With the popularity of the internet and ordering online you would think that all of us use an online vendor of sorts. We don’t. With a recent report coming out that over 45% of us still use our local fish store for our livestock purchases and we have no plans on changing. There are of course numerous reasons why this is the case, including being able to inspect the livestock prior to purchase to confirm the health of the specimen in question. Or you simply might be more comfortable talking to someone before making the purchase. Whatever the case, this should give local fish store owners some sort of comfort with the recent popularity of online livestock retailers. And that all local and online vendors are not created equal.
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I like going to my LFS, they normaly have a good variety and are willing to order anything they dont normally have. The other great advantage is not having to pay expensive shipping or warrieng about the condition of your livestock when it gets to you. Great personal service and advice also helps as well as being able to see what your buying in person. I think LF’s are the best.
NO shock to me. The LFS is the life blood of the industry!
Like G said, LFS are the lifeblood of the industry and casual hobbyists are the people who pay the bills. Even though many seasoned reefers may have alternative sources for their products or livestock needs, 90% of reef aquarists still get most of their aquarium purchases through brick and mortar stores. Bad fish stores close down all the time and we are likely seeing a rash of shuttering fish stores around the country because several years ago there was a rush to set up LFS to cater to the growing marine aquarium scene. In some places there were too many fish stores.
Is that Saltwater Island near St.Louis MO?
LOL why is that shocking we go to ours all the time and we purchase from liveaquaria sometimes to
what the article did not say is that the online vendors dominates the dry goods market mmaking it hard for LFS to compete.
You can look at it another way: 55% of aquarium related business is not going to the LFS. That’s a BIG chunk.
Rarely does an LFS do BOTH brick-and-mortar and online businesses, but I think that is a real advantage since it captures a piece of both markets.