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Guaranteed Money
Hey guys im new to the ball python game, i used to breed panther chameleons and loved it and so far i love the ball python experience. i do have a couple of questions. I know the breeding industry is not like it used to be, you can now get snakes that were 10000 for a couple hundred. now in chameleons we always had our money makers, the animals that no matter what people wanted and we can always sell, are there ball python morphs that will never die off? snakes that i know i can sell no matter what, ive noticed that pieds and albinos seem to alwyas sell, any safe projects out there that can leave the lights on?
thanks!
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I honestly don't like the sound of this post. If you want to know about your animals feel free to ask, but this sounds too much like a "I want to make a lot of money fast off these animals". I for one am not going to give you business information with a post that seems to have zero interest in the actual animals.
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Generally albinos and pieds sell well. It seems in ball pythons combos are the big thing. As many genes can fit in a snake as possible (and still look nice).
You might not find much advice on this topic here. Many people in this hobby aren't fond of new guys jumping to bps just for making money because in reality is a looonnng process. It could take years before you get your first successful clutch and by then, the value of your snakes has went down. A ton of people come and go here and the money seekers often lose interest.
Welcome to the forum. There's a ton of help here and wonderful people that post here.
The reason albino and pied hold their value is partly because of the fact that they are recessive morphs and take more effort to create. The other part of it is that they are "wow" morphs. They are drastically different looking and impressive to the untrained eye.
I would add to that list bananas and most all white (BEL) morphs.
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Re: Guaranteed Money
it is about animals, didn't mean to offend anyone at the end of the day it is a business for me and of course with any business you want to make sure you are going the right way, and making sure you are getting quality animals, i don't expect to get rich off these but don't wanna put myself in a hole because i didn't follow any advice or didn't ask the right questions. again sorry if it came across the wrong way
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and i posted it here because the description of the thread reads "Topics relating to ball python breeding and ball python-related business and industry.
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There is no "money makers". The BP market is saturated. There a ton of reputable breeders out there. So honestly if you like the snakes, find the ones YOU like and breed them. But don't expect to breed anything and sell it in 2 days for 5k each and walk away a millionaire. Most people breed for the love of the animals and the hobby, not to try and get rich as like I said, this is not the hobby got that lol.
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The guy who owns the exotic pet store where I get live rats for my picky BP's also breeds some very high-end boas and ball pythons.
The guaranteed money is in feeders. Snakes... not so much.
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You make money off of snakes by building your reputation as a keeper and breeder. When a morph loses it's value due to over saturation, being a trusted name that people seek out is what keeps you in business. Pick the morphs you like, focus on quality over quantity, provide excellent and prompt customer service, and connect with people both in the hobby and outside of it.
Hint: that proooobably means don't start your first post in a large community driven forum with, "hey guys, how do I make lots of money!" As you can see, it tends to leave a sour taste and doesn't help your reputation at all. First impressions and all that.
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Can money be done? Yes the return can be from a collection that pays for itself to making an extra income, to doing this for a living.
Who are the people who can achieve those different levels?
Those that are passionate, know how to treat this like a business, know how to market themselves, know how to build a solid reputation, know the animals and their genetics (what to do what not to do) know the market, know how to evolve.
Who are those that fail?
Many of them! Those that have no clue, that think they are gonna make money overnight, that have no plan, that do not know & understand the market, that have to be spooned fed every step of the way, that fail to evolve with the market, that have no real passion, that have no patience.....
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Re: Guaranteed Money
thanks deborah, so many people have tried to talk me out of this, and steer me wrong, i know i can do it and i needed to hear that especially from someone like you!
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Re: Guaranteed Money
One thing I'll say,
I don't have a huge collection or a high end collection for that matter, with the cost of equipment, feeders and the snakes themselves, I'm about 6k in so far
I spent around £6-700 on feeders, cleaning supplies and substrate last year alone
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Re: Guaranteed Money
I understand there is cost involved, i have ran a business before, successfully for that matter. I wanna get myself set up in the right path in order to be able to pay for that cost and expenses.
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Questions like this reminds me of the motto or the Mystery Writers of America. Crime does not pay--enough. :D
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Re: Guaranteed Money
In the bp game, there's no way to be guaranteed money.
You could get the most expensive male, raise him up and he might not want to breed,
He might go off food and not get up to size,
He might breed and the female could either, not ovulate, ovulate but slug out or lay a clutch and the eggs might not go full term.
