ATM Las Vegas....

[clowninaround7474]

I have been out in Vegas this week for business and found out my hotel was 2min away from ATM. Figured I'd stop in and see what their shop looked like.

They have a separate gift shop area that visitors can go and take a look at. When I walked in, I wasn't greeted or even acknowledged by the employee behind the counter. This is one of my biggest pet peeves... Just say hello!! I walked around and looked at things for about 25 min. Never once asked if I had questions or needed hell. I looked at their tanks stocked with GIANT fish that could barely move and really felt bad for them. None of the lights were on over the tanks but that could have been because I was there at 9:15am and they open at 9am. Still expected lights to be on during business hours.

The manufacturing shop was operational but it was like a zoo in there. They had large birds (beautiful) and even a pig! Haha. Definitely not what I was expecting to see in a manufacturing facility.

When I left, I barely got the representative behind the counter to look up and say bye even after I said "Thank you, have a nice day!" Very disappointed in the customer service and overall friendliness of any of the staff there.

I really didn't know what to expect, but really thought the people would have been more friendly and even acknowledged me in the shop, as I WAS THE ONLY ONE THERE!!!

Overall very disappointing.

Just thought I'd share my experience...

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[SkyShark]

Their booth at MACNA was a disappointment too. It was clear that almost zero effort went into it. The show must bring in more business than they can handle. Sad to see them not do more to properly educate the public given the spotlight they have.

 

[MuralReef]

Maybe that's why you can get a very well equipped tank that they built on Craigslist for $500 a year after the build. They set it up throw a bunch of expensive livestock in and run back to their facility and let some local company pick up the pieces. Loved their awesome builds on the show but the educational value is ZERO. I've stopped watching the show because of what they represent and the way they portray they hobby as a just add water and then you can throw in a ton of animals.

 

[clowninaround7474]

ATM Las Vegas....

Overall is was just a disappointing experience. Take their fame and tv show out of it, it was a poor display of customer service.

 

[MuralReef]

Like Ben said above I expected more from them at MACNA too. Not only could they not take the time to set up a tank but they weren't even there. They just sent Redneck to represent them.

 

[SynDen]

Well not the first and last time I have heard such ill reviews of these guys, but they were at macna? Lol I was there all 3 days and didnt even know they were there. Not that I would have cared any as I have little to no respect for them but lol never even saw there booth or anyone representing them.

 

[MikeM]

I guess I will represent the minority in this thread.
I am not saying that I support the way Tanked does things but seeing their builds is enjoyable for me. Obviously seeing the builds and working with Fluid Designers is inspiring to me. Some of their stuff is completely over the top but they truly are unique and brow raising. They meet customer needs and find a way to make whatever work.
I too have been to their store in Vegas. My experience was awesome. The guy behind the counter was extremely friendly right out of the gate. They had very little livestock but this isn't what these guys do. I was there when the manufacturing side was closed so the guy behind the counter offered to show me the shop. The birds belong to Brett. In addition to fish, he loves birds. To cap off my experience, "The General" came rolling through at the end of the day. This guy is a class act. He posed for photos and signed autographs. After that, he stood around and simply talked about the hobby and life experiences for about 20 minutes.
Yes their booth at MACNA was a disappointment. But we don't know what they had going on. Maybe Brett and Wade were on a consult. Maybe an install. Maybe helping at the shop. Maybe simply taking a break. Who knows?! But did anyone talk to Redneck? The guy was great! He posed for photo after photo and asked questions about the builds I was involved with.
These guys might be riding out their 15 minutes of fame but my direct interaction with them has never been anything other than positive.

 

[clowninaround7474]

I'm glad to hear you had a better experience than I did!!!

All I can speak to is my own experience and it was very disappointing. Maybe I expected to be treated how you were which made it even worse...

 

[MuralReef]

Mike I was more disappointed because I have watched their show and seen what they can do for other trade shows and this was a show that was about they do at the very least they could have had a display. It also bummed me out that they weren't there because while my students had a great time at the show they were all disappointed that the Tanked guys weren't there.

