Price drops

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Originally Posted by blueapplepaste

Then no offense, but why are you complaining if you're selling your animals for what you're asking?

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The answer to this question is the subject of this entire thread. People selling animals way below market price is bringing down the overall market. If they weren't doing this, I would not have had to sell my male spiders for only $275 this year...

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Originally Posted by Adam_Wysocki

I've been producing and selling ball python mutations since 1997 ... Here are some of my thoughts on prices after doing this for 12 years.

Prices go down every year ... sometimes a little, sometimes a lot ... in the past I used to get really pissed ... now I accept that I have absolutely no control over it and I plan for as much as a 50%-60% drop each year on some mutations and adjust my business plan accordingly.

When I've priced my animals above market value I've been flamed and accused of ripping people off.

When I've priced my animals at market value I've been told that I'm being unfair to my customers and smaller scale breeders by competing with them directly and that I'm forcing them to drop their prices so that they can sell their animals and compete with me.

When I've priced my animals below market value I've been called a market crasher, scumbag, and price dropper.

After twelve years of doing this I've realized one thing ... no matter what you do, someone will be pissed off. I think some of it is jealousy, some of it is greed, and some of it is just that the internet seems to be a magnet for angry jerks.

I've put more money into this market than most people spend on their homes ... I got into lessers when the price was $40K, spiders at $10K, stripes and pins at $20K each and on and on and on. Shoot, I paid $5,000 for a het albino male 14 years ago.

I've made every single dime of that back and then some, even with people dumping prices on all of those projects year in and year out. I've done that because I had a sound business plan, a good marketing strategy, and I worked my a$$ off.

Something I like to tell people all the time is: "If the success or failure of your business revolves around how other people are pricing their animals, you've lost before you even started".

Love what you do, do it to the best of your ability, treat your customers well, and price your animals for what you feel is fair and reasonable ... and if anyone gives you poop for it ignore them.

Hope this helps.

-adam

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Sorry to derail just a bit, but 10,000 us dollars for a spider? Holy crap.

Wow, I guess prices must have gone down A LOT. That's even a bit more money than now, considering the slow and steady inflation.

Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

One last point, then I will move on.

As someone mentioned earlier, I know sometimes things don't work out as planned. Things change. Sometimes the things you count on being there forever disappear instantly. Sometimes the situation dictates that you simply have no choice but to sell IMMEDIATELY or face certain doom.

There is a word for such a scenario. Its called "Wholesale." Take your animals to a retail pet shop and sell them at wholesale. In the end you will end up with close to if not the same money. In the end you will usually get you money MUCH faster, AND all at once. In the end you would not be doing your part to destroy this business one sale at a time. You will actually be doing your part to IMPROVE the market because the highest prices are ALWAYS in the reptile shop! You will also have the piece of mind knowing whoever buys your snake will have paid a lot for it, and that means the odds are much better that it will actually be taken care of!

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You should worry more about the fact that you do not have enough enclosures for your animals.
You are housing and intend to breed your females two per tub.
Talk about slowing down.

You can call it research all you want, and your friends that would normally jump all over a noobie for the same thing, can defend you all they want.
The truth is that you are in such a hurry to produce as many animals as quickly as possible to make as much money as you can, that it is more important to you then the health of your animals.

That is why "protecting our prices" is so important to you, and in your own words, more important then "saving some, and showing at least one of them the light."

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Hey Mike,
I noticed you did not quote, or address this part of my post.

You should accept what you can not change or control, and concentrate your efforts and energy on the things that you can change or improve.
The market is what it is, and people have the right to sell their animals for whatever they feel is a fair value.

Man, you sold your male Spiders for $275. and still can't buy enough tubs to house your animals in seperate enclosures.

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Originally Posted by rjk890

Man, you sold your male Spiders for $275. and still can't buy enough tubs to house your animals in desperate enclosures.

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Again my friend you don't have a clue. Welcome to our community though. It's always nice to have a new bee.

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Originally Posted by Mike Cavanaugh

One last point, then I will move on.

As someone mentioned earlier, I know sometimes things don't work out as planned. Things change. Sometimes the things you count on being there forever disappear instantly. Sometimes the situation dictates that you simply have no choice but to sell IMMEDIATELY or face certain doom.

There is a word for such a scenario. Its called "Wholesale." Take your animals to a retail pet shop and sell them at wholesale. In the end you will end up with close to if not the same money. In the end you will usually get you money MUCH faster, AND all at once. In the end you would not be doing your part to destroy this business one sale at a time. You will actually be doing your part to IMPROVE the market because the highest prices are ALWAYS in the reptile shop! You will also have the piece of mind knowing whoever buys your snake will have paid a lot for it, and that means the odds are much better that it will actually be taken care of!

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I guess we all still have dreams :rolleye2:

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Originally Posted by Mike Cavanaugh

There is a word for such a scenario. Its called "Wholesale."

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Actually, the wholesale on spiders right now is about $75 each (and I know of people buying for $75 and selling for $100), so people selling for $150 are doing much better for themselves and the market.

Hope this helps.

-adam

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Originally Posted by Mike Cavanaugh

The answer to this question is the subject of this entire thread. People selling animals way below market price is bringing down the overall market. If they weren't doing this, I would not have had to sell my male spiders for only $275 this year...

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Only $275? I don't want to sound rude, but that's more than fair price IMO for them, especially with how widely available they are. Supply and demand...

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Originally Posted by blueapplepaste

Only $275? I don't want to sound rude, but that's more than fair price IMO for them, especially with how widely available they are. Supply and demand...

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You know why there are lots of spiders? Because EVERYONE wants one!

What do you think would happen if 100% of breeders stuck to their guns and didn't sell them for penny less then $500???? Do you think people would stop buying them?

Never mind, I give up. I guess some of you will never get it.

LOL, you were right Adam, I think this is officially the last pricing thread I will ever reply to, or even bother to read.

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Originally Posted by Mike Cavanaugh

What do you think would happen if 100% of breeders stuck to their guns and didn't sell them for penny less then $500????

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I'm guessing federal indictments for price fixing and possibly racketeering?

Capitalism and free enterprise ... who knew? :rofl:

-adam