You could get into the 'hottest' project but the value of that project will fall before you hatch anything.
I don't think you'll find the answer you're looking for
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jamiesniper
In the bp game, there's no way to be guaranteed money.
You could get the most expensive male, raise him up and he might not want to breed,
He might go off food and not get up to size,
He might breed and the female could either, not ovulate, ovulate but slug out or lay a clutch and the eggs might not go full term.
You could get into the 'hottest' project but the value of that project will fall before you hatch anything.
I don't think you'll find the answer you're looking for
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I feel most of this could be true with any animals. Animals are largely unpredictable, you can't force them to breed, guarantee they won't get sick or control their fertility. I'm really curious if any of these people that are buying snakes for 10K+ ever have problems breeding them... I think I'd be devastated... though I can't see myself ever spending anywhere near that much on a single animal.
Projects that I've been told will always sell include a lot of the older recessive stuff; albino, pieds, clowns etc.
I'd really like to hear Deborah's take on the market. What does it mean to understand the market and to evolve with it? Does that mean paying attention to what sells and staying up to date on combos/new morphs that are produced?
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Simple don't do it. You nor the snakes will be happy. If you are just in it for the money.
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Re: Guaranteed Money
People here make a living off these. Of course we all,have love for the animals. But at the end of the day some people here look at the money as well. And we all know that. No need to tell me not to do it. Again I'm looking for advice as for projects that always sell that's it
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by kxr
I'd really like to hear Deborah's take on the market. What does it mean to understand the market and to evolve with it? Does that mean paying attention to what sells and staying up to date on combos/new morphs that are produced?
Understanding the market means understanding what sells and where to sell it, selling online is different than selling at shows, while low end animals do great among show goers, high end animals with a high price tag tend to do very poorly unless you are selling at one of the bigger show (Tinley, Daytona etc which are very expensive). Low end animals are harder to sell online as most people will not pay $60 in shipping for a low end single gene co-dom male, so those animals do not sell as fast and by the time they do (if they do) you will have more money in them than what they will sell for.
Now because something sells does not mean you should jump right in and produce it, there are the ever popular spider and bees for example, they sell however the market is saturated with them so finding something that is in demand is high and the supply low is really what you want to thrive for.
Now once you understand your market you have to be able to evolve with it, this is a very unique business and the market itself is always evolving, increase in number of breeders, decrease in prices etc and you have to keep up with all of it and in order to remain competitive you must continually reevaluate your collection, re-invest and upgrade your animals.
Over the years I have seen a lot of people that thought that once they bought their breeder animals they would just keep making the same amount of money with them year after year and of course when they did not they blamed the market. Obviously those people cannot quite understand the market (which is a simple supply and demand) and the fact that the prices inevitably drop each year.
To be able to compete you need to have better animals replacing the normal with single gene females, the single gene females with double genes one etc this allows you to make higher end animals and make animals that are in high demand while the market has not be saturated with them yet.
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I've been watching the ball python market now for a couple years and I can tell you one thing, the prices fluctuate like crazy! I picked up some snakes for $1,200 that a year later are selling for $600. And some I bought for $500 are in high demand and low supply, I could probably sell them for $800 or more. And as snakes age, in particular females, they can triple in price as they get older.
I think the key to the ball python business or any reptile business is to diversify. Don't produce too many of one particular animal and saturate the market for that particular animal. From what I've seen the sub $500 snakes are the 'bread and butter' of the business, variety is the key. If I walk up to your table at a show and you have a bunch of snakes that are all the same I doubt I'd buy one unless I'm looking for that particular snake. Every time I buy a new breeder it has to have at least one new gene in it to diversify my collection. You can also diversify by expanding outside of ball pythons which many breeders are now doing, maybe pick up some dwarf retics or boas or king snakes.
You'll also notice that most of the high end snakes are produced in very low numbers. Once their numbers increase the prices drop like a stone in water. I've actually seen prices for a particular morph plummet over night. Then when people stop producing them the prices can actually increase again. It also seems like it's seasonal, when everyone is producing the price drops, then when the supply is low the price jumps up again.
To maintain prices I'd say you have to try your best not to undercut competitor prices, people will under cut your prices, etc. until the bottom falls out. I'd say target mid range prices and hold out for the cheap ones to sell.
