Question about 'Market Value'

[RichL]

First off, I want to say that I realize what a market value is and well aware of how it can be dropped due to either :

a) said market being flooded with 'product'

or

b) drastic undercutting by competitors

or

c) said 'product' becoming more common or less desired by the buyers over time

There are obviously other ways as well to drop the market value of an 'item' but I figure these are few of the more common. Drastic Undercutting being the major topic of this post.

( I am not a business major or experienced in this. Please feel free to correct me if I am indeed wrong about anything. )

Where my question comes into play is in reference to our hobby of course. There are lots of 'small time/hobby' breeders out there. They may only produce anywhere from 1-10 clutches a year. Most of which are probably fairly new to breeding and selling ( less than 5 years ). Most likely these sales would not even cover the care of the animals past cutting the annual cost down to a reasonable level.

Would you expect a beginning/less experienced/less reputable breeder to price their animals at the current market value?

Example being Bumble Bee's. Average price I see online is around $450-500 for some pretty bee's.

Would more 'reputable' breeders be upset about a possible market drop from a breeder that only produces less than 5-7 of these a year @ around the $375-425 range?

Reason I ask is that I am hoping to produce my first clutch ever this year. It will be a pairing between my 1.0 Spider x 0.1 Normal. Now even if the 'odd gods' where with me and I produced 5 good looking spiders, would I be expected to sell these at current market value?

Personally, I would expect a cheaper price from a less reputable breeder even if the animals where picture perfect examples of the morph. I feel that a breeder that has earned his/her reputation, as earned the right to set the market prices .

My biggest thing really, is that I don't want to upset anyone if I was to offer animals at a 'slight' discount due to my inexperience and lack of reputation as a breeder. I do not plan on doing this for a profit. I am doing it for the fun of it. The money made will be used to help support my collection and possibly grow it. At the same time it should be stated that I would not drastically drop a price on any animal for a 'quick sale'.

I haven't been on this site long enough to know what the 'small' breeders sell their animals for so was looking for guidance I suppose. I know it greatly depends on the morphs your producing and how the odds work out for you. I just want to get a head start on everything and gather as much information as possible.

Sorry for the long winded post. Hope my question has gotten across. Thanks in advance for any help !

Rich L.

[kitedemon]

I am not a breeder I am a business guy. Paying attention to the market price is important because you need to know what people are paying for your product. However pricing is regional the ultra high end it is not as supply is very very small and that there may only be a few of a given morph in any particular area and finding one for sale in your back yard is unlikely.

Spiders are different, they are common and relatively inexpensive, the price should reflect the availability in your area not a centre 1000 of miles away very few will pay for shipping a spider in some cases it would double the cost of the animal. If you are the only person in your area with spiders then you can charge full market price or even a little extra as if the buyer wants one they would have to pay for shipping. If (as I'd guess) there are a number of spiders available you need to be competitive with your area if they are selling for 100$ and you are trying to get 300 you will still have all of them in 6 months. Just because they are priced at a certain amount in california or new your does not mean that is what you can sell them for in maine. Market price especially of the lower end is regional.

[Chris633]

A similar topic came up not too long ago. Here is the link:

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ood-to-be-true....

[RichL]

@ kitedemon Thanks for the information. It does make sense. I would probably be mostly selling online as there isn't a 'herp' group around here and only one locally owned pet shop. I didn't think about it, but if I was to sell one around my area, I could charge more due to the fact they won't have to pay shipping and noone else around would have one.

@ Chris633 Thanks for the link. I must have overlooked it during my search. I'm reading through it now. It is filled with lots of the information I was looking for =)

Thanks again for the replies!

[Annarose15]

As a new breeder, I hatched my first two clutches this past summer. I sold spiders, pastels, and some normals at market price, and wholesaled the male normals to a local pet store. I priced them based on color, pattern, and feeding response. I am selective about my animals and care a great deal for them, so I do not consider them less valuable just because my name is new to the scene.

[kitedemon]

Ethics are another issue al together. The breeder I know would rather give someone a great deal and know it was going to a good home than make extra money and not be sure about the quality of the home it is going to.

[rjk890]

There are some people that breed snakes for a living, and there are others that breed them simply for hobby.

I myself am a hobby breeder, meaning that I do not make my living selling the offspring that I produce.

To establish my collection, I aquired the best looking examples that I could find, of the base morphs that I desire to keep and work with.
Each one has the look that I like best in that particular base morph, and the look that I wanted passed on to the combos that I produce.
I selectively breed my animals based on what I would like to add to my collection, and which of my animals I think would make the best examples of those mutations.
I hold back the majority of my hatchlings, and would actually prefer to trade the others then sell them. However, sometimes I need to sell an animal for cash, in order to redistribute the funds back into my hobby. That may mean building and stocking another rodent rack, picking up another Helix DBS-1000, or simply moving out animals that I already have in my collection, in order to purchase mutations that I would like to add to my collection.

There are at least two types of "professional" snake breeders.
( You know, the ones that intend to make their living selling the offspring that they produce. )

The first type of "professional" breeder, selectively puts together their collection of snakes, by purchasing only high quality breed stock animals that have the look that they like best in that particular base morph, and the look that they want passed on to the combos that they intend to produce. These people produce high quality animals, and their prices usually reflect the high quality of their animals.
This type of breeder is often, but not exclusively, made up of hobby keepers / breeders that have decided to turn their hobby into their career.
Due to the higher quality, and therefore higher priced animals they produce, their customer base consist mainly of two types of customers.
1.) Hobby keepers / breeders that would like to turn their hobby into a career in the future, and become "professional" breeders, and are willing to purchase high quality breed stock animals.
2.) The wealthier and/or more selective hobby keepers, that can afford to, and are willing to puchase higher grade animals at higher prices for their personal collection, even though those animals are not an "investment."

The second type of "professional" breeder, puts their collection together by purchasing wholesale lots of animals, often sight unseen.
Their operation is simply a numbers game.
They mass produce animals and their customer base consist of other type 2 "professional" breeders, show vendors, and the hobby keepers that would like to have a collection of assorted BP mutations, and would rather purchase, or can only afford to purchase the more affordable, B grade animals.

Unfortunately, there are way more animals being produced, then there are people looking to purchase those animals.
The supply is definitely greater then the demand, and both types of breeders are competing for the same sales.
Most Pastels are not what they used to be, and other mutations are getting less and less impressive as people throw any two animals of the opposite sex together, in an attempt to put as many eggs on the ground, in order to try and recoup their "investment."