A note from a pet store owner

[Rockstar Reptiles]

Not sure if this is the right place to put this, and I apologize it became so long winded.

As I have read through this as well as several other forums, I have read about LPS, and most of it is less than favorable. As an owner of a local pet store I would like to educate people so that they can understand a bit more about why stores do what they do.

First off, there are a LOT of flat out bad stores in it for NOTHING more than the money and have NO sense of responsibility. DO NOT support these store, not even an occasional mouse or bulb. It is the mice and bulbs and little stuff that keeps guys like me in business. Petco/mart is in business from dog food, they will be there with or without your business, so you are better off shopping there than at an abusive pet store.

The first thing I want to impart is the LPS importance to you, the advanced hobbyist. Many of the people on here have progressed past the point of pet stores, and many refuse to sell to them, so they wonder how a LPS benefits them.

1. Just about all of us I would wager are who we are, at least at some level, because of a LPS. LPS (even the bad ones) have a vested interest in making sure that people are comfortable with “creepy” animals. From comfort comes interest, which becomes obsession. With the state of our hobby, NOTHING else is more important than education and exposure to the young generations for the future of our hobby.
2. Even if you don’t sell to pet stores, many of the people you buy from do. Most major breeders do a fair amount of wholesale business. By doing this business it allows them to have the ability to not have to worry about over-producing normal animals and moving them. This keeps down their expenses which in turn helps keep down their pricing.
3. The same concept applies to dry goods. Dry goods that are not carried at boxers that are high quality can be distributed through pet stores. By increasing their markets to casual consumers (realistically the bulk of the market) this helps them lower their prices for you as well.
4. Really think about how nice it is to have the option to pick up a quick bail of aspen, mouse, etc if you do need it. I think this is helpful for more people than many think.
5. If you find a good store they can help you a lot if you work with them. For example: I order crickets every week. For my customers that were ordering online, I can now order the crix in for them and save them much of the shipping. I make a modest margin, and they save money. Same with frozen rodent orders or bulk spider orders. Sometimes you just need to ask your store how they can work with you.

One of the most common complaints is the pricing and the knowledge. Let me start with pricing. The overhead of LPS is extremely high. I pay approx. 7,000/month in payroll, almost 5,000/month in rent and utilities, not to mention what I need to maintain the animals, compensate for loss, etc. For example, I got a pretty nasty RI strain that went through all my ball pythons a few months ago despite the infected animal being in a separate quarantine room. It took me about 500.00 in vet bills and about 100.00 in extra labor for the added care to treat. Also, I had to have that much more money wrapped up in these snakes rather than recouping the costs and re-investing or paying down dept.
A LPS has to adjust to the majority of their clientele, and that is going to include very few “high end” hobbyists. Most of my customers have from 1-3 animals and get them the minimum that they need to survive, and trying to get them to allow them to thrive is like pulling teeth. If I was to sell my product for what online retailers sell for I would go out of business very quickly because I don’t have the customer base to support those margins. I HAVE to make those margins, not to get rich, just to stay open! I am personally very willing to discount to online pricing for my more advanced hobbyists, but I have to know who they are. Try asking the stores, you may be surprised and not have to wait for shipping!

As far as knowledge, believe me I try. However, to be a snake enthusiast or tarantula enthusiast you need to know quite a lot! However, to have an expert or near expert level knowledge on EVERYTHING is nearly impossible. Think about it for a minute. I have to know every issue and species on amphibs, snakes, lizards, inverts, bunnies, guinea pigs, rabbits, ferrets, birds, dogs, cats, fish, cichlids, etc, etc, etc. This is why I consider myself an animal expert, but not an expert on any particular animal. Also, there is no training manual to own a store. Most only know what their reps tell them (trying to sell a product of course). Many want to know, but if you don’t know you’re wrong, how do you learn otherwise?

Lastly (finally!), we can all agree that there are better stores and worse stores even if we don’t shop at them. If we advanced hobbyists (the ones who can tell the difference) don’t at least give the better stores a shot at our business, how do we expect them to outcompete the worse stores? It costs me MUCH more to run my store the way I do that others do because I believe that spending the vet bills, medications, and the right caging is the RIGHT way to do business. But if the people who can tell the difference don’t shop with me anyways, than what is my motivation to continue to do that? I see this a lot in stores that have been open for a while. They start out altruistic and eventually succumb to the reality that you live by your morals, or you actually make a decent living by abandoning them, and I can tell you it is a harder decision than you may think.

