The downside of good pricing

ArachnoJoost

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Well, I spoke with a fellow T enthusiast here in Holland a few days ago, and what he said did not make me happy, should make you happy though:
This guy knows exactly where for instance the P. metallica's in Europe are. And although they are bred here you have a better chance of obtaining them. Because the prices here are way below your prices, there is a lot more money to be made in the US. So I guess you'll see the metallica before me...:(
Same with the E. cyanognathus (bleufang). There is a dutch hobbyist (don't know him) who had 7 eggsacks of this species about a month ago, all of them going to the US...:(
Anyways, should make you happy :rolleyes:
greetz,
Joost
 

King_Looey

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There are plenty of both spiders in Britain, all breeders co-ordiante their efforts very well through the BTS.
 

danread

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Really king_looey? I'd love to know where you can get them from.
 

King_Looey

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Subscribe to the BTS, then ask on the private forum. Someone will point you in the right direction. Thats the advantage in living in such a small country. It costs only £4 to send a spider, next day delivery anywhere in the UK. This makes people much more willing to do it.
 

danread

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Cheers for the advice king_looey. Your right, it is good living in the UK, i wouldn't want to worry about any Ts having to come by airmail like in the US, but i do sometimes feel that we are missing out on the number of big pet dealers like they have over there. I keep on finding great online tarantula dealers with a massive selection of Ts, but they're all in america. bummer. Where do you buy yours?
 

King_Looey

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Look on the links page, they have a few good dealers in the UK. And if you ever want me to find a spider for you, just PM me. Certain spiders are very hard to find however, as some people tend to hoard all the rarer species.

While america has the big pet dealers, they are sometimes over priced. I have seen some spiders going for over $200. I think that is far too much, especially when there is a $20 postage fee, and even then it may arrive dead.
 

danread

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Thanks mate, I might have to take you up on that offer sometime.
 

Phillip

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Plenty of P metallica?

Did you say plenty of P metallica in Britain? Funny but last chat Rick West said there were a grand total of 10 in captivity. Funny but that doesn't sound like plenty.

I honestly can't help but wonder what you've been smoking over there at times. LOL Plenty of metallica. That's a good one.

Phil
 

invertepet

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They're probably thinking of A. metallica... P. metallica spiderlings aren't even available yet. I wish! ;)

bill
 

ArachnoJoost

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Re: Plenty of P metallica?

Originally posted by Phillip
Did you say plenty of P metallica in Britain? Funny but last chat Rick West said there were a grand total of 10 in captivity.
I honestly can't help but wonder what you've been smoking over there at times.
Rick West said there were at least 10 metallica's here, in France and Denmark. So there could be more, but I think I don't get to see one very soon...:(

I honestly can't help but wonder what you've been smoking over there at times.
The smoking is much better in Holland than in England...;P
 

Mister Internet

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Originally posted by King_Looey
While america has the big pet dealers, they are sometimes over priced. I have seen some spiders going for over $200. I think that is far too much, especially when there is a $20 postage fee, and even then it may arrive dead.
Looey,

It's called supply and demand. Look at www.e-spiderworld.com... John Hoke is charging $400 for a guaranteed male T. apophysis... he's arguably the most respected breeder in the hobby in America, do you honestly think he'd be charging that kind of money if he couldn't get it? The fact is, certain species are rare. You pay more for rare species. It's supply and demand. If I have a spider you want, and the only other way to get it is to fly to French Guiana and collect it yourself, why is me charging you $200 unreasonable? I'm sorry that you think every spider should sell for < £25, but in the real world, that's simply not the case. I may think Bentleys are too expensive, but that doesn't mean that they shouldn't cost what they cost.

An object's worth is determined by it's scarcity and demand. Economics 101, my friend. Or is this simply another item in your arsenal of "reasons why America is inferior to England"?
 

Code Monkey

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Originally posted by Mister Internet
An object's worth is determined by it's scarcity and demand. Economics 101, my friend. Or is this simply another item in your arsenal of "reasons why America is inferior to England"?
Not to mention that what you're paying for with these dealers is the convenience of being able to select from dozens to over a hundred species and have it delivered to your door 365 days a year. Sure, you can go to the swap meet and pick up many of those same spiders for half the cost or even less, but you've got to wait for the swap meet, go there, hope some guy's kid brother happened to have bred the species you're looking for, or that the guys who purchase from the wholesalers and do these meets on their weekends have what you want. It's a crap shoot. Alternatively, you can hunt around all over the place and find the hobbyist who has what you want at a cheaper price, but you've still got to tack on the shipping and that hobbyist only has *one* T you're looking for, you can now repeat the process with the other half dozen.

Hoke is expensive, no argument, but he keeps more species on hand than anyone else and he is one of the most professional dealers you'll find. Kelly Swift is also expensive, but again, very professional (when he's not arguing with me ;)), wide selection, almost all captive bred.

With these 'expensive American dealers' I went from a guy who'd been out of the hobby for a few years, to having every species in the trade I ever wanted and then some in under a year without having to do more than pick up a phone and drive to the UPS depot. Terrible thing this capitalism we have over here.
 

danread

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Ha ha, ask an innocent question and it turns into a full scale trans-atlantic slagging match. Nobody is questioning the fact that there is a much better selection over in america than in the uk (apart from king_looey :? ). It's all down to simple economics, in america the hobby is much bigger due to the larger number if people involved, therefore you have the better selection as there is more money to be made. It's all about supply and demand. I'd really have to disagree with king_ looey, there isn't many (or is that any?) big tarantula dealers in the uk, and if you disagree with me king_looey, please name one that actually has a good variety in stock at this present moment, i'd love to know. Thats not to say that we don't have some excellent dealers, it's just that they don't have the same selection that you get in the US. If you hunt around, you can get most species, but it takes a lot of hunting, and it's mostly through private dealers.
 

Martin H.

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Originally posted by danread

Ha ha, ask an innocent question and it turns into a full scale trans-atlantic slagging match. Nobody is questioning the fact that there is a much better selection over in america than in the uk (apart from king_looey :? ). It's all down to simple economics, in america the hobby is much bigger due to the larger number if people involved, therefore you have the better selection as there is more money to be made. It's all about supply and demand. I'd really have to disagree with king_ looey, there isn't many (or is that any?) big tarantula dealers in the uk, and if you disagree with me king_looey, please name one that actually has a good variety in stock at this present moment, i'd love to know. Thats not to say that we don't have some excellent dealers, it's just that they don't have the same selection that you get in the US. If you hunt around, you can get most species, but it takes a lot of hunting, and it's mostly through private dealers.
US vs. UK you are probably right (BTW, I think you can't compare these two, because of the different size), but what do you think about US vs. Europe (I think it's the same if you live in Nevada and buy a spider in Alabama vs. you live in the UK and buy a spider from Italy), where is the "better" selection in these both, US vs. Europe?

I am also wondering, which species are bred in the US and which are bred in Europe. I know the european market a little bit, but don't have much knowledge about the US market. What is bred over there? (maybe this is a question for a new thread)

all the best,
Martin


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