Undercutting Chameleon Prices @ Shows

[Zen Reptiles]

For those of you who vendor at shows, how do you deal with other breeders who undercut your pricing?

What are some of your experiences with this? Is it just the way the game is played, do you undercut in turn? Stick to your guns? Has it ruined the show for you? Did it turn out well?

We are doing two shows in the next 2 weeks and this may be an issue for us, and we want to stick to our guns, along with the other great breeders around.


Thanks.

 

[moviemanmania]

I'm not a breeder but I am a smart business man and I agree with your idea to 'sticking to your guns.' Outstanding salesmanship and service outweighs a 20.00 price cut from a competitor who likely isn't as educated or experienced. You may use the price cut in your sales pitch as an argument in your favor by saying 'there are other animals at this show that are more inexpensive, however, when you are buy from us you are receiving a top quality animal backed by our expert service and support.' Do you offer a health guarantee? I would certainly stick to your guns and if that makes your prices higher than a vender next to you then so be it. If you lower your prices even more than below market value your contributing to the price war and thus the market values fall. It's ok to be the porsche of the show so long as you can back it up. Concentrate on what makes your business and animals unique from the other venders and talk to the clients letting them know you are very well educated on your animals and professional. They will remember that most of all.

 

[Zen Reptiles]

Great insights! Thanks for the awesome response.

 

[Yemen08]

i'm not a breeder but i am a smart business man and i agree with your idea to 'sticking to your guns.' outstanding salesmanship and service outweighs a 20.00 price cut from a competitor who likely isn't as educated or experienced. You may use the price cut in your sales pitch as an argument in your favor by saying 'there are other animals at this show that are more inexpensive, however, when you are buy from us you are receiving a top quality animal backed by our expert service and support.' do you offer a health guarantee? I would certainly stick to your guns and if that makes your prices higher than a vender next to you then so be it. If you lower your prices even more than below market value your contributing to the price war and thus the market values fall. It's ok to be the porsche of the show so long as you can back it up. Concentrate on what makes your business and animals unique from the other venders and talk to the clients letting them know you are very well educated on your animals and professional. They will remember that most of all.

kudos!!!!!

 

[cocoanut]

cheap

I'm going to daytona Saturday if ur gona be there give me a good price I need a female jackson and two panthers

 

[cocoanut]

also

And if u want to know what ur consumer will be doing is checking prices and looking fthe customer servce that's gona answer my 99 questions about ur breeding so bring ur best guns and show em Saturday me and my friends are comin with stacks

 

[jessica]

Pay for a porsche get a porsche, pay for a pinto get a pinto lol

Stick to your guns and assure your customers they are getting a quality animal and you shouldnt have an issue.

 

[jdog1027]

First thing, I wouldn't post your prices until you are at the booth, set up and had a chance to scope out the competition. However, I do believe in sticking to your guns to a certain degree. You can always go the 'If you buy from me, your getting a top quality animal with complete after purchase support' route, but your competition could very well be making the same guarantees. I plan on doing a show next month as well as two in October. My theory is I try to fix it so that I have at least 2-3 females who are all receptive at more or less the same time. I breed them together so that I have all clutches hatching out at more or less the same time period. I keep my juveniles until they at least 2 months of age, preferably 3 months, at which time they are anywhere from 4-6 inches in length, and I ask a mere $30-40 each for them. Typicaly at our reptile show, most vendors selling chameleons ( what very few there are, and sometimes there are no others), usually are asking $50-60 each for theirs that are the same size. By hatching 2-3 clutches at the same time period ( I recently hatched 105 in 2 weeks), you can afford to ask a more resonable price and this makes you much more likely to sell more. If I were to only ask $20 each, selling that many at a show (which is completely unlikely) could add upto $2,000. But then again if you've only got a single clutch your payback will obviously be much less asking lower prices. I know that a lot of people may not agree with this tactic on an ethical level, but it is a competitive atmosphere at reptile show and you have to take that into consideration when you decide to rent a booth. The 'Breed a large number-Sell for a low number' tactic has paid off for me twice in the past. I rented a booth 14 years ago and pulled in about $650 in about 3 hours. I know this isn't something everbody can achieve, but it is something to consider. I seriously think that you should always wait until you are on site and have evaluated your competition before you decide on what your going to ask. I always have what I call my bottom line, but once you have scoped the situation, you can then lower or raise what you feel you can comfortably ask without the possibilty of being undercut. I actually don't even label price tags on my chameleons, this will entice people to have to ask and interact with you rather than just walking by your table and glancing at a price tag.

 

[Seeco]

The majority of customers are kids dragging their parents along. They don't care at all about customer service because the animal is gonna be dead in a month anyway. Even more educated, responsible customers must put finances first. I have BEGGED age 20 and up customers (internet using types) to join chameleonforums, to email me, to call me 24/7 on my personal cell phone. No one did anything and I eventually tracked some customers down by recognizing my animals on their youtube videos or images...

