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Im surprised your staples aren’t going up. I paid $6.50 per gallon of gas and $5 per half gallon of milk. Beef and chicken went up 50% here in the last year.There is no justification for a 78% increase otherwise we would see most of our staples going up that much.
I feel guilty buying off amazon sometimes and not supporting my lfs because the owner is a friend of mine. However I also remember they are the only saltwater shop within an hour drive and they take advantage of this which eases the guilt! I flat out asked one time why their prices are soo much higher than everyone else and they said it was because of their supplier, like I’m too dumb to know they are allowed to shop around for cheaper suppliers just like I’m allowed to shop around for cheaper retail prices. Their reply was that if there was something on BRS I wanted they could get it for me at that price. Tried that one time, took over 2 weeks for them to get me the item I wanted when it was worth me paying the $1.99 shipping from BRS directly to get it in a few days. Plus they very rarely have sales on anything, occasionally tank set ups but that’s it.$69.99 or so has been going price at my LFS since at least 2008 (never on sale and never sells either). I bought during the chewy sale mentioned above, but I’d expect the price to go up with regular sales (maybe just not as good)
I spoke to a gentleman in Instant Ocean customer service yesterday. He indicated it was probably the retail vendors hiking up the prices that high.The simple answer on that is not not buy their goods and buy a substitute good/from a competitor. Consumers can live without aquarium salt as this is a true luxury hobby. A vendor cannot over charge for a good that we willingly pay for and can live without. I know it sounds preachy and pedantic (sorry, not trying too)..but this is basic Econ 101. I doubt there is anything nefarious going on..especially with I/O who are usually on the cheaper end of the spectrum To me, if prices are going up this much, it is to cover their costs going up (fuel, shipping, raw materials, labor, etc)
That is what I did!Why not just get it from Amazon?
I don't feel guilty one bit from buying from Amazon. My LFS is jacking up the prices too simply because they can get it. Other than Petco/Petsmart, they are the only game in town who carries necessary dry goods. Their inventory is 30% or more higher than BRS and these are both retailers.I feel guilty buying off amazon sometimes and not supporting my lfs because the owner is a friend of mine. However I also remember they are the only saltwater shop within an hour drive and they take advantage of this which eases the guilt! I flat out asked one time why their prices are soo much higher than everyone else and they said it was because of their supplier, like I’m too dumb to know they are allowed to shop around for cheaper suppliers just like I’m allowed to shop around for cheaper retail prices. Their reply was that if there was something on BRS I wanted they could get it for me at that price. Tried that one time, took over 2 weeks for them to get me the item I wanted when it was worth me paying the $1.99 shipping from BRS directly to get it in a few days. Plus they very rarely have sales on anything, occasionally tank set ups but that’s it.
Yes, Reef Crystals is reasonably priced. I don't currently use it and not sure I want to switch. That is not the product this thread is about.Petsmart has the bucket listed at 39.99 for the reef crystals right now and you can go in and price match. Just shop around find the deals the normal bucket price at petsmart is like 70 something but it is almost always on sale
The purple bucket IO is $38 right now on Petsmarts website.Yes, Reef Crystals is reasonably priced. I don't currently use it and not sure I want to switch. That is not the product this thread is about.
Definitely don’t feel guilty. My LFS (doesn’t even carry saltwater fish anymore - thank goodness) but I used to work for them years ago and I know their mark up percentage on most goods, there’s a reason I don’t go there anymore.I feel guilty buying off amazon sometimes and not supporting my lfs because the owner is a friend of mine. However I also remember they are the only saltwater shop within an hour drive and they take advantage of this which eases the guilt! I flat out asked one time why their prices are soo much higher than everyone else and they said it was because of their supplier, like I’m too dumb to know they are allowed to shop around for cheaper suppliers just like I’m allowed to shop around for cheaper retail prices. Their reply was that if there was something on BRS I wanted they could get it for me at that price. Tried that one time, took over 2 weeks for them to get me the item I wanted when it was worth me paying the $1.99 shipping from BRS directly to get it in a few days. Plus they very rarely have sales on anything, occasionally tank set ups but that’s it.
