Looking to get a true black tang
- Thread starter MIDNwill
- Start date
nuxx
.Registered Member
In your opinion.
Here's another way to look at it...
Let's say you can buy a car directly from the Ford factory for $30,000 when Ford decides to sell directly to consumers. The car comes with 0 warranty except it'll work the first time you turn the key (DOA).
Now the Ford dealerships still have to pay $30,000 for the same car from the Ford factory. They also have to offer you a warranty on the car and pay to delivery it to you. To go a step further, they also have to be your insurance company as well for free. If you drive the car off of a cliff over the warranty period, they have to refund you. (Sites/stores have no idea what somebody is going to do with a fish, could toss it in a freshwater tank, but they still have to cover it)
If you were that dealership, would you sell the car for $30,000?
Sort of works the same way with collectors selling directly to consumers at or near the price retail/online sites are paying. The sites/stores need to work in margins to cover shipping and the guarantee/doa. Retail also needs to cover rent, utilities, employees, etc...
Is it wrong of the collectors to do that, not really... but you have to understand that in these situations you can't say a company is ripping you off, just you are finding a cheaper way to source a fish with a little more risk for a lower price.
I've bought from collectors in Hawaii as a hobbyist before I started Coral Imports. But I wouldn't look at the price of Hawaiian fish online/retail and saying they're trying to rip you off.
Once again, this really only applies to fish that can be sourced domestically, unless we're talking about $,$$$+ fish that hobbyists are willing to jump through the customs hoops for to save substantial money on.
Deinonych
New member
I agree.
The guarantee alone justifies the higher price to me, and LA/DD's customer policies are the best in the industry IMO. Their livestock is consistently high quality, and on the odd chance an unhealthy specimen is sent, their guarantee will cover the loss. Now, I can't say I'd buy an $800 fish from them, but I personally wouldn't drop that much on a fish anyway.
nuxx
.Registered Member
Yeap just lot a very expensive and rare fish today... no questions asked and took care of it.
Actually more sad about the loss than anything... was a personal must have and hard to come by fish for me.
Tried everything to make it a super smooth transaction, even asked the customer to pick it up at the airport to avoid FedEx issues.
Somethings are just out of your control (or even the customers).
Actually more sad about the loss than anything... was a personal must have and hard to come by fish for me.
Tried everything to make it a super smooth transaction, even asked the customer to pick it up at the airport to avoid FedEx issues.
Somethings are just out of your control (or even the customers).
Shocker the owner of a fish / coral shop saying they are not ripping you off. The aquarium trade is full of shady characters. I have used DD in the past with good and bad results. Now they did take care of the issue and issued a refund, but for a business who claims they quarantined their livestock and claims the fish is eating is a whole different story. Trying to figure on how to upload pictures.