I've also noticed that very consistently most prices will fall year after year. I think if you want to keep up with the high end stuff you have to invest in the new morphs coming out every year and sell off a few of your low end stuff. I'd say you probably want 10% high end snakes, 20% mid range and 70% low end (cheaper snakes) to satisfy the demands of the market.
I'd say investing in reptiles as a breeding business is almost as risky as the stock market, maybe even more risky. I've heard of people buying a $20,000 snake and by the time it's ready to breed the babies are selling for a mere $200. But if you hold out you can still make your money back, it just takes a little longer, you'd have to sell 100 babies to break even.
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Re: Guaranteed Money
From my perspective in the UK . .. the fabulously flourishing Royal market actually CRASHED in 2016 !
Were seeing lovely Lessers and Mojaves / Mohaves going for £35 each or less !
Even the old Classics like Albinos are half the old accepted price .. Of course the new paint schemes are still attracting good prices but even they are considerably lower nowadays .
The " in things " are now the Hoggies !!!
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zincubus
From my perspective in the UK . .. the fabulously flourishing Royal market actually CRASHED in 2016 !
Were seeing lovely Lessers and Mojaves / Mohaves going for £35 each or less !
Even the old Classics like Albinos are half the old accepted price .. Of course the new paint schemes are still attracting good prices but even they are considerably lower nowadays .
The " in things " are now the Hoggies !!!
From what I seen, it 'crashed' because people couldn't sell animals quick enough so they sold them for next to nothing.
A friend of mine hatched an enchi butter x normal clutch just before xmas, sold all the single genes for £60-80 each and they went like hot cakes.
People see a morph being sold somewhere for £X and instantly that becomes the 'market value' and when they see crap quality morphs for a low price, they expect to pay the same for a high quality example
Quality animals always sell,
A bright, high quality pastel will always sell for more than a low quality dull pastel
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I think that's another thing to keep in mind, and that I wish a lot of breeders would consider also, DON'T UNDER CUT. It's really tempting to under price an animal just to move it so you aren't stuck with the costs of feeding and caring for it, but that will hurt the market over all. If you think you produce an animal that's worth $400, list it for $400. You put time and love and care into them, so don't sell yourself, or the snakes, short. If it is that good, it will show, and your buyers will pay that price for it because they want the good s you got.
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zincubus
From my perspective in the UK . .. the fabulously flourishing Royal market actually CRASHED in 2016 !
Were seeing lovely Lessers and Mojaves / Mohaves going for £35 each or less !
Even the old Classics like Albinos are half the old accepted price .. Of course the new paint schemes are still attracting good prices but even they are considerably lower nowadays .
The " in things " are now the Hoggies !!!
This is so so true. Back about 7 years ago a pied would cost you over £2000, now a proven double gene breeding weight female may cost you slightly less.
I intend to only breed what I would like to see in my vivs, only breed what I can keep with no worries and that's me happy. Bels and piers for my first season breeding xxx
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Re: Guaranteed Money
To be honest with you breeding ball pythons is more of a hobby and you wont make lots of money from it but if you do want to produce some cool morphs that are worth alot i know pied combos are worth a lot and dreamsicles are worth alot and clown combos as well but again breeding ball pythons is more of a hobby but if you want to make lots of money you need to get customers and a lot of projects going and high in demand morphs.
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I honestly wouldn't get into breeding ball pythons with the intention to make money. The market is way saturated right now and with some of the larger breeders producing thousands each year, I just don't see the market holding steady. Now breeding because you love the animals, that's a different story. Like me for example, I've decided to breed a select few because I really enjoy the whole process. There are a few projects I'm doing because I personally want the outcome for myself. I will sell for top dollar or trade the ones I decide not to keep purposely not to hurt the market. People that get into this to make money are typically the ones that crash the market, they get invested too much too quick and then can't sell quick enough so fire sale stuff off to try to get their money back. They don't end up making money but really can hurt the market. It's very simple to breed for the enjoyment of it and for your own personal collection because there is no pressure to produce or sell and you don't need to worry so much about the market because you just need to worry about creating what you will be happy with. Even if the long term goal is to make an income doing it, it would be much less risk to start this way, get a feel for the process, and then if you enjoy it and don't have a problem moving your extras, then you can slowly increase your breeders over time. That's my opinion anyway. But to answer your question, there is no gaurunteed money maker morph. Most of the breeders making the most money are doing well because they love the animals, they've built up their stock and reputation for many years and they know the market from the years of being in it. That can't be told and if it could they wouldn't tell you because that's how they stay ahead. Good luck with your project, I hope you find something that will be rewarding for you.
