If Aquatic Vision had an emersed area for the plants, stocked ADA and good substrate, they could do very well.. great for parking, good location.. I wish I was managing that shop..
I also do not enjoy the Pet World staff (next door to N2 City). I'm sorry to @Fishwhisperer , he seems like a cool guy. So thumbs up to you bro. But try be more attentive. I've been flat ignored thrice already for more than 15 minutes by you And I do that as a test... I bought the 16/22mm pipe and finished it about 3 weeks when the lady at the counter asked you. My wife is a vet and her partner owns two vet stores in the Western Cape. Dr. Hills and all other major pet foods require a qualified vet to own the store, but not be there in person. I'm sorry you had to experience that. A clerk at a store has no right to give veterinarian advice! Remember that it's a "shop", not a veterinarian store.
I also had to walk out when Bernard was chit chatting with another customer, who did not buy anything.. actually I complained to the lady at the front.. I want to buy something.. the other guy is just idling chatting, so any shop assistant should go to whoever is ready to buy.. I just walked out.. I waited two minutes.. conversation is not ending, I walked out. But the shop is cool.. just needs better management.. and to really be geared towards plants.. but not his fault, the management is at fault..
What a strange thread I forget where I'm at?. Thank goodness there is more than one shop available, different strokes for different folks I say.
Why knock the shops? Do your research first....know what you need, know what the prices should be and don't blame the LFS for your dumb purchases because you were too lazy to ask those that know better. The internet is at your fingertips. Just my 2c.
dumb and lazy. nope, in my experience youv'e gotta find out for yourself. case and point @Luis Embalo when he went to a pretty...empty? shop. experience is gained by experience, not research.
Competition is a very healthy thing. It's great that there are differences and that these are publicly noted. How else is a shop to improve itself? Our standard of shopping (in particular LFS) is incredibly low in this country. If we lurk in the shadows and don't have the freedom to say something, then we'd still be sitting in the conservative pre 1994 mentality and get nowhere. I think of it as constructive criticism.
If I hear of a new shop I go there to see it.. this one was pretty bad.. not even a shop really.. no idea what to call it. Actually no idea how they make money, really do not know.. Exactly, we must speak up.. we deserve better shops.. I like to go to shops instead of buying online, nice to speak with someone, see new things, etc.. The UK was the same about 10 years ago.. crap shops.. (still some crap shops), but others listened to the buyers and changed. One shop was 4 hours away by train from London, and we organized a day trip there, about 10 guys.. was awesome.. imagine 8 hours by train (4 there, and 4 back) to spend about two hours in a shop? We were welcomed with tea and biscuits, most people spent way over 200GBP, if not more, and the shop had great publicity..
My post was meant for people who complain about being ripped off and those that impulse buy incorrectly - like buying a cute little oscar or pleco for your 1ft. I too visit new shops just to see what they offer and share Luis' sentiments about Wynberg pets.
Why should we be ripped off when impulsive shopping? Why are the businesses addicted to above the belt profits? An addiction to earn profits like that needs treatment at a rehab. A new customer does not deserve too be ripped off. We read about VW and what the rich did to earn even more profits and look at the damage it created. Next time you buy a VW will you think about it? When you walk into Sams will you think about getting it elsewhere cheaper? Just my 2c
What happened to VW? And yes, I agree, shops should not try to profit too much from shoppers like that.. I never haggle on price, and I know the average price of most stuff.. so if the price is high, I walk away..
i havent read all the posts but why not chat to the LPS itself? i know that in most cases you just get brushed off but then its easy.. just move on to another shop.. also to my knowledge Aquatic vision is owned by sams isnt it? anyways.. constructive crit pls
did not know they were owed by the same person.. I know that there is Northern Aquatics.. and there is one in parrow, one near bothasig, and I saw one in town.. all owned by family members..
Ja about three years (maybe 4, even 5 but I doubt it) ago I chatted to Sam at Aquatic Vision. What a great guy. Really. His prices were awesome on a custom tank and such a charismatic person. It's a shame he sold it. (however I joined TASA and I could not gain further info on shops nearer to me because "God forbid" they weren't "sponsors. So I never started my tank at all Is he retired now? Anyway, we really should be trying to be adding STOKE to the hobby as a whole instead of letting our ego's get in the way and fighting amongst ourselves Because I know changing the domain name to TASA is going to be problematic ;-) At the end of the day, some shops are better than others. Same as women, and cars The debate is endless. Whilst I could care less about aquascaping, I love a good tank to provide beauty and peace to the home. Some people here are hardcore aquascapers, others not. At least we have freedom here. Thanks Richard, thanks Raymond.
I care about plants, rocks, and wood.. lights and filters, so when I visit a shop those are the things I look for.. if a shop does not have what I am looking for, I avoid it, maybe visit while in the area, just to see if they changed.. If a shop is like Wynberg, never again. not worth it. Maybe one day there will be more shops with plants and dedicated to such. That I see no one is fighting..