Observations

[Dearth]

When I bought my 33 gallon in 1998 for light/tank/stand/Aquaclear filter I paid $700 now you can pick up same tank with beginner starter kit(food, lights, net, filter, water additives) and a basic stand for roughly $300

As for the game consoles I had Commodore 64, Nes and N64 before I went to computers haven't owned another console since nor do I want one.

[Reef_Geek]

Originally Posted by Dearth

When I bought my 33 gallon in 1998 for light/tank/stand/Aquaclear filter I paid $700 now you can pick up same tank with beginner starter kit(food, lights, net, filter, water additives) and a basic stand for roughly $300

As for the game consoles I had Commodore 64, Nes and N64 before I went to computers haven't owned another console since nor do I want one.

$700 for a 33 gal kit sounds high. I was selling these basic kits at a LFS in Halifax in '98 for less than $200 (no stand). I wonder if there was a 'lack of local competition' in your neck of the woods in '98

[Dearth]

Was two pet stores at that time neither was particularly cheap Total pet and other name escapes me and for a short time had pet cetra before they went under. Next closest major centre with bulk pet supplies was 6 hrs away in Kamloops

[Seriak]

When I first got into the hobby I know Calgary locals stores had horrendous pricing on hardware. I didn't know about / trust mail order enough to save more than 50% off my local store prices.

But price is determined by the market. We offer a 20 clown fish today simply because there are more prevalent on the distributors list because of more suppliers. (Wild caught or captive) or demand was lowered so price followed suit. Simple Economics. I would definitely say that competition has definitely had an impact on the retails stores profit margins, but that just goes back to supply and demand.

I know hardware prices continually get lower due to technological improvements, efficiencies in the manufacturing process, etc. Also China is now able to sell direct to our market, so I am expecting prices to come down even lower to match closer to the Jebao line of products etc.