Aqua Exibits Spam

G

gooch

New member
Did WRS share e-mail addresses of club members past and present to other stores in the area? I just recieved two spam e-mails as did my wife. It has been years since we have been members and years since I was in that store. And I know I never gave them my e-mail addy or my wifes.

While it may be no big deal I don't need to be notified that they just got fish in. Please have our e-mail addy's taken off the list if WRS had something to do with it.

gooch
 
My suspicion here is that someone from aqua exhibits had been a member of the WRS Yahoo group. If they were they could have simply gone into the group and downlaoded the membership listing.

There is also the possibility that they could have gotten a potential customer listing from one of the specialized companies that sells email addresses to business. These companies have teams that search the web for listings of people with common interests.

Dennis
 
Hmmm... thats odd. Perhaps the new owner simply became a member and found out the addy's somehow... I dont know. Ill have to forward this to Frank/ ask the other leaders. I havent been sent any SPAM from them though, and I actually know Adrian (new owner). Perhaps he got a hold of an old member list printout or something. I suppose, if someone wanted to, they could swipe a member spreadsheet from a meeting or something... but I havent heard of any going missing recently.

I havent heard it from anyone else either... so perhaps its an isolated incident, or your email was given to AE by someone else. I know when I was 21, a then buddy of mine started using my email whenever he thought it might result in spam. I ended up with 100 porno spams a day from that and closed down the account.
 
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Hey Gooch,

I have not received (yet) any spam that I'm aware of from them. Also, WRS only ever had 1 email for you that I'm aware of which probably wasn't your wifes...

Steve
 
It was the only place I could think of that they may have gotten them from.. And yes my wife use to get e-mails from the club when she was a member. It was years ago. I do not know how else they could have gotten it. Like I said for me it was no big deal but my wife just doesn't like getting fish e-mails. My failed business is still a very sore spot with her.

gooch
 
Kris's email address probably had her prior name before she got lucky and I gave her my name.....lol.
 
None of our email lists are public. We have them on spreadsheets for administrators only unless your e-mail is made public through the forum, and you decide whether its public or not.
 
Aqua Exhibits used to take your email if you were requesting to be notified of livestock or coral arrivals.

Someone could have easily swiped the clipboard that held those names and sold them to spammer or ad pushers. Or the new owners could have used it to push out stuff too (shady though it true)
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11632149#post11632149 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Gem Tang Rider
Has anyone been to Aqua Exhibits lately?
Click to expand...

I was there a couple weeks ago....place was ripped up, under new ownership.

When I asked an employee why half of their saltwater tanks were ripped out and hardly any corals, he said "there really isn't that much demand for corals"!!!!

When I left, I thought, well not much reason to ever go back there anymore. However, there website says they are "re-building" so I will give them another chance. Maybe just some misinformed kid employee.....but right now the place is nothing like it used to be.
 
Adrian, the new owner, used to own some store on the south-side (forget what). When I first visited, I told him that I saw his location as a place for alot of potential regarding saltwater/reef. The downtown location makes it very prime. Their problem is that they dont know how to take care of it, or dont know what to order, so you dont want to shop there. Adrian did redo the Live Rock/Dying coral vat though. He says he wants to do some serious coral stuff... but we will see. I think that most people write the place off for saltwater, so in that respect the employee is right... there is no supply so there is no demand. But thats just ignorance... so close to all the people who either work downtown (execs with money) or pass through on their way home every day. I remember how that place USED to be a decade ago when Brian (previous owner) was around and pushing the business. I fear that as long as Adrian nicke&dimes feeder goldfish and oscars to the local community, he is limiting himself. If he expands to attract bigger spenders (saltwater & reef) could really make out in the end. If that were my place, I would be pushing reef/saltwater like mad due to the location. Just look at Glass Aquatics (not that far away, but not even as good of a location even in Riverwest)... 90% saltwater with a coral system in the works. Sure, he has feeder goldfish and stuff like that in its corners, but when you walk in and see the cool saltwater fish, you want to spend more than $10 for a Jack Dempsey.
 
Why can't there be any decent places in the Milwaukee area? Chicago is getting thin too since Menard closed down reef dwellers but there are still a few places there.


Dave
 
The last few times I was in Aquatic Exhibits, I got depressed & walked out. Just wondered if anything had changed.
 
You have to keep a few things in mind when your looking at stores handling a good quantity of corals and salt water fish.

First of all look at how much we have invested into our salt water tank. Now take this investment and multiply it by 10 to 50 tanks. How many store owners can afford investments like that.

The next thing is the cost of livestock and the turn over rate. of that merchandise. If he brings in a $1,000 shipment how long will it stay in his tanks and how much will he be able to get for it. Is he going to turn over $1,000 in saltwater livestock every week or every month? He does have overhead and needs to move livestock or drygoods or both to cover those overhead costs.

Not too long ago a trade magazine put the ratio of dollars spent on aquarium livestock at 1 to 12 between salt and fresh water livestock. Now considering the difference in price that is lot of tank space for fresh water compared to salt water.

It is a very touchy gamble when one tries to go into business and get that proper balance for there geographic area. If you need to sell $5,000 in salt water fish and suppies every week to break even just think how how many customers you would need. How much does the average reefer spend in a week on livestock?

Dennis
 
Thats why Glass goes for high volume, low margin. He keeps his turnover high this way so his selection is more diverse and customers keep visiting more often... leading to more sales. I dont think he needs $5000 in sales per week to keep afloat either. He doesnt really do equipment so much (just glass tanks really, or if he is doing a custom setup, but thats all), but between all his service accounts and walk-in traffic, turnover seems pretty high.

If Hoffers, Aquatics Unlimited, etc... can keep the selection they do and keep afloat, and they are at the outskirts of the actual city more, I have no doubt a downtown location could outdo them for sales of saltwater/reef.

Prugs, in the last few years or so AquaExhibits really took a dive. The owner moved down to Florida and left the store in the hands of numbskulls. Long ago, Glass even used to work there, and the saltwater selection was second to none, not Hoffers, AU, or even Pet World. I think they had a bunch of service accounts as well (this seems to really boost sales).

Im just saying... #1 rule of business, so 'they' say: LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION. So if any store in the city has a shot, one located downtown would have it, right?
 
If this is the place on 3rd street, then Heck, I used to go there 20 years ago when I started in the hobby back in the college days.

I remember it being pretty good back then, although the technology (and mostly my knowledge) wasn't near what it is now and I could only keep fish alive...
 
I feel for all you guys on the north side of town. With the Coral Corner being the best in South Eastern Wisconsin, & located in Racine, it's a long drive for yooost guys.

The only thing I saw nice at AE was the Escalade & the BMW parked in front.
 
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