 

[SynDen]

I guess I will represent the minority in this thread.
I am not saying that I support the way Tanked does things but seeing their builds is enjoyable for me. Obviously seeing the builds and working with Fluid Designers is inspiring to me. Some of their stuff is completely over the top but they truly are unique and brow raising. They meet customer needs and find a way to make whatever work.
I too have been to their store in Vegas. My experience was awesome. The guy behind the counter was extremely friendly right out of the gate. They had very little livestock but this isn't what these guys do. I was there when the manufacturing side was closed so the guy behind the counter offered to show me the shop. The birds belong to Brett. In addition to fish, he loves birds. To cap off my experience, "The General" came rolling through at the end of the day. This guy is a class act. He posed for photos and signed autographs. After that, he stood around and simply talked about the hobby and life experiences for about 20 minutes.
Yes their booth at MACNA was a disappointment. But we don't know what they had going on. Maybe Brett and Wade were on a consult. Maybe an install. Maybe helping at the shop. Maybe simply taking a break. Who knows?! But did anyone talk to Redneck? The guy was great! He posed for photo after photo and asked questions about the builds I was involved with.
These guys might be riding out their 15 minutes of fame but my direct interaction with them has never been anything other than positive.

That is honestly one of the only times I have ever heard anyone say they got great service or response from them. I will admit though that they do make some crazy kewl tanks. I have only sort of dealt with them once back when I was looking to have a custom tank built to a few years ago. I contacted several tank builders via phone and email to get quotes on what I wanted built and all of them responded back to me except ATM. I wrote them several times and even called several of there offices but never could get a live person on the line to answer any questions or return my inquiry. Ever since then I have heard numerous people who have had similar or worse experiences with them. Needless to say when I start my custom tank build again in the next year or two, they will not even receive my consideration for the build.

 

[hooked]

I too had a very positive experience at the ATM facility in Las Vegas. The guy behind the counter wasn't the most talkative, but neither am I. As we looked around, Redneck came out of the employee lounge and spoke with us for a bit. As we were leaving. The old man came out and took pictures with us and talked about aquariums and fish. It was more that I had expected.
At MACNA, we took a couple of pictures with Redneck. The next day we were eating lunch and he walked over and sat down with us an talked about being from Colorado. Showed us some cell phone pics of this seasons tanks.
As far as display tanks at MACNA. I think that Marineland had all of the display tanks covered. And How could ATM compete with or Local boys at Fluid Designers on the acrylic end.
I enjoy Tanked because it's good to end your week laughing at those guys. After all it is not National Geographic or BBC.

 

[SkyDiv3r17]

Honestly, I'm sure that since their fame, a crap ton of people have come in without any intention of buying anything, but just to see something they saw on tv.

I'd give them the benefit of the doubt, if I was famous and swamped with people, I probably wouldn't be happy and inviting 100% of the time.

 

[Ambrosio Aquatics]

my experience with them in Vegas was great, the general was very nice even gave me and my wife free stuff. at the end of the day they didn't get a tv show because they are a poorly ran business. i dont care for how the hobby is portrayed on the show but most people watching dont care much about how things are done. its the producers that dictate the shows.you have to respect the tanks they build and how they have become the go too for high end tanks

 

[AGGJSW]

I wasted my time going to ATM this past May. The guy behind the counter knew nothing and kept twirling his hair – I got to the point where I was afraid to ask any more questions fearing he’d go into an unstoppable twitch. The shelves and merchandise were covered with dust, selection was very poor and the lights were off in all the tanks. I never saw anyone from the show but did get to see their assigned parking spots out front (boo-yah!). Looking through the chain link fence that kept people from going into a totally vacant warehouse I did see some of the tanks from past shows collecting dust. Oh, I did see the birds but don’t remember seeing a pig. LOL I didn’t dare ask the guy behind the counter if they offered tours. Like SynDen, I too called (and emailed) them for my custom build…more than once. I never got a callback or response in return. These guys are not in the business for folks like you and I - they are focused on the bigger customers, those that can afford their tanks. They are living their 15-minutes of fame, something I realized after locating the place (which is rather hard to find). I want my 30-minutes of life back that I lost going there.