Breeding business starting up late this year

[lilnash0]

I want to start a business for breeding ball pythons. I don't want to be about the money. My prices will be lower than the competition. I was thinking
Single genes : $100 - $300 (depending on the morph)
Double genes : $300 - $600
Triple genes : $600-$1000
4+ genes : $1000 and up



Can you guys please give me your opinion on this. Like I said, I don't want to be about the money.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

Don't count your snakes before you hatch them

I always like when people say it's not about the money but they are already thinking about the prices of animals they haven't even produced yet , do you even have animals up to size ready to breed, have you ever bred BP? How good are you with genetics?

There is a LOT to learn before even thinking about having a business and already setting your prices up and by the time you produce your first hatchlings the prices will not be where they are now anyway.

BTW that is really not how you price animals, do you think a single gene scaleless BP is worth $100 to $300???, there is more that comes into pricing then the number of genes, it's a matter of supply and demand for said morph and how much people are willing to pay for it.

Again a LOT to learn

[Expensive hobby]

Most will probably tell you to sell at the fair market value to keep the prices up. Undercutting others leads to price crashes on morphs. Happens all the time.

And the number of genes isn't always the best thing to go off of. You can have 2 very common genes in one animal and 2 very rare or new genes in another and the prices can be tens of thousands of dollars different.

Example: with retics, a pied goes for about $25,000. That's one gene, my purple sunfire is two genes and only worth about $2,000.

You can see the point there.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 3

[Stewart_Reptiles]

Both threads have been merged in an effort to keep the forum organised and clutter free, no need to post identical threads just be patient, wait and answers will come - Thank you.

[Andybill]

A good way to make yourself the bad guy in this market is having that "not about the money" mindset when making this your business, that wont make you many friends. If it is a business you wish to start then you absolutely must be about the money, as in knowing your market and the value of the snakes you produce. In my opinion being competitive in this industry/hobby/community is about producing the best not beating the next guy's prices. If your snakes are better than the next guy you should have no problem asking market value or slightly higher.

[Marrissa]

Hey if you want to sell me a GHI, monarch, or bamboo for 100-300 I'm very cool with that.

[OctagonGecko729]

A good way to make yourself the bad guy in this market is having that "not about the money" mindset when making this your business, that wont make you many friends. If it is a business you wish to start then you absolutely must be about the money, as in knowing your market and the value of the snakes you produce. In my opinion being competitive in this industry/hobby/community is about producing the best not beating the next guy's prices. If your snakes are better than the next guy you should have no problem asking market value or slightly higher.

You definitely stated this well. People forget that in a free market money is simply a representation of human desires. If your not looking at this in a monetary way you definitely will fall short in pleasing your customers. For instance, we have bred animals in the past which arent fetching a profit when you total up their total cost of living. So, this next year, we wont be breeding the same parents again. This assures that we wont be producing animals that people dont want. Now I can choose to keep on breeding these animals that dont sell but it will require subsidizing from somewhere else (a second job) to continue and its incredibly wasteful.

I also have never understood why people feel like profit and love of the animals is mutually exclusive.

[Expensive hobby]

Ya, I'm breeding because I love the challenge and getting er done. I like setting goals and blowing right by them. But I also would love to be the next millionaire on the list, but I know that's not realistic. So, if my snakes can become profitable enough to pay for themselves, I will gladly accept that "in it for the money" concept.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 3

[ROACH]

I want to start a business for breeding ball pythons. I don't want to be about the money. My prices will be lower than the competition. I was thinking
Single genes : $100 - $300 (depending on the morph)
Double genes : $300 - $600
Triple genes : $600-$1000
4+ genes : $1000 and up



Can you guys please give me your opinion on this. Like I said, I don't want to be about the money.

Basically you are saying to everyone here is: "Im Going to undercut all of you!" Then ask for help on your prices. Cool! BTW how many BP's do you even have right now?

[Shera]

I agree with those who say that by selling (or at least advertising) for under market value is undercutting others. Don't think of other breeders and hobbyists in your area as competition. In a hobby like this it's important to make friends, especially with people with more experience than you. They can be an invaluable source of information and also help with building a reputation.