$6.80 a gallon here.Im surprised your staples aren’t going up. I paid $6.50 per gallon of gas and $5 per half gallon of milk. Beef and chicken went up 50% here in the last year.
I’m an avid proponent of supporting the local economy, even if it costs a little more. It’s not easy competing with out of state corporations that have access to ginormous commercial properties in industrial areas with huge tax breaks to move in. Wages, healthcare, taxes, trying to manage a small space….it’s very difficult. That said, I’m now legally blind and can’t drive. My lfs was not willing to deliver, even using Uber, with me perfectly willing to pay for the delivery. They even told me it was not worth their time to deal with it as they only have two people at any given time. They were honest and said they hate to lose my business. When I buy from brs, nothing goes into my local economy for resources and infrastructure. The sad part of economics is cornering the market, undercutting the market, acquiring or forcing the closure of any competition, and then the inevitable…..rising of prices. It’s hard to be a mom and pop anymore.I don't feel guilty one bit from buying from Amazon. My LFS is jacking up the prices too simply because they can get it. Other than Petco/Petsmart, they are the only game in town who carries necessary dry goods. Their inventory is 30% or more higher than BRS and these are both retailers.
honest question and not trying to troll...you know their markup, but do you know the business's net profit / profit margin? The amazon's of the world have economies of scale which allow them to sell goods cheaper yet still make a higher profit than that of small businesses. It sucks that LFSs are generally higher than online retailers but those LFSs are such an important piece of the reefing community and the prices they charge are usually necessary to stay in business. I doubt any reef store owner is living in lap of luxury and is probably a few bad months of sales from going under.Definitely don’t feel guilty. My LFS (doesn’t even carry saltwater fish anymore - thank goodness) but I used to work for them years ago and I know their mark up percentage on most goods, there’s a reason I don’t go there anymore.
So, I'll say that your LFS probably has a routine order they place with the distributor to get the product you wanted. That could be every week, or every other week. They also have a minimum order to reach with every distributor, probably somewhere around $1000. If the product you wanted is from a distributor they don't order allot from it can take a while to get products.I feel guilty buying off amazon sometimes and not supporting my lfs because the owner is a friend of mine. However I also remember they are the only saltwater shop within an hour drive and they take advantage of this which eases the guilt! I flat out asked one time why their prices are soo much higher than everyone else and they said it was because of their supplier, like I’m too dumb to know they are allowed to shop around for cheaper suppliers just like I’m allowed to shop around for cheaper retail prices. Their reply was that if there was something on BRS I wanted they could get it for me at that price. Tried that one time, took over 2 weeks for them to get me the item I wanted when it was worth me paying the $1.99 shipping from BRS directly to get it in a few days. Plus they very rarely have sales on anything, occasionally tank set ups but that’s it.
Laughs in no water changes. MwahahahahaDon’t have to buy salt if you never water change lol
No problem, I have problem sharing info and didn’t sign any confidentially agreement, I just don’t want to derail the thread…when I left in 2013, granted this LFS is a small chain (4 stores only in Ohio) pet store not just a fish store, they were averaging just over or under $1 million in profit each year, averaging about $6k in total sales per day, with a $7k/month storefront rent plus utilities and other overhead costs of payroll, product, etc.honest question and not trying to troll...you know their markup, but do you know the business's net profit / profit margin? The amazon's of the world have economies of scale which allow them to sell goods cheaper yet still make a higher profit than that of small businesses. It sucks that LFSs are generally higher than online retailers but those LFSs are such an important piece of the reefing community and the prices they charge are usually necessary to stay in business. I doubt any reef store owner is living in lap of luxury and is probably a few bad months of sales from going under.
Kindly reread my posting. The point was some vendors are enormously jacking up the prices and had they gotten a huge pass on cost increase from IO or was this just gouging by the named retailers? In other words, was it going to stay this high when vendors work down their inventory at a lower cost?Either im retarted or yall are; IO purple “box” is $52 on Amazon and OOS on persmarts website. What am missing here?