pooling a livestock order

[mperella]

Hi,
I've been dealing with a large livestock wholesaler for about 8 years now. I had a one-man service operation in NH that I gave up a couple of years ago but am still able to buy direct. Here's a sample of some prices I can pass on:
T.R. Fridmani Pseudo 17.00
T.R. Neon Pseudo 17.00
Rose bubble anemone 65-90.00 s/m/l
Flame angel 25.00
Rainfordi Goby 8.50
Yellow watchman goby 7-8.00 s/m
Fire shrimp 12.50-15.00 s/lg
Harlequin shrimp 12.50
Emerald crab 3.75
Blue leg & red leg hermits 0.65
I get a weekly list with hundreds of items so if there's something your looking for just ask. I normally pick up at the airport and would have to distribute orders the same night.
I havent worked out the logistics of this but I guess it depends on how many are interested.
The drawback is that you dont always get everything you order but they do not substitute unless you tell them to. Also, if the fish or invertebrate doesnt make it through the night, they will issue a credit.
As for shipping and box/heat pack charges, it would be minimal if we can get 5-6 people to order.
If this turns out to work, I will post some specials on Sunday nights and would like to have an order together by Tuesday at 5PM so they can ship Wed or Thurs.

Let me know what you think.

[nanonano]

Hi MP
Can you order Acro. as well? If you can I may be interested.
Richard

[mperella]

Hi Richard,
Yes they do sell acro but they didnt have much on this weeks list. They do run specials on acro from time to time when they get a good supply. I will keep an eye out and post when they run an acro sale.
Mario

[nanonano]

thanks

[objectfire]

I would be interested in a small fire shrimp.

[mperella]

Sounds good. So far I have one other person interested. I'll have to wait and see if there are any others looking to save some $.

[Keith Sheridan]

If this goes down, I would be in for two large fire shrimp.

[Keith Sheridan]

any chance of getting a pistol shrimp? Preferably tiger?

[mperella]

Keith,
Hopefully I can get some more takers. Funny thing is that this wholesaler supplies many of the lfs in this area. I know their stuff is good and the prices are right. I'm a little surprised their isnt more interest.

[mperella]

Keith,
I saw a Candy stripe pistol shrimp on my list... $9.00

[puffermeister]

If this group buy happens, I would like to order two fire shrimp.
Thanks.

[karl wagner]

Mario,

You may want to reread your Reef Central user agreement at this time. Posting non-RC sponsor related commercial threads can only get you in trouble with RC. And of course, nobody wants that.

This may be the reason that you're not getting much interest. If you were to identify your source AND it is an RC sponsor, AND it goes through the BRS Group Buy Chairman (rc screen name Jake)
then everything will be on the up and up and you're much more likely to generate interest.

I'm sure you mean well. I assure you that there are no hard feelings here. It's just that we all are learning how to play within the rules. Thanks.


Karl Wagner.


PS: your old 92 corner is up and running and once again looking great.

[mperella]

In other words, if I wanted to become an RC sponser, I could post my own group buy and sell livestock but if I am trying to get a bunch of hobbyists together on a large purchase through a legitimate (non-sponser) supplier then I am breaking the rules...
So BJ's can have a wholesale club but I cant! However, if I rent a building and charge a membership fee then maybe I can!!
Well I guess I'd better register my service company as a sponser so I can pass along some savings and cut down on my shipping expenses .....sounds kind of symbiotic

Glad to hear you have the tank up and running. I'm just getting my new tank up.

[karl wagner]

RC sponsors spend hundreds if not thousands of dollars to market here. They tend to defend that stake.

[Pinkskunk]

Can you check if they have "LARGE" true percula clowns available?

I would want 2 of them.

Thanks.

[mperella]

True but I'm not looking to make money, just trying to pass on some benefits to fellow hobbyists!

[mperella]

Pinkskunk,
I'll call my supplier later and PM you. I didnt see any on my list.

[drmooncricket]

everything looks good to me, im not in on this buy but i would be in if you did it again... i have no problem with people saving money, just a problem with people trying to make money off of people trying to save money...

[nhanson]

How would this distribution work? Would we need to pick up on the night the order arrived? In Melrose? I might be interested in a pistol shrimp.

[RobboT]

Originally posted by mperella
True but I'm not looking to make money, just trying to pass on some benefits to fellow hobbyists!

