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Is ANYTHING selling?

knox

knox

New member
I frequent the classifieds just to see what's going on in the world of buying and selling.

Lately, no one is bidding on auctions. Snakes stay for sale with no replies, only bumps, for quite a while.

What's going on? Is it truly just the economy, or are there other factors involved?
 
I've bought and sold a fair amount this year. Not as much through online classifieds, though.
 
This is my opinion, as a buyer, not a seller at the moment- not enough unique looking morphs. I look for eye popping critters, a lot of morphs look the same. My normals, hypo, ultramel, amel.. all different morphs, but all orange. I like pink snakes. So I buy a lot of those, and I think those sell well too. I also have limiting factors, like the number of snakes I have. I also grow attached to ones that I have NO breeding plans for, but I feel bad if I want to sell them off. This is my opinion. I understand that many people love those orange snakes, but for me, that's what I've been seeing. Also, a lot of males when I need females for breeding.
 
I've noticed the same thing and was wondering about it. Is the market getting saturated? I do have a hard time buying more expensive morphs as I'm really scared I'd lose them. I've lost three hatchlings already this year. I feel rotten that I did something wrong and I don't know what.
 
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I have seen many tempting things (and most of them not orange!) that I'd like to buy/have, but I am also attempting to not just buy without having a plan. I love the snakes I have and would even if I never bred them.

However, I -am- planning on starting small scale breeding next year, and as such, I really don't have an interest in having snakes that will "only" produce the most common morphs. As has been discussed here, there are plenty of normals, amels, anerys etc. I don't need to add to the masses if I can hatch out something I'm looking for instead.

So that's why I haven't been buying everything that catches my eye.
 
My pink snows sold SUPERFAST. Of course, I LOATHE shipping snakes so I still have a few of 'em because I don't ever want to ship another snake. BUT - when I posted 'em up in the chat room, a bunch were spoken for and paid for within minutes.
 
Ceduke - I wish I could do chat. It, well, it overwhelms me. I just can't handle it. :eek: It is probably a good thing, though. I'd be buried in corns.
 
I can't get on to chat at work. Which is probably a good thing. Although I'll try from home and see if I can't make a few sales in there. :grin01:
 
Pugsley said:
I've noticed the same thing and was wondering about it. Is the market getting saturated? I do have a hard time buying more expensive morphs as I'm really scared I'd lose them. I've lost three hatchlings already this year. I feel rotten that I did something wrong and I don't know what.
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That's exactly what I was thinking about the market being saturated. I never thought it would happen but even I'm at my limits for now. It's going to be tough feeding and housing all my snakes once my babies grow up. I'm in the process of remodeling a mobile home on my 2 acres of land but even when I get moved out that's only 2 bedroom and I refuse to throw them out into the shed, it's big and roomy but I'll have to use it for my sulcata anyway, he's growin'. There's just too much money going out and none coming in.
 
Weda, I live in a mobile home, and have all the adults housed in the living room and all the hatchlings in my bedroom! 81 snakes at last count! You just have to like having racks as decor!

I've sold most of my hatchlings. I have three of the avalanche clutch left, but don't really advertise- and they aren't on my website! I don't even have the bloodred clutch with the ton of hets advertised yet. There are I think five Miamis left- and, again, if I actually advertised them they'd be gone in a second! They are the SWEETEST babies ever. Oh- I have a really pretty plasma baby left- but she is pure evil!!
 
It's probably a combination of things. My biggest (lol even I cant read that with a straight face) sellers are the Tequila Sunrise stuff...and I didn't breed them this year. I've had nice low/medium end stuff floating around with very little bites. Pugsley just got a great deal on a beautiful bloodred male tho ;) and I've had some interest in the adult opal male.

Been a tough market; just have to hunker down if you can and ride it out. It's like everything else, it's rides the wave up and down :)
 
I have sold maybe half of my 2012 but it's been a trickle of sales this year. I would say slower than last year. I suppose I am at a point where many breeders would just wholesale the rest, but I feel like I have it down to a manageable number and there are some nice shows in the spring around here so it's not that big a concern to me if they not selling as fast as usual.
 
Luckily I produced and sold early. I still have one baby left that could be sold. The holdbacks won't be going anywheres. The one that is left is a stripe from my het lavamel stripe clutch and is a really nice little male. So not worried about pushing him out the door lol
 
knox said:
I frequent the classifieds just to see what's going on in the world of buying and selling.

Lately, no one is bidding on auctions. Snakes stay for sale with no replies, only bumps, for quite a while.

What's going on? Is it truly just the economy, or are there other factors involved?
Click to expand...

Selling and being available. Often auctions seem to receive no bids until the last moment. Not everyone can schedule their life(s) around when an auction ends.
As for non-auctions, I tend to do better with online sales then shows when it comes to heavy hetters, or refined targets, but the non-target critters with most hets unlisted do well at shows appropriately priced, and some go out the door wholesale. i don't know that breeders with just a few pairs can isolate off 3 groups of offspring to the 3 different outlets, once shipping is factored in, to make it worth it to buyers. jmho.
 
I didn't have any snake babies this year, but I have sold all but two of my crested hatchlings. I've had more luck at shows than selling online, though shows in general were a lot slower than last year.
 
Snakes aren't selling for the asked prices because of supply and demand, also too many noob breeders are flooding the market and selling offspring below market value.
 
That is definitely true of ball pythons. I always see them listed again and again with reduced prices. People buy them wanting to breed and make a quick buck but they don't seem to realize the market is flooded with others trying to do the same thing. If you don't have something really special for sale or at a really good deal, you probably get overlooked.
 
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