I hope you have a little more insight now, and that you will try to work with your good LPS, not have an us vs. them attitude!

Thanks for reading, and thanks for helping me continue expanding my knowledge!

[rabernet]

Thank you for a very thoughtful and insightful post.

[BPelizabeth]

Great post. Wish you were in AZ, thank you!! You should post where you are and the name of your store, with that post .....I would think you would get some business. There are allot of stores out there that do not take their animals to the vet....sad....I get the cost of doing business thing....but still sad.

Here is a suggestion....not sure of the legalities of it....but I always thought if I ever opened a store I would print out care sheets and give them to the new owners. There are so many awesome care sheets out there for different animals that might assist in the animal having a better life. I would also do my research and give them the websites where they can learn more about the animals that they are buying. This is also a nice Customer service tip.....?? Just a suggestion.

Coming from the business industry where I use to consult companies.....I am pretty paticular of the stores I shop. I am also a very faithful customer to certain places....not due to price....due to customer service. I will pay more....for customer service and businesses that do the right thing.

[dnnsfam]

I am there with you, I like being treated like my pets are extended family to the shop compared to some bad ones with lower prices of get your stuff get out mentality.

I am also a very faithful customer to certain places....not due to price....due to customer service. I will pay more....for customer service and businesses that do the right thing.

[angllady2]

I also appreciate this post. Good information from the other side of the fence, so to speak.

I used to spend my money at Petsmart/Petco because I had no choice. The smaller, private pet stores here are few and very far between.

Now, I have the luxury of a wonderful, small private pet shop less than 5 minutes from my house. The owners are kind, caring and helpful, and certainly don't pretend to know it all, but are willing to learn. They get all their companion small animals from local breeders, which makes a big difference to me.

I have told them honestly, even if their items cost more {a few do, most don't} I'd still rather spend my money with them than anywhere else. I know that if people like me don't make the effort to keep little places like that around, soon I'll have to go back to crappy Petco. Not if I can help it!

So now, even if it's just a little $2 bottle of fish food, I shop there. Sure I could get it at Petco, Wal-Mart, heck even my grocery stores carry it now, but I want to do my part to help them stay in business, and every little bit matters.

Gale

[Hulihzack]

Good post. I was been lucky enough to get a job at a reptile store that has been in business for about 20 years, and I understand completely where you are coming from. We carry high and low end animals, but probably 90% of our business is still new pet owners, feeders, and dry goods.

I believe the best way to educate our customers by example; for instance, every display on the floor is the actual appropriate set-up for that animal. That care to detail goes a very long way. You are right in that it's near impossible to become an expert on everything you sell though. I had to learn husbandry for everything from bearded dragons to monitors to all kinds of snakes as fast as possible to do my job responsibly. The employees of the store need to be aware of the weight of their actions and advice with customers. Rather than making something up that "sounds right", they need to find someone who knows, or look up the correct answer before giving that information to customers. Needless to say, my first weeks working at the Reptile Center had a lot of ...."Sorry, I don't know. Ask that guy over there"

Not all LPS are bad! But make sure you support the ones that are good! Those LPS customers are the ones that go on to become YOUR customers.

[snakeyes]

AWESOME POST MAN.

Really opened my eyes. I'm a Petsmart guy myself, but maybe it's time to check out some LPS around my area.

[Danounet]

The local reptile/exotic store where I used to buy my supplies from closed down... That is also where I got my first Ball Python. It sucked and it still does. Im stuck buying feeders and what ever I need in random pet stores, I usually avoid walking by the section where they keep the reptiles, but sometimes curiosity gets the best of me, and then I regret it.

[BuckeyeBalls]

Hmm i do my shopping at Jack's Aquarium and Pets. Not really a LPS as some. They have like 27 stores (24 of which are in ohio)

Never seen anything bad always helpful. Im not to sure of many other places close to my area to get feeders and pet equip other then pet(smart/co)

Edit* Need to go get a mouse today i think i will check 2 other pets stores near our house.

[Patricia]

Most of my customers have from 1-3 animals and get them the minimum that they need to survive, and trying to get them to allow them to thrive is like pulling teeth.

That saddens me. Thank you for your post and for rising above the muckity-muck out there.