Unfortunately this is precisely the problem. Our BRS Sponsors and the RC Sponsors are trying to make a living at selling to hobbyists. When we band together and circumvent them they get upset. This, in the long term, serves nobody. The BRS Officers are constantly barraged with comments from our sponsors regarding our propensity for Group Buys and wholesale deals that do not involve them. They make a perfectly legitimate case in saying that these things hurt their business and make it increasingly more difficult for them to justify supporting the BRS.

The fact is we need LFS to support the BRS and vice-versa. Our auction would have been less than spectacular had it not been for our LFS. Without that auction we would not be able to bring you speakers, hold meetings, conduct frag swaps, host MACNA etc.

I agree that there are things that they need to do to compete in today's marketplace and that the internet has forever changed the face of the retail world. But of late, instead of being an educational organization trying to help hobbyists we are instead turning into a police force trying to keep a common ground between our members and vendors.

Sooner or later the tables have to either swing one way or they have to balance. We are trying to balance them so that the BRS can offer it's members the best of both worlds. All we ask is that our members respect what we are trying to do by contacting us regarding group buys. That is not too much to ask in my opinion.
We want to be the Boston Reefers Society not the Boston Group Buy Society.

[this is my opinion alone and just because Im an officer does not mean they necessarily agree with me]

[drmooncricket]

so what's wrong with doing this once and a while... sometimes you go to stores and get from them and sometimes when a deal like this comes along you take advantage of it.... moderation

[mperella]

For all of those who are interested in taking part of this, I would prefer you pick up in Melrose on the same night I pick up from the airport. It would be Thursday or Friday. When I place the order, I get a fax back before the shipment arrives to show what has been shipped. As I said before, they cant always fill orders complete. I would have to PM anyone who was left off to save them a trip.

[JT]

Originally posted by RobboT

[this is my opinion alone and just because Im an officer does not mean they necessarily agree with me]
Sounds like a good opinion to me. :-) I, for one, couldn't agree more.

[fishinchick]

What's a BRS?
:confused:

[one eye]

I really don't want to add to the controversy here....BUT! I think that other BRS members feelings and emotions should be considered when posting. Comments such as " I will keep an eye out" could cause irrepairable emotional trauma and duress.

[tstone]

fishinchick
Boston Reefers Society.

RobboT said it all. Support those that support us.

[moe_k]

Yeah, RobboT hit the nail on the head.
It's very tough for us to strike a balance here.

[Scuba_Dave]

I have been trying to lean towards our sponsors. I think they have been coming thru w/some very good deals. The more we buy from them, the better the prices is the way I see it.
I do buy stuff online & from fellow reefers. Sometimes getting to the LFS is very hard. But ya can't beat the delivery of the CO2 regs to the meeting!!
I prefer a tank raised frag over something that is wild caught. I know its hard for an LFS to do that. JMO

[RobboT]

Thanks for validating my statement guys.

Originally posted by drmooncricket
so what's wrong with doing this once and a while... sometimes you go to stores and get from them and sometimes when a deal like this comes along you take advantage of it.... moderation

That is exactly my point. We dont play favorites here so if a Group Buy is to be had we're generally in support of it (hell I'm setting up a 400g tank, think I dont need group buys). We're not demanding that we be contacted, we haven't had the thread shut down, we aren't threatening anything . . . we are simply asking that our members respect the fact that there is an entire 300-400 member organization here that we are trying to serve.

BTW thanks to everyone for keeping this discussion civil. And one eye . . . thanks for the comic relief. :)

[Pinkskunk]

With all that said, is this a go or no go :confused:

I am ordering 2 clowns from him.

[Groove]

My $.02
I always try local sources first. Group buy or not. If I can get items through internet order much cheaper, I go that route. If it is a few bucks, I buy at a LFS. I'd rather keep them around as they have inventory of things you might need right then and there. I hate to imagine if we lost half our fish stores.

When you find a good deal that cannot be had anywhere else, I appreciate you offering to do a group buy. Looking at the big picture, I think you mean well by offering a group buy on fish, but I don't think it will be worth the hassel over time. The first order might go all right. The second order you might lose livestock, or maybe someone won't pick up. I would hate to try to place orders for livestock and try to meet up with everyone myself. Dry goods are one thing but live fish are risky. If you truely don't mind doing this week after week for free, I take my hat off to you.

If you simply want to place an order because you can't ever find what you want, ask your LFS. I'm willing to bet they will custom order for you.

I also appreciate the officers explaining how we would like things to work in our club. We don't want to lose our sponsors.