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by embrit345
This is so so true. Back about 7 years ago a pied would cost you over £2000, now a proven double gene breeding weight female may cost you slightly less.
I intend to only breed what I would like to see in my vivs, only breed what I can keep with no worries and that's me happy. Bels and piers for my first season breeding xxx
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Yep ..
Nice Pieds are now around the £250 mark I'd say ...
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zincubus
Yep ..
Nice Pieds are now around the £250 mark I'd say ...
I have always wanted a belt so am waiting on eggs from lesser x purple passion lol
I have a pied male and a het pied female so may breed them next year or late this season as I would like to hatch my own.
The money side is irrelevant for me though, i will keep each and every baby if neeed be because it's my passion and hobby not my main source of income xx
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by jlcalero
at the end of the day it is a business for me [...] i don't expect to get rich off these but don't wanna put myself in a hole
I think what you said in this post is a little contradictory. If it's a business for you- even after lots of research on morphs, with the fluctuating supply and demand, you very well may put yourself in a hole... there's always a risk, for all the reasons other people stated in the thread.
And in order for you to feel alright with being in a hole, your first priority should be a love and interest for the animals and the experience.
If at the end of the day you expect to make at least $1000 (just for example) over the amount you invested or else it's all a waste of time, this simply isn't quite the right hobby.
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lizardlicks
I think that's another thing to keep in mind, and that I wish a lot of breeders would consider also, DON'T UNDER CUT. It's really tempting to under price an animal just to move it so you aren't stuck with the costs of feeding and caring for it, but that will hurt the market over all. If you think you produce an animal that's worth $400, list it for $400. You put time and love and care into them, so don't sell yourself, or the snakes, short. If it is that good, it will show, and your buyers will pay that price for it because they want the good s you got.
This ^^^^ People are constantly under cutting I listed a female spider albino several months ago at fair market price and got under cut lowered her to their price and they under cut again (sadly it was a larger breeder too, whom will remain nameless) I will be keeping her as a breeder, let them sell theirs for that mine is worth more to me than they dropped their price to:D
as for the op
any recessive genetics sell and hold their value however it takes 2-3x as long to make so you have time and money tied up in it for several years before you make any money let alone profit
I have kept snakes for over 20 years, was into ball pythons a long time and got out got back in 4 years ago and this season I finally was in the green by about $500 after all my expenses. still in the red if you count the 3 years before in that so no if you want money off these I personally would look elsewhere without dropping 25 grand or more on a new visual straight out of africa that no one else has you will be several years in the red before you can even begin to profit
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And good luck even getting a chance to look at the $25K new hot gene straight out of Africa because the big boys have got so many connections to get their feet in the door first it's crazy. I'm really curious what breeder it was that was undercutting you though. you would think someone who's been in the business as long as most of them have KNOW what a bone head move that is for their future profits! I guess if you produce snakes like candy all the time you have enough inventory to sell it all back at rock bottom prices, but yeesh.
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lizardlicks
And good luck even getting a chance to look at the $25K new hot gene straight out of Africa because the big boys have got so many connections to get their feet in the door first it's crazy. I'm really curious what breeder it was that was undercutting you though. you would think someone who's been in the business as long as most of them have KNOW what a bone head move that is for their future profits! I guess if you produce snakes like candy all the time you have enough inventory to sell it all back at rock bottom prices, but yeesh.
Ill be honest it really upset me but then I said well I cant sell her for that so ill just keep her she is a nice enough example to warrant breeding and my g/f just loves her but I will not name via it would only be petty and harmful, and wile it did irk me I will be the bigger person. if they can sell for that so be it Ill pair her to my toffino male and get some spider toffino's next season
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Re: Guaranteed Money
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Originally Posted by DLena
You have class.
I have respect for what those before me have done but thank you
tho it seams to have semi hijacked this thread so I will again go to the op
This is how you go about making money in this industry
Respect
if your customers respect you and know that you stand behind your snakes you can sell a normal for top dollar if they do not you couldn't give away the best combo on the market
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With the right guidance I have no doubt that this can be a small source of income. Enough to pay for the hobby itself.
