I'm griping :(

Status
Not open for further replies.
trackfast

trackfast

Princess Trainer
Why must an employee/owner from a LFS to call an online vendor "parasitic" never having ordered from them or dealt with them it seems. This person even admitted hearing good things about the online site.

"My beef with online stores like F&S is how they parasitize off the work stores like mine do."

"I've actually heard good things about the quality of livestock from LA and their customer service, and I'm sure F&S is the bees knees."

This person complains that a customer will pick his brain w/o any intention of buying from his place and order online. How do you know that Foster and Smith is the vendor your potential customer is buying from?

Just my $.02.
 
trackfast said:
Why must an employee/owner from a LFS to call an online vendor "parasitic" ...
Click to expand...

For the record, I'm just one of the saltwater guys there and my views are in no way representative of Old Town Aquarium, Inc. Legal disclaimer finished.

I'm not disparaging the quality of F&S/LA's service; I do hear good things. They sell fish, and they usually show up reasonably alive.

I have issue with the lack of accountability they show towards their livestock, namely that they have virtually none. They will sell anything to anyone, regardless of whether it is suitable.

They as a business are dependent on customers who primarily get into this hobby by visiting LFS (and big box stores), and then stealing those customers. There is a steep learning curve involved in this hobby, and the average hobbyist needs a fair amount of guidance through the growing pains. That's not something F&S provides; that's the service a good fish store can.

From the point of view of someone working in this industry, F&S is taking these hard-earned customers from us by providing a lower price point and little of the service. LFS are left with a stream of new customers while online stores get the more advanced customers, who are likely to spend more on their tanks.

To some extent this argument can be made for most industries that have migrated online... but I think even more so for the aquarium hobby there is an element of parasitism involved. We provide the intensive initial service to get the customer involved in the hobby, then they steal them by providing a lower price. I could also say virtually the same thing about big box stores, but that's an argument for another day.

And to answer another of your points, Tuesday I spent 30 minutes answering questions for someone who called our store from downstate after having ordered inappropriate fish from LA. And even though he'll likely never patronize our store I still helped him out as best I could, lest some poor little fishy needlessly suffer. This is something I deal with CONSTANTLY at work, and it causes one to vent on the forums when they hear gushing praise for the perpetrator of so much wanton fishy murder.

I'd love to hear the point of view of anyone else on here who may work in this industry.
 
You can't steal a customer who is looking for alternative ways of getting goods. You also mention a "Good" fish store, problem with that comment and your whole argument is that they poach and steal customers only from those stores who actually give good advice. Most store do not, most stores do the same thing and just sell to whoever wants what.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top