two weeks max. After that, it’s hard to guarantee that the coral won’t get misplaced in our busy facility. We’ll do our best, but…
How come you don’t use all LED lighting in your facility? Because, even though it’s a great lighting format, it’s not always practical for every coral that we sell. We utilize whatever light we feel is best for the corals that we offer. So our place looks like a lighting superstore at times, with all of the different formats in use.
How do you guys have time to run UC and still travel, do talks, and visit clubs? We’re just amazing, that’s about it. Seriously- it’s just part of the gig. You find the time.
Do you have Designer Zoas? We’re a bit low on Calvin Klein at the moment, but we have some lovely Prada Palythoa, and a few Michael Kors Zoas. Well, actually, we do have a variety of the “named†zoos everyone likes, at respectable prices based on their scarcity, but many times, we aren’t 100% certain of the “proper name†of some of the maricultured specimens we bring in- perhaps to our deficit. So you’ll hear reefers say stuff like, “Dude, I scored an “XYZ†from Unique for the price of an ‘Eagle Eye’. They didn’t know what they had.†To which I would respond- Dude, you’re probably right. However, if you knew how little the “XYZ Zoa†that you lust after costs when you bring in maricultured discs of it, you’d probably cry. Seriously. Get the notion of “designer†zoas out of your head. Please. Who actually designs them?
How come you sell your ORA corals on those black plastic plugs? “________ Corals†doesn’t sell ‘em like that. That’s because “________†apparently isn’t selling “ORA corals†from ORA! That’s the way they grow ‘em-that’s the way they are to be sold. You want the real deal, you get a sexy black plastic plug. Period. We can cut the pin off the plug for you, if you specify.
Legit ORA
Do you wear long pants to work sometimes? Do I WHAT?
Will you cut me a frag of your (_________) Acropora and send it to me? In a few weeks, sure. 99.9% of the time, you won’t be sent a fresh cut anything from us. Maybe as a local walk-in under duress…but that’s about it. We just won’t ship fresh cut, fresh glued corals. Their shipping survival rate is abysmal. We joke that the only fresh glued things that leave our facility are our own fingers.
I’m in L.A. for vacation, a family holiday, Reef-a-Palooza, etc. Can I stop by your facility? Sure, you’re welcome to stop by during regular business hours, M-F. Just call. Since we are more of a warehouse-type propagation facility, we are not really geared for a great walk-in customer experience, with everything clearly marked. Instead, you see thousands and thousands of corals in big old raceways…Kind of overwhelming, actually. We’re happy to have you stop by, but the browsing is a bit different than the warm fuzzy LFS experience, with the names and prices of everything written in erasable pen on the sides of the tank. We do have a K-Cup machine, though- and a really great taco shop down the street.
What’s your price shipped to _______ if I order this $58 frag? Hmm…it’s $58, plus $19 Fed Ex shipping, unless you order $200 or more, then shipping is free!
What’s your price shipped to _______ if I order this $78 frag? Ahh…it’s $78, plus $19 Fed Ex shipping, unless you order $200 or more, then shipping is free!
What’s your price shipped to _________ if I order this $38 frag? Wait a minute…it’s coming to me…Umm..it’s $38, plus $19 Fed Ex shipping, unless you order $200 or more, then shipping is free!
Noticing a trend here?
How do I find out when you have sales? Sign up for our newsletter on our home page! It will generally be a great tip-off for when we have those famous sales and events!
Can Scott come out and speak at my club event? Whew...total risk... Shoot me an email and we can set up a date!
Do you REALLY want this guy speaking to your club?
Do you do live sales? Urrghhh. I think we all have a root canal scheduled that day. Or perhaps we need to go to the DMV…Or call the cable company..Or have our taxes done…or…
Did you know that some guy on EBay is selling corals using one of your pics? They even have the watermark! No, and thanks for the tip! He’ll be hearing from us real soon. We love to share pics, and take great pride in them. But if you’re going to use them to sell coral that is not ours…without our permission…It won’t be a good day for you. ‘Nuff said.
Does UC sponsor clubs? You ‘betcha. Shoot us an email and we can see what you need. We all came out of the reef club “sceneâ€, and are huge supporters of clubs!
What is the little plastic tube of liquid that came with my order? Phytoplankton culture? We get this call almost daily….I wish I had a more sexy answer. It’s not food, ballast, or an alien genetic experiment. It’s a good old fashioned, low tech ice pack, which did it’s job and kept your corals cool during shipping. Just water your plants with it!
Can you get me a “_______ Wrasse?†I didn’t see it on your web site. We will sure try to source it for you if we can. Just give us a call, and we’ll do our best.
Who is taller? Scott, or Joe? Don’t rub it in.
What does “Stock Frag†mean? Well, we are big believers in keeping costs affordable, and having “stock†items (corals that we always have on hand) that are pretty consistent in appearance across the board doesn't require us to photograph each and every piece, saving on time and labor over our WYSIWYG pieces, all of which are individually photographed. And they are just as high quality as our WYSIWYG frags. You’ll receive a coral similar to the one in the picture, with “WYSIWYG†quality. And, if they are on the site- they are always available. A win-win.
You guys both have FRESHWATER tanks in your offices? Seriously? Hmm, well, the 16,000 gallons of saltwater on the other side of the door count as something, right?
Can you guys help me design a system? Yes, we can. Call us and we can discuss your needs.
Do you guys have a secret back room with some really rare stuff? Um, no. But we do have two reasonably clean bathrooms…Seriously, our ultra rare pieces “hide in plain sight†with the rest of our corals, in a raceway appropriate for their needs. You might even walk right past them…we sometimes do! LOL
When you guys started out and came on with the “Conscientious. Sustainable. Responsible.†manifesto/mission statement, didn’t it tick off some people? Yup
Did that bother you? Nope.
Did you know the “u†in your logo is backwards? Yup. So are all the letters, except for the “q†and the “iâ€, which doesn’t have a “.†over it. Made you look, huh?
" I think you should know that there are a lot of typos in your logo..."
Do I have to sign for my Fed Ex package when it arrives? Nope. We do not ship packages with a signature required.
Does the “____________†Chalice look like it does in your picture? We think so. Maybe better. We strive for accuracy.
Do you have a favorite coral? Nah. Really do like ‘em all.
What’s the biggest mistake you made? Not getting into this business decades ago.
Okay, I’ve went on long enough…There are more questions, of course, because customers keep asking…And we will keep answering. Wouldn’t have it any other way.
Until next time...Have a good one...
And Stay Wet.
Scott Fellman
Unique Corals