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On the topic of undercutting, I feel the same goes for buying. Of course everyone wants a deal but if someone is asking a fair price I think it's petty and insulting to want to haggle over another $10-$20 off. I've flat out told people if they need to save another $10 that badly that I s don't feel they can properly care for the animal if their finances are that tight and not sold to the person. If you list an animal that usually sells for about 100 at 80 you'll always get the people that want to then offer 50-60. Nope. Now deals among friends are always approved :gj:
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by HannahLou
On the topic of undercutting, I feel the same goes for buying. Of course everyone wants a deal but if someone is asking a fair price I think it's petty and insulting to want to haggle over another $10-$20 off. I've flat out told people if they need to save another $10 that badly that I s don't feel they can properly care for the animal if their finances are that tight and not sold to the person. If you list an animal that usually sells for about 100 at 80 you'll always get the people that want to then offer 50-60. Nope. Now deals among friends are always approved :gj:
I understand the sentiments but this is the way a free market works. In my real business offering a better product for less money is the way it is done. Customers bargain. If I don't think I can make a profit I have to turn down the contract. If I can undercut my competitors and put them out of business I will. Once there is no competition prices go back up. I never screw over friends, but if I am competing head to head with someone I will do everything in my power to come out on top.
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by JodanOrNoDan
I understand the sentiments but this is the way a free market works. In my real business offering a better product for less money is the way it is done. Customers bargain. If I don't think I can make a profit I have to turn down the contract. If I can undercut my competitors and put them out of business I will. Once there is no competition prices go back up. I never screw over friends, but if I am competing head to head with someone I will do everything in my power to come out on top.
The problem here is the if you sell a $300 snake at $250 then I mark mine at $200 someone else does$175.so you go $150 Now that becomes the standard price everyone starts using because someone sold one. so we have essentially cut the value in half in a few days. The price will not go back up because of the amount of people producing the same morph. It will only go down more. And this is why a exemplary example of a pastel can be bought for next to nothing. Too many people looking for the cheapest snake instead of the best example. And too many breeders willing to sell for whatever they can get. This is why I only have exceptional examples of the morphs I want to breed. And all lower quality animal will be found pet homes not sold to someone looking to breed
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Just another example or two from the UK ....
Some guy last great put a clutch of boas up for sale ... Albinos at £75 and SunGlows £150 each ...
Also last year I was lucky enough to pick up a Caramel Albino Spider Royal for just £100 ..
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zincubus
Just another example or two from the UK ....
Some guy last great put a clutch of boas up for sale ... Albinos at £75 and SunGlows £150 each ...
Also last year I was lucky enough to pick up a Caramel Albino Spider Royal for just £100 ..
Price wise we have gone bonkers...
Butter pastel poss het ghost male £60
Cinnabee female £50
Pied male proven breeder £225
priven almost 3kg female het pied £120
Albno spider male £50
Prices in the UK are insane - every year there is a "new" fad morph that gets the backside bred out of it and creates a price crash the following year.
Last year it was bamboo - it seems this year will be the year of the clown again as thats where the sales are all headed xx
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Re: Guaranteed Money
The OP on this thread really didn't bother me. Just because someone is asking about "money-makers" doesn't automatically mean that they're money-grubbing or that they won't care for their animals as they should. Every big breeder out there was once a small hobby breeder and they got where they are today by looking at risks vs profits. Yep, you have to be passionate, and yep, you have to care because ultimately these are wild animals that are fully dependent on us for their care. But I also think you can balance this with running a business and all that includes: customer care, profit margins, market costs, etc.
Can we make the case that perhaps big breeders don't care about their animals as much as small breeders? Because they keep their animals in small tubs with very little interaction on a daily basis, and typically feed live. They do this for space and cost constraints of keeping so many animals. A small breeder may have the luxury of larger cages, feeding f/t, and interacting with the animals on a daily basis.
Does that mean the big breeder is money-grubbing and less passionate than the small breeder?
I don't think so, but it's my opinion... for whatever that's worth.
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by ladywhipple02
Does that mean the big breeder is money-grubbing and less passionate than the small breeder?
I don't think so, but it's my opinion... for whatever that's worth.
EDIT: I was thinking about this and want to restate - I don't think that's ALWAYS true. In some cases, yes. In others, no.
