Tampa LFS Charges Admission Fee
 

What do you think about THIS?!

Tough one. I would think if they get a ton of tourist in the shop just looking and not even owning a tank than it would be reasonable.
But if they refunded the cover if you bought something that would be far.

J

$1 is fair enough if you're coming in just to waste some time & entertain yourselves by looking at fish.

But I've lost count of the number of times I've stopped by J&L or King Ed's or where ever just to see what they have in stock.

My intention is to buy something if there's something I like, but often there's nothing new or that catches my eye.

I know it's only a dollar but should I be charged for that?

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It's interesting, especially when you think of the number of times you've seen parents taking their kids in to look at the fishies with no intention of buying.

I personally would have no problem paying/donating a buck a visit, you usually see something that gives you a dollars worth of enjoyment even if you don't buy anything. And since I usually do, it wouldn't amount to much in the end. :biggrin:

That will be the day I will pay a cover charge to go in ANY store!

i wouldnt mind if it wasnt a store that i went to frequently. if it was i'd just give the guy 20 bucks and take of a dollar everytime i come in :P

i think its a good idea, but i just hope it doesnt come back and bite the guy

I wouldn't mind paying the $1 if the store had new and exciting stock in every week. I would hate to pay to see the same stuff I saw last week, over and over.

Well, I was just curious to hear some different responses. Here's mine:

There's no way I'd pay a cover charge to enter the doors of a LFS. Ever. He says that electricity and water aren't free. Umm...so? Isn't that what business owners call "overhead"? Next time I go into Gold, I'm going to ask Dennis for a dollar, and when he looks at me like I'm crazy, I'll say, "What? Gas isn't free you know."

Ha Ha!! I'll try that tonight.

agreed
 

Couldn't of put it better myself, I'm more than positive that this store will go under because of this. Really though, if I walked into a LFS and they asked me for a dollar just to look at there stuff I would turn around tell them to shove it and never shop there again. What are we going to see next people being charged $1.00 to visit an online LFS?
Levi

:lol: I must say I agree with what your saying here. I think it's silly, and I hope this doesn't become a trend.. but I suppose in the end, $1 isn't too bad. If you shop, you get your dollar back, if not, well... you don't get your buck back.. but that would in my eyes, draw customers away even more. Now window shopping will cost you a fee.

Yeah, but window shopping will only cost you $0.50 :p

I've never heard of anything so ridiculous!
It cost me money to keep the beer, cider, etc. cold in our pub and liquor store. If I tried to charge a dollar for entering the premises I'd be laughed out of town.

"Yeah, um ... good luck with that {as I go shop somewhere else}"

Maybe if he had some awesome display tanks set up I could see it but it looks like an ordinary lfs to me.

Yeah, that's the thing, if he's running, say, multiple show-quality displays that are display-only and don't do a thing for the retail bottom line ... then maybe. But even then, I think the way *I* would do it is have it in a separate section away from the retail (ie., you can't otherwise see it unless you go into this special section) and even then it would be a "by donation" type thing. Ie., please help with the upkeep of these tanks, donate a dollar if you feel it's worth it, blah blah blah, .. " maybe even 50% of proceeds go towards some reef conservation fund.

But a cover charge like for a bar? It would have to be *some* store. I thought they were dime a dozen down there in Florida anyhow, so odds are I'd probably just shop somewhere else. Yeah, who pays for MY gas and electricity? what a doofus.

i need to pay them money for the right to shop there? Ridiculous, would never think of of going there, who does the shopkeep think they are? Costco?

I'd never shop there either.

Like Tony said, it would have to be one heck of a store to charge an admission fee. Likely I would take my business somewhere else or only go in when I knew they had something I needed (and even then I'd think twice about maybe supporting another store that didn't charge, after all, its the principle of the thing!).

Maybe I'd shop there. If I lost my mind....

I sure wouldn't pay a cover charge. This might drive away some customers, but he did get some free advertising on the news.

Now really looking at the last 9 posts would you consider that positive advertising or negitive advertising for him :lol:?
Levi

And my wife gives me the gears about my Cost-Co membership!! Who would pay for the privilege of finding your own boxes to pack your 4500 pack of q-tips?

Cheers
Rattler

If he gets more business, positive advertising. If he goes broke I guess it was negative advertising :)
But looking at the posts it was negative.

I'd have no problem paying a buck to look around, plus you do get it back when you buy something.

I'm seeing it from the perspective that if he doesn't do this, he's going out of business, which is not good for anyone, employee's are out of work, someone loses the business they started and it reduces competition, which can drive prices up.

I restore cars as a hobby as well and this is no different than Pick & Pull in Calgary that started charging a dollar to walk around the yard. Can't say I was to happy about it, but when you need the part ..you have to pay:cry: What does bother me is that I wouldn't be surprised that a big portion of this income is going unclaimed on taxes. There is no paperwork involved, just try asking for a receipt:mrgreen:

And see to me the flip side is if that dollar was buried in the cost of a purchase I made I'd have no problem paying it. Paying a dollar to enter a store only to find out they have nothing I want to buy at the time only makes me think I'll be less likely to come back. A reward of diminishing returns..

And I don't know if I buy the "if we don't do this then we'll go out of business" argument. If that is true then it's a pretty shaky business model whose time is likely coming sooner or later.

"If we don't do this then we'll go out of business" that has to be a lie!
On average lets say the guy has 80 people in his store per day which is $80.00 (even less if he is funding the money back after purchase). Lets say during that day he sells a single Euro Reef skimmer at $350.00 (lets say the actual cost is $120) right there thats $230 profit which is almost TRIPLE the profit of the admission fee. I don't think you need that $80.00 to stay afloat when the product you sell already has some crazy mark up on it. If you ask me it just looks like a cash grab situation plain and simple.
Levi

What a retard. I'd make it a point to not buy anything from his store no matter how rare or how bad I wanted it.

People coming in to just look are a part of the buisness. I hope his customers remember this and shop elsewhere even after he realizes that he made a dumb move.

I was just thinking. If I paid a dollar at every store I go into, I'd never have enough money left to buy anything! Certainly, any store that tried that with me, would lose a customer permanently.

Yep.. I'd tell him why Im not coming back and turn around and leave him with his palm open.

My first thoughts were: "H*LL NO!" and "Onto the next one :biggrin:"

I as well can't imagine paying to shop somewhere, if I had to pay I'd rather go somewhere else. I do get the whole Costco thing since the prices are fairly cheep, but I still can't bring myself to pay for a card to shop there. Instead I go to Superstore or Wal-Mart.

now that i think about it this really sucks
like i get it, but its not going to work.
the only way i would go to that one store in a huge place like tampa is if they had soemthing no one else did, and then i would go in just to egt that thing

You know I hang out a gold aqaurium a lot. But if they are busy I get out of the way if I am not buying something. Wait that never happens...They always get my money... Ummm I would never pay to come look at buying something. How ever when I am trying to watch a fish and make a decision about a purchase. Nothing drives me more nuts then being bumped around by 50 people using the store as a poor man's zoo.. I was talking with Dennis one day and people came in with a couple of kids old enough to know better. Who grabbed a hand full of bulk food and tossed it into one of his tanks. For some reason the parents didn't feel like they should have to cover the cost of the wasted food, not to mention the staff wages to clean up the mess.

But you never see Dennis tell other people with kids to stay out or not take the time to talk to people if they are not too busy. I have watched them take people who are just killing time and turn them into customers. So maybe instead of charging your walk in traffic. Try doing you job and get them excited about salt and turn them into buyers...