The economy may be slow but I just went to the worst Hep show (because of selection) and yes some morphs were a little lower than normal but standard snakes like spiders pastels and pins were all at the normal price. The market fluctuats on everything.
The key is that store just doesnt want to pay for your babies when the time comes so he is talking you down and when you do sell to him, he will say you know I am doing you a favor taking these worthless things off your hands. He then he makes a killing in profits. It is a typical strategy.