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An interesting thing: in one of his videos, Justin Kobylka said that if your collection is so big you can't spend an least a little bit of time with each snake ona regular basis, then it's too big. And I tend to agree. Justin is one we might consider a "Big Breeder", certainly he's a big name in the hobby. But when you look at his collection compared to names like Brian Barczyk, Bob Clark, or Kevin McCurley, he's small potatoes. And yet he consistently gets a higher price for his animals and has stellar reviews across the board. Not a single buyer beware that I could find, where as many of the big names have quite mixed reviews at this point - anything from poor communication, to messed up orders, to sick or dead animals. Justin - and many others- competes easily with these big breeders, and perhaps his profits aren't as high when you consider the sheer volume of product moved, but his name has become synonymous with above average product and customer service.
Do the other guys still have a passion? Sure. Were they pioneers back in the early dark ages of reptile keeping? Absolutely. But when they have to put the bottom line before the animals by simple necessity of maintaining size, I don't think that does any favors for them or the hobby in the long run.
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lizardlicks
An interesting thing: in one of his videos, Justin Kobylka said that if your collection is so big you can't spend an least a little bit of time with each snake ona regular basis, then it's too big. And I tend to agree. Justin is one we might consider a "Big Breeder", certainly he's a big name in the hobby. But when you look at his collection compared to names like Brian Barczyk, Bob Clark, or Kevin McCurley, he's small potatoes. And yet he consistently gets a higher price for his animals and has stellar reviews across the board. Not a single buyer beware that I could find, where as many of the big names have quite mixed reviews at this point - anything from poor communication, to messed up orders, to sick or dead animals. Justin - and many others- competes easily with these big breeders, and perhaps his profits aren't as high when you consider the sheer volume of product moved, but his name has become synonymous with above average product and customer service.
Do the other guys still have a passion? Sure. Were they pioneers back in the early dark ages of reptile keeping? Absolutely. But when they have to put the bottom line before the animals by simple necessity of maintaining size, I don't think that does any favors for them or the hobby in the long run.
I don't know him but Justin sounds like a good guy. There is always a place for a "craftsman" in every industry. He has to play a very different game from the volume guys and the closet breeders. The problem with this type of model is that there is a financial cap. Justin sounds like the type of person that is involved in his whole operation. The problem with this is there is only so much Justin to go around and if there is no Justin there is no operation. While very ethical and great on the quality side of the house, the model does not scale.
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Re: Guaranteed Money
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lizardlicks
In the end, you can run your business how you want to, but if you can get a better price for your animals by being patient and persistent and giving attention to detail, wouldn't that make more sense?
We see people buying $75 normal ball pythons at PetCo every day - pitiful, unhealthy animals purchased by people that are ignorant and don't know any better but want the cool factor of owning a pet snake. PetCo can get away with it because that's their market - the ignorants - and they have the money to advertise on a big, wide scale to draw these folks into their stores. Small companies - and even "big breeders" are probably considered small companies since I'm not going to see any of them in the INC500 any time soon - don't have this excess and can only advertise at a certain level and therefore draw a certain market... namely, other snake breeders and enthusiasts.
When you reach a certain level, you really have to think about who you're marketing to. The general public isn't going to purchase a $5000 snake when they don't really care about color so much coolness, and most don't even know what they're getting into with cost of care. You can sell to other breeders at a higher rate, because they understand what they're buying, but only for a certain amount of time - when you have more product than purchasers at the breeding level, you have to drop your price to move the product or you risk loss due to overhead. If you're running things as a business, you have to pay attention to this.
If you pay attention to the market, you see it's a cyclical beast. There are peaks and valleys, and inflation, and all sorts of other fun factors in there. Dogs are an interesting comparison because nowadays people are selling what would have once been considered "mutts" as exotic mix breeds (pomskies, dorgies, chug, yorkie poo, etc) and charging exorbitant prices for them. And the animals can't even be registered with the AKC, but people will pay.
I think you'll see some leveling off in the coming years. Maybe even a rise again if you wait long enough. People will lose interest and the prices will go up, then it'll become a fad again and prices will fall off.
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Alright people so after some gentle http://i954.photobucket.com/albums/a...tiles/Maid.gif there is now a spinoff on Breeding Standards which can be found right here https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...ding-Standards
You're welcome :gj:
Sincerly, your Maiderator (yeah I came up with that)
Now back on track.
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