If FL Chams is there watchout. They were selling Veileds for like $20 at the last show I did.

 

[jdog1027]

The majority of customers are kids dragging their parents along. They don't care at all about customer service because the animal is gonna be dead in a month anyway. Even more educated, responsible customers must put finances first. I have told age 20 - 30 customers (internet using types) to join chameleonforums, to email me, to call me 24/7 on my personal cell phone. No one did anything and I eventually tracked some customers down by recognizing my animals on their youtube videos or images...

If FL Chams is there watchout. They were selling Veileds for like $20 at the last show I did.

He's right!!! Seeco has the best support you could ever want to get from a breeder. Every question answered within 24 hours.

 

[ckmazdaspeed3]

I think this can go either way. I'm sure it depends on a number of factors.

Using myself as an example, when I was younger and made little money, I was very concious of price as a dollar amount... If I were to see two chameleons that both appeared similar and relatively healthy, I would immediately go for the cheaper chameleon.

However, being a bit older now and making an ok living, I would speak to both vendors and would purchase from the one who did a better job selling me on the chameleon or whatever.

In fact, although I couldn't convince the GF to let me pull the trigger (we did go from 0 pets for 8 years to 2 veileds in one month), I did go to a reptile show last week knowing that it was possible I would leave with something.

I was mainly looking at bearded dragons (not too cool, but I dig their personalities, easy care and perfect size) and by the time i left, ball pythonss, and I'm sure like most reptile shows, there were a lot of both. Anyway, I can honestly say that I know exactly who I would have purchased a bearded dragon from, and I have no idea what the price was. The thing is, the guy sold me w his personality and knowledge... He had a great selection, but none of those fancy bearded which I really don't care about.

Of course I would have asked the price just to make sure it reasonable.

... Just trying to throw out a consumers view. Granted I am in sales

 

[Seeco]

He's right!!! Seeco has the best support you could ever want to get from a breeder. Every question answered within 24 hours.

Yeah forum members like you make the best customers because we are already part of a community. At a reptile show that receipt or business card with your info might get lost even if the customer HAD questions.

 

[Ace]

isnt the OP in Canada? dont know fl chams will be there but might have cham nation and chroma chameleons to compete with

i rather have a caresheet already available, then give a business card with your information to call/email for any questions


on a side note, yes i agree Seeco is the man!!! that one chat wit him at pomona awhile back and he is a very awsome breeder and person to ask for help about your cham

 

[Seeco]

on a side note, yes i agree seeco is the man!!! That one chat wit him at pomona awhile back and he is a very awsome breeder and person to ask for help about your cham

aaaaaawwwwwwwwwwwwwww

 

[Ace]

aaaaaawwwwwwwwwwwwwww

lol!!! im still kicking myself of not getting a k.multi male

but as long as you still breed i got time

 

[allencg101]

The rule to getting a high quality cham is like that of a ta good tats arent cheap, cheap tats arent good if you want quality you have to pay for it. But people like the kammers and screameleons rep speak for themselves. So why would you go to a breeder with cheaper prices plus with them you never know what your going to get

 

[ataraxia]

bottom line. sticking to your guns with your prices higher than your competition. you better have better looking animals or you WILL go home with less money and more hungry mouths to feed.

everyone wants cheap period, they will shop the booths and go with the least expensive and even if it means less quality 9 times out of 10. its sad but its the truth.

i try to preach the difference between w/c and c/b/h..more times than a can shake a stick at. i see that person chose a w/c because it was 5-20 dollars cheaper than a c/b/h at the same show.

personally i respect the "stick to there guns" way of thinking. they keep the market up and normally produce "if they are a breeder" very good quality.

 

[kongchi]

As a consumer, I would go for which ever vendor has "happier" looking chams. If I go to one that has 20 of them in one cage and they wanted $100 each, I would pass. But if I went to a booth that had 1 or 2 in a cage and they looked happy and vibrant, but charged $175 for one, I would not mind.

Keep in mind, If I went to one and they charged $700 for one, I would also pass.

If you were to want a definate answer from me, I would say - Stick to your guns but don't be greedy. Very sad to say but, for the most part, the ones that want a cheap chameleon MOST LIKELY did not do any reasearch about chameleons and are just acting impulsive, those are the people you don't want your chams to go home with.

 

[cloverthechameleon]

hey brock are u going to the abbotsford sept 10-11 show at the trade center if so are selling chams?

 

[sandrachameleon]

Prices at a Canadian show are unlikely to be as low as in the USA. And as much a service and support are valuable, the lower price will still win out more than half the time, if the animals appear comparable to the buyer. The average teen-age buyer is not overly interested in lineage or breeder reputation. Certainly you should have a minimum price, and certainly you should offer the best possible service and be as friendly as possible. But as previously suggested, take note of what others are selling for and be prepared to keep yours within range of theirs, especially if they have volume.