Beware When Shopping For Barlett's Anthias

[HumbleFish]

On the flip side, sometimes LFS mislabel things and it can work to your advantage. Many years ago, my dad & I saw a half dozen Fire Shrimp mislabeled as $3 Peppermint Shrimp. My dad tried to be honest by pointing out the mistake... but the kid at the LFS was like, "Look, I work here. I know what they are."

So my dad said, "Whatever you say skippy. I'll take all 6 of them."

 

[eatbreakfast]

All I can say is that I am glad you are not my pharmacist. Don't want to kick the bucket buying the wrong medication. Lol

If LFS employees made as much $$ as a pharmacist I would have higher expectations for correct id's.

 

[CoralsAddiction]

Beware When Shopping For Barlett's Anthias

If LFS employees made as much $$ as a pharmacist I would have higher expectations for correct id's.

Mediocrity is a foe no matter what trade one chooses to be in. It should not be embraced or tolerated. Excellence, on the other hand, should be the goal of any business.

 

[CoralsAddiction]

I spend 30-60 mins a day trying to improve at what I do for a living. I don't need to...I can get by. So can my customers. But I choose to make good better. LFS should at least to try to make bad good if that makes sense.

 

[Hormigaquatica]

You two are clueless and have obviously never worked in a fish store. I'd be willing to bet money the employee in question listened to you ramble on about caudal peduncles, blocked all of that out on purpose, and then insisted you were seeing a Scott's wrasse out of spite so you would leave.

Fish store employees deal with the weirdest people in society, second only to reptile people. There is some basic etiquette that folks like yourselves could follow when shopping that will save both you and the lowly fish store employee from having to argue about the name of a single piece of livestock they received from in a single shipment of many that was probably labeled that way from the wholesaler. If the owner of the store bought it that way and paid for it that way, then they label it and sell it that way. End of story.

As someone who has worked at and managed various LFS for the last 16 years, I find that attitude quite offensive. If you are employed at the store it is your responsibility to know what you're selling. Yes, customers need to be informed, but part of that education comes from talking to knowledgeable LFS employees. Admittedly, wholesale lists can have some unfamiliar and incorrect names on them (especially wholesale sheets from Indonesia). But anybody who has ordered from those lists more than a few times should be able to figure out what Their name translates to in Your market. Receiving the wrong fish happens, but it is extremely rare. If its a regular occurrence, you're using the wrong supplier. And even then it's a problem that should be addressed by the store, not passed along to the customer. Mistakes happen in any business to anybody, but that "not our problem" attitude is not acceptable. If my coworkers or employees had the attitude expressed above, they would be fired. Have pride in your work and do it correctly, or get out of the industry. Its crap like that which gives good LFS a bad name. Done ranting.

 

[eatbreakfast]

Agreed, but knowledge and experience in most fields translates to more money from the top down. As employees learn more and improve a store owner should recognize that by increased wages, but those extra dollars have to come from somewhere and at an LFS that gets reflected in prices of fish and coral.

But too many hardcore hobbyists say they want more knowledgeable LFS employees or healthier livestock, but when shown a higher price balk and cant believe what the store is charging so they go elsewhere for the cheapest possible price, or even worse will pick the brains of employees that know their stuff only to make their purchases online.

Yes the employees should try to id correctly to the best of their abilities and to give the best info possible, but it is impossible for even the bet educated most knowledgeable person can be wrong from time to time, an example even Rudie Kuiter, one of, if not the most regarded experts on wrasses on the planet had a fish misidentified in his book on fairy and rainbow wrasses. There are simply too many fish, thats why there is a phrase "there are always more fish in the sea"...

 

[CoralsAddiction]

Beware When Shopping For Barlett's Anthias

This thread got a little off topic. I started it to alert those who are on the market for Barlett's Anthias. But it's been a good discussion anyway.

 

[Winwood]

This is hilarious! I've been on both sides of the coin. Got paid in trade when I was 12 at a LFS. Then through high school and college I worked part time in various shops. I've worked for 4 stores in total. Always was I courteous and polite to the best of my abilities. All I have to say is, its difficult to strive for excellence when the same guy, who lives off his girlfriend, is talking your ear off 5 days a week on how you should know more about loaches(fill in your category of expertise). I've also been lectured by fish store employees on care of an animal they can't even properly pronounce. All in all, I'd say if you are helped by an employ that's not completely stoned or bombed, consider it a win. These aren't Fortune 500 positions they're filling.