Bird priceing

This is the spot for you to post anything and everything.
Have a good look at our other available forums before posting.
This will ensure that you post in the appropriate forum.
User avatar
garyh
...............................
...............................
Posts: 805
Joined: 11 Sep 2011, 11:05
Location: Montrose, Victoria

Interesting debate taking place on Pet Link at the moment on what price you should sell your birds for,one person saying that everybody should sell their birds around the same price so that everybody reaps the rewards,the other person keeping quiet but selling his birds at a cheaper price,so it got me wondering what other people think ,is it right to sell your birds cheaper and under cut other breeders or should you sell for the same price and hope your not left with birds you cant move on,oh and pet link is for selling birds only, not squabbling,cheers garyh
User avatar
Alf63
...............................
...............................
Posts: 168
Joined: 31 Oct 2011, 13:20
Location: victoria

The reality is that they are your birds and have every right to sell them as you see fit. I would think most breeders usually price within a small range but as you will find at any bird sale people will, at times take what they can get. Not necessarily undercutting, just being realistic.

The Petlink debate is really centred around the free fall in parrot prices. As usual it is supply & demand. Gross over supply and very little demand. One side of the debate is blaming someone for realising the days of milk and honey are long gone, never to return. The idea that putting a false bottom in the market with some form of pricing cartel will bring the good times back is "lala land" stuff.

I am like most people in wanting to make a few dollars to help cover costs and buy new stock. If you enjoy keeping birds then money is secondary and you will buy knowing the price may drop, the bird might die or whatever. If the parrot guys making all the noise want to keep prices up then they should consider not handrearing everything that moves and remove the nest boxes for a few years.

I will add I have kept both finches and parrots and made and lost substantial $$ at different times. This has been on the cards for 10+ years so no point complaining.

Thats my rant.

Regards

Alf63
User avatar
Craig52
...............................
...............................
Posts: 4979
Joined: 11 Nov 2011, 19:26
Location: victoria

That is not a rant Alf, what you have said is my thoughts exactly. Thanks :thumbup: Craig
User avatar
starman
...............................
...............................
Posts: 590
Joined: 04 Oct 2016, 18:51
Location: Coastal N.S.W.

garyh wrote: 24 May 2018, 13:13 ...one person saying that everybody should sell their birds around the same price so that everybody reaps the rewards....
Cartels in amateur aviculture ? …. I hope that doesn't catch on, but I can see an argument for trying to limit indiscriminate undercutting at public sales.
Sm.
Avid student of Estrildids in aviculture.
User avatar
matcho
...............................
...............................
Posts: 1298
Joined: 25 Jan 2011, 08:18
Location: Sydney
Contact:

I think the issue of price is entirely up to the breeder/owner. What you ask and what you get can be two entirely different things. You just have to look at the prices at the start of a bird sale and at the end, there is often a distinct disparity with them. I don't think "undercutting" is really intentional just the cold hard fact that you have caught up, transported, benched, paid for bench space and you really wish to get rid of everything before close. I myself have birds as a hobby, not as a moneymaking exercise. I have given pairs of birds to friends FOC and have no qualms with that.In saying that have also sold birds privately through a third person and have been pleasantly surprised with the return. I have a good relationship with my seed provider who also deals in birds. No haggling over prices, I know what he sells them for but that is his business. He knows the quality and conditions the birds are bred in. I am happy with what he gives me. I reckon over the last 5 or six years in dealing with him I have made a couple of bucks after covering cost etc, but nothing to write home about. Supply and demand of certain species is the real issue.

Just my thoughts

Ken.
Image
User avatar
Rod_L
...............................
...............................
Posts: 495
Joined: 05 Mar 2018, 15:30
Location: Mandurah WA

We had a similar discussion in fish keeping circles years ago because I was selling rainbowfish at a very low price and everyone else was charging top dollar. I sold the fish for enough to cover costs but I wanted people to be able to afford them. The way I see it is if the price is low enough, then more people will try keeping them, and more people will join the hobby.

The other fish guys who were selling their fish for top dollar had fish that ended up retailing for $30+ each, compared to mine that were retailing for $6 to $10 each. The shops liked my prices better (which was expected) and they sold a lot of the fish I supplied. Whereas many of the more expensive fish were still sitting in the shop tanks 6 months after mine had been brought in and sold.

I didn't breed the same fish all the time, with the exception of a couple of species that I could sell all day every day. I varied what I bred so I put 4 or 5 species on the market then they weren't bred for another year. This meant people could buy them but they weren't super common.

As for birds, I use to sell to shops and took whatever they offered. I never had a problem selling stock and getting a fair price. Lots of people are just greedy and want top dollar for everything. It's all about money and most people want as much as they can get. The problem is, the more they sell it for, the more the shop has to sell it for and the fewer people that can afford to buy them. This limits the market and means there is no demand for the birds.

Drop the price and more people can afford them and new hobbyists are more willing to try a new bird if it doesn't cost them 6 months salary.
death to all cats & ants
User avatar
Craig52
...............................
...............................
Posts: 4979
Joined: 11 Nov 2011, 19:26
Location: victoria

Very well said Rod,agree completely with your fish selling and birds. I used to breed Native and foreign topical fish as well many years ago. Craig
User avatar
collector_and_buyer
...............................
...............................
Posts: 287
Joined: 07 Jun 2012, 22:21
Location: young

If you sell your birds for a price that ends up cheaper than others,you are not undercutting anybody as there are no [set in concrete] prices for any bird.Most of us breed for the pleasure and the monitory gain is secondary,happy if i cover my costs.Some of the complaints are coming from the breeders of parrot mutations which are quite dear and beyond the reach of a lot of aviculturists.The cold reality is that a lot of people don't have that kind of money to throw around on these birds and perhaps there is also a lack of interest.If the breeders were to get together and stick to a higher price,they will pay the ultimate penalty of not being able to move their birds.I have been to bird sales and my prices were lower than most others,i sold out,others didn't.Lets not forget that breeding birds,like a lot of things is supply and demand and they are only worth what someone is willing to pay.If you are too dear,you will be stuck with them.
User avatar
arthur
...............................
...............................
Posts: 1995
Joined: 13 Mar 2009, 10:22

Easy cure for those who think others are 'undercutting' . .

Buy all the 'bargains' and retail them . .

You won't see that happen though, because most people who have been in the 'game' for a while, know the true value of birds . . often having learned the 'hard' way



Sell you birds at your price . . after all they do belong to YOU

And if you can't sell them . . reduce your prices again . . because you are obviously above the market
User avatar
CathyCraftz
...............................
...............................
Posts: 250
Joined: 14 Apr 2018, 12:21
Location: Sydney, NSW

If you are selling birds that breed easily in your flock,like zebra finches, sell them cheap. If you are selling more valued species such as Gouldians, make the price a bit more expensive but not so much that no one would want to buy them. Make sure that you always sell your birds in pairs and it is best to only provide experienced people with single ones, if it doesn't make the number of birds you have an odd number. If people know that your birds are high quality, lower or increase the price so that your birds are actually worth the money. Do whatever you like, these are your birds after all, I'm just giving you some suggestions.

Good luck.
Have a nice day!
Sincerely, Cathy
“It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.” – Albus Dumbledore
Post Reply

Return to “The Lounge”