75GalNBama
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Are we loosing all of out LFS? Seems like everytime you turn around another shop is closing. Does everyone shop on line? Is that why the LFS have such a hard time?
Lfs?
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NaclH20freak
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I'm sure with overhead cost most lfs are struggling in this economy. They can't compete with the middleman.
75GalNBama
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are there any left? I know of one in Anniston area but they werent very helpfull or friendly when I was in there.
you may have answered your own question, poor customer service along with online competition tends to drive most expierienced reefers right out the door. IMO
There is a very well stocked reef store here in "Central" AL, it is RARELY, if ever mentioned on here because of the owner.
He is quite unique
8BALL_99
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I think its a combination of things.. One is just overhead and simple numbers. Some areas just can't support certain business. IE they dont stick best buys very small towns. A LFS in most parts of AL can not and never will be able to compete with big online venders. A Local shop might see a hand full of people on a week day and maybe a few dozen on a weekend. Vs a online store has several times the traffic and they don't have alot of the overhead it takes for a brick and morter store. No big deal and most everyone understands that. I know I don't mind paying a few extra dollars to be able to put my hands on a product. I think why they are dropping so fast now is just costs have went through the roof on everything for everybody.. So a lot of people are just looking for the absolute bottom dollar price on what they are looking for. Sorry to say that tends to be online.
I pretty much buy 100% of my livestock at my LFS.. If they dont have what I want I ask them to order it for me. Sure it cost me a little more, But to me its win win.. I get to see before I buy and the LFS gets to make a buck. Now when it comes to equipment I tend to get it online. Not really cause of price as much as just selection.. Most LFS only carry a fraction of whats out there. And its almost always Cora life or the few other brands. But again thats where the whole foot traffic thing comes into play.. The odds of a LFS selling a 1000.00 skimmer or 1500 dollar light are a lot worse then a online vender.. So cause of that LFS just dont stock much of this stuff or even bother with suppliers to get it from..
All that said Growurowns point probably dooms some of them.. Some are just rude or have Poor customer service..
I pretty much buy 100% of my livestock at my LFS.. If they dont have what I want I ask them to order it for me. Sure it cost me a little more, But to me its win win.. I get to see before I buy and the LFS gets to make a buck. Now when it comes to equipment I tend to get it online. Not really cause of price as much as just selection.. Most LFS only carry a fraction of whats out there. And its almost always Cora life or the few other brands. But again thats where the whole foot traffic thing comes into play.. The odds of a LFS selling a 1000.00 skimmer or 1500 dollar light are a lot worse then a online vender.. So cause of that LFS just dont stock much of this stuff or even bother with suppliers to get it from..
All that said Growurowns point probably dooms some of them.. Some are just rude or have Poor customer service..
75GalNBama
New member
no Langs is going strong but they are limitedf in salt water choices
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13684749#post13684749 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Growurown
you may have answered your own question, poor customer service along with online competition tends to drive most expierienced reefers right out the door. IMO
There is a very well stocked reef store here in "Central" AL, it is RARELY, if ever mentioned on here because of the owner.
He is quite unique
I have had at least four PM's regarding this store.
I forewarn you that the Owner is a complete [profanity]. I have refused to call the Name of it, and after 191 viewings, nobody else has offered it either. I know for certain, that he AND HIS EMPLOYEES regularly view this forum. One employee is active in this forum.
I still am hoping we all get the hint, deny him business and the shop will go Belly up. But if you need to know who it is, I am sure some of the Central Alabama Reefers can post who it is so that you good people may patronize him and get your feelings treaded on as well.
SO, would someone please tell these good people, the name of the "well stocked Reef store" in Central AL. Thanks in advance
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wpecoul
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I'll offer it up - Aquarium Fantasies in Atlanta Crossing shopping center in Montgomery. Across from Eastdale Mall at the intersection of Atlanta Highway and the Eastern Bypass. Closed Sundays and Mondays, open T-F from 12-7 and Saturday from 12-5.
[personal attack removed]
And FWIW, I'm not the mystery employee. Funny how I was in the store yesterday and it was full of people, new and experienced. They weren't just looking and leaving, either. Like most things in life, if you take someone else's word on something like this (i.e. not hazardous or life-threatening), you are pretty much a fool. I would encourage people to check it out for themselves and form their own opinions.
[personal attack removed]
And FWIW, I'm not the mystery employee. Funny how I was in the store yesterday and it was full of people, new and experienced. They weren't just looking and leaving, either. Like most things in life, if you take someone else's word on something like this (i.e. not hazardous or life-threatening), you are pretty much a fool. I would encourage people to check it out for themselves and form their own opinions.
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H@rry
In Memoriam
You know, I had read in the past several things about Jim and his attitude. We were in Montgomery a couple of weeks ago for the swap and he had a table near ours. When I learned he was the same person that I had heard about on this board I was prepared to meet someone who was unpleasant and was just generally a [profanity]. Boy was I surprised! He took me over to his store which was not open at the time and gave me a guided tour. I was very impressed with with his livestock and the look of his "grown in" reef tanks. During the swap he bought quite a few of my frags for himself. After the swap my wife and I stopped by his store and he showed her around too. She absolutely loves pipe organs. Jim realized how much she liked one particular pipe organ that he had and gave her a frag. This does not fit the pattern of a "[profanity]". But then again, what do I know? Most people think I'm a pain myself!
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futureeyedoc
New member
I'll preface this by saying the only interaction I've had with him was at the swap. Never been to the store, although it sounds great. I can definetly see where the dislike comes from. I had very limited interaction with him at the swap by choice. He made at least one rude and uneccessary comment to me personally that completely turned me off from buying some frags that I was really interested in of his. I will probably not visit his store after this.
It just seems to me that now-adays small store owners need to realize (especially in this business) that the best thing they can have going for them vs. online is customer service.
Sure they might be a little more convenient depending on how you look at it. Sure they're all going to probably be more expensive in the long run. But the best thing they have going for them and the way to make a good living in any small business in today's world/economy is to possess a great personality with good customer service across the board. As a future small business owner myself, I can safely say that if you're not going to treat every customer with the utmost respect and as if they were your best friend, you won't survive in today's small business world. I don't care how rude or unknowledgeable a customer is, you just have to respond in the nicest and most helpful way possible if you want to succeed in small business! It's a fact of life!
There are some consumers that will still appreciate customer service over the cheapest price and quickest delivery, but that customer service is quickly fading.
I can safely say that for all but one of the many LFS's I've been to in AL...
It just seems to me that now-adays small store owners need to realize (especially in this business) that the best thing they can have going for them vs. online is customer service.
Sure they might be a little more convenient depending on how you look at it. Sure they're all going to probably be more expensive in the long run. But the best thing they have going for them and the way to make a good living in any small business in today's world/economy is to possess a great personality with good customer service across the board. As a future small business owner myself, I can safely say that if you're not going to treat every customer with the utmost respect and as if they were your best friend, you won't survive in today's small business world. I don't care how rude or unknowledgeable a customer is, you just have to respond in the nicest and most helpful way possible if you want to succeed in small business! It's a fact of life!
There are some consumers that will still appreciate customer service over the cheapest price and quickest delivery, but that customer service is quickly fading.
I can safely say that for all but one of the many LFS's I've been to in AL...
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