I have always enjoyed going to Big Al's there are some really good people that work there that I will really miss seeing on the weekends
When they got in good coral and fish shipments there was some really nice stuff at good prices. If we want to talk about 40-100% markups I can think of only one (unnamed) store in this city that doesn't have that kind markup. I have found in this hobby you MUST shop around, you can go to 5 different stores looking for a heater say and you would get 5 different prices.. I have just learned which stores are better at what and shop accordingly. Big Al's is also some what close to my house so I never had to travel far to pick up a things I neeed in short order.
The nice thing about Big Al's is a great place for the casual fish keeper, way better than going to petland and not as intense as the specialized stores in the city. I think alot of people are going to miss out on that now and will end up going to the petlands and petsmarts to get their stuff.
I'm actually really sad about this and still find it a little hard to believe. I don't know why a big chain would pull out of the city due to a lease fight. There are lots of new developments coming up that could house a store like theirs, and in the end they are just throwing revenue out the door. .. But what do I know.. I'm just a simple Oilman
