thinking of buying aquamart need your opinions

[djkms]

There is a reason this shop is being sold over and over again. BECAUSE ITS FAILING. Hate to be so blunt about it but dont let your common sense go to the wayside here. If you are seriously considering dropping thousands upon thousands (wasn't there a craigslist ad saying something like 90k for this purchase!?!?) why wouldnt you just start from scratch, get brand new equipment, brand new stock and a whole new location and probably spend half of what Aquamart is asking for?

If you went out car shopping would you buy a car that had smoke coming out of the engine that is rattling and no passenger door?

If it is not failing then provide the financial records proving otherwise and I will eat my words.

 

[WrasseAttack]

Yep 90k is a lot of money. We have people raising fish, fragging corals and selling hard goods out of their basements. Their overhead is going to be much smaller than yours and these guys can also manage to buy the latest and greatest collector coral that appeal to the hardcore hobbiests. Frag swapping is big and you're always going to get a better price from a fellow hobbiest than a store. An LFS's competition isn't just another LFS anymore, it's also their own customers. Sorry to be such a downer.

 

[MattL]

I agree with what you all are saying, however you have to remember the reefer who is just starting out, ones who don't trade frags, people who can't buy a huge online order all at once, these are the people who need a LFS. You can't loose focus on the vast majority of people who are not as into the hobby as all of us and use this forum as a connection. We are not a LFS clientele, but we all can suggest what would make the difference between a good LFS and a great LFS.

Also it could be a failing store, but given the economy lately, hobbies are always the first to be cut in a family budget. Now I'm not saying this is the only reason the store failed, but in a down economy you have to be the best in order to stay in business.

 

[bsharpe]

LFS are the best way for people to get into this hobby. I will always be a customer as I enjoy seeing before I buy and like the big selection. Yes trading is fun, but I wasn't hooked until I walked in a LFS.

 

[aztecdreams]

There are a few LFS that have been around for quite a few years so obviously not everyone buys online. Most people like to go and shop for a fish

 

[WrasseAttack]

Back when we just had places like Flying Fish Express online and Drs Foster and Smith came on the scene with petswarehouse a lot of people said they would never shop online because they like to pick out their own livestock. People swore they would never buy live rock on the internet because you can only pick quality live rock from an LFS for $8 a pound. How many people do that anymore? You can throw a stone and hit an online fish/coral/drygoods vendor. Even LFSs have smarten up and have a brick and mortar and online store. The hobby is evolving and even newcomers have enough smarts to shop around.

We are no longer in the age of you have to shop at a crummy LFS because there's no other choice. I'm not saying Aquamart is crummy they've always been nice to me but I just can't justify paying their prices.

 

[katyttt]

The store was great during the Will and Dave days in previous years but the economy and Internet competition were quite different then. The policy of QTing every fish set them apart from other shops, the staff was passionate and knowlegable about the hobby and presented a "We want you to succeed" attitude. The shop has so many different tanks it takes many man hours to keep them in top shape, many dollars to fill with livestock, and maybe too many choices for a customer in this economy. If a customer comes in with a set amount of money in mind to spend on the home aquarium, if the tanks are clean and all livestock healthy the customer would most likely buy, but the store needs to spend money to keep the livestock and store at 100%. When a store starts to cut costs below the needs of the customer and animals in it's care, it is the beginning of the end. Short cuts in reefkeeping never lead to positive results, disease, pests, and overworked employees lead to customer loss and bad reputation, IMHO of course.

I really enjoyed my time at Aquamart working with Dave and Will helped me to learn priceless quarentine methods and much more about various coral and fish compatibility.
I would love to see the store returned to the days when it was a leader in customer service and quality livestock, changing the poor reputation that the shop has earned will require lots of hard work, good people and integrity.

Thanks Heffe and Chris for the nice words, I do miss the customer interaction from the A-mart days.