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What would you like in a show?

What would you like in a show

  • Good food at the show

    Votes: 34 31.5%

  • Nice, clean facility

    Votes: 67 62.0%

  • Larger variety in animals at show

    Votes: 89 82.4%

  • Reasonable price to get in

    Votes: 63 58.3%

  • Reasonable price for tables

    Votes: 58 53.7%

  • Ample parking

    Votes: 49 45.4%

  • Contests, lectures, presentations, etc.

    Votes: 42 38.9%

  • Dore prizes, raffles, give aways...

    Votes: 42 38.9%
  • Total voters
    108
I went to the Troy show. I thought a bit small but then I didn't know it was the first. I was surprised Dachiu was there. I bought two reptiles and had a good time meeting people. I will go next time too. Are you planning on more tables next year?
You know, I live in the traverse city area, and around the cherry fest time would be great, we get flooded with people and the uppers would not have as far to go :D hint
 
I attended my first herp show in Dec. 02, Pomona, CA. What a surprise that was for me. LOL, I'm accustomed to trade shows like the WWPSA show which is huge and now held at the Anaheim Convention Center yearly. Have worked in the industry for over 20 years. My direction has never been herp related but in the service industry of pet grooming.

Two weeks before the show I unexpectedly adopted a chondropython after having been reptileless for over 20 years now. Our son was encouraged in his wish to have snakes and we allowed him a pair of normal ball pythons while growing up. Time for a crash course for me...... I hit the internet hard and absorbed a lot of information rapidly and was excited about the luck of having IRBA show where I could mingle with other snake people and get the best info possible for my new snake. He came complete with all his previous supplies so I intended mostly to browse and learn and purchase whatever I might need or like to try.

I was expecting a more product oriented show, and was particularly interested in books available for purchase. More so than a reptile as I had just acquired my snake and was now looking to take proper care of him.

I was so pleasantly surprised by the vast variety of live animals including feedstock. The vendors were very generous with their time and I made certain that I gathered business cards for future reference as I made my way through the show.

I think it's perfectly acceptable to charge a fair admission fee of $5-10 depending on the venue. It's just fun people watching at these shows too, heck almost worth the price of admission in itself.

There have been some very good points made here in this thread and it's filled with great information. I like ALL pet owners to make well informed decisions before comitting to owning ANY pet. I often wonder how many people keep their pets until they die of old age. Too often many people grow tired of the pets and out the old to get the new. That part of the pet industry makes me sick. So, duh... what was my point? Anyways, I really enjoyed the only show I attended and would gladly look forward to and attend any show that is large or small within reasonable distance if promotors concentrated on the quality of the show and not too much on the quantity per se. The vendors I spoke with were more than willing to provide care sheets and customer support for any pets they sold. Large is great but can become redundant, where more unique offerings might be found at smaller more specialized shows.
 
In response to Rozann

Thanks for coming to the show. It was small, smaller than I wanted and I was very upset about that. I had 6 vendors with a total of 14 tables just not show up. Those tables would have made for a much bigger show. When you have 200 and 14 are empty it is no big thing. When you have 40-60 and you lose that many it sucks! No calls, nothing. I was pissed. Even Reptiles Magazine told me they were coming and did not show up! That is just unreal to me how unprofessional and rude people in my industry can be. This year will be different. Most of last years vendors have already decided to return and many new ones will be there. Come and see the show again and if it is not much bigger and much better I will personally refund your money Rozann. Evan
 
I will be there, if you need any help let me know, my family live in the Rochester area so it would not be a problem:)
 
Just buttin in here, sorry

We don't get a lot of shows in our area, but when we do we go. We go with every intention of spending money, as long as someone has what I'm looking for. The one thing I had an issue withe was when someone stated charging $16 at the door and refunding with a purchase. I always bring my family to the shows, for several reason, to spend time together, they LOVE reptiles, and because we don't like doing fun stuff apart... with all that said, I have 5 children and a husband, so for someone with large families, spending $16 each, possibly less for the kids, would definitely keep us from going, just a thought....unless you implimented one purchase equals a stamp for all tickets in a family.
 
I agree with you 100%. I have kids too, we have this love of reptiles as a unit. I have been watching two threads closely to see what sellers are thinking. If there is a kid there ( and it might be mine) they are looking for me to buy as well. Our collection is on the rise and will get even bigger. I brought nine people with me and were a little dissappointed when there was not a lot to see or choose from. I think prices should go on a sliding scale depending on the age. Just because you are a family unit doesn't mean that you are not all there to buy. If it is not going to be a big show then put your rates accordingly.
 
i'll keep watching

ya, my kids are always wantin' more reptiles, I'm sure it doesn't help that I'm constantly looking, buying, and taking unwanted rep's in...so for us, the shows are great, but if it's gonna cost a bundle to get in, it's not something we'll be able to do. Especially considering I may walk away with nothing. Recently went to a show looking specifically for a male veiled, nothing too special, just a young male veiled. Not one in the whole stinkin' place, I was quite disappointed, I did walk away with a female, only cause the money was burnin' a hole in my pocket, but if I can't find what I'm looking for and am not to sure their gonna have it, well I'm surely not going to pay too much just to get in. This was at the IRBA show in San Mateo, CA, I've heard word it won't be going on to much longer there...that's just whispers though, not necessarily fact. I think they only have about 15 vendors there that weekend, it was a disappointment.
 
Well, only speaking to my show and my situation, I am charging $6 for adults, $3 for kids and the little, little guys are free. If you were to go to the zoo, most now charge $12-15 for adults and $5-7 for kids. At shows there is much more genetic and biodiversity and the opportunity to buy animals and supplies. With the exception of 2, the last dozen or so zoos that I have visited were dissapointing to me in regards to the herp collection. Also, you won't see all the neat mutations at zoos as they feel genetic mutations are something to be ashamed of, hideous freaks that should not exist. Personally, I love my little "freaks". Evan Stahl
 

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Rozann and Cori

Please don't get the feeling that the vendors hate kids (as might have been indicated in a few posts). most of them realize that they are future potential customers, if not current ones. They just don't care for ill mannered, rude, obnoxious ones, or their parents who do nothing to correct them.

Evan

$6.00 and $3.00 is reasonable in my opinion. What were the last 2 zoos that impressed you with their reptile selection.

Steve Schindler
 
Sounds good to me

I know what you mean about nasty kids, fortunately ours are really well behaved, we're pretty "strict" parents, so our take heed before they get out of line. Anyhow, I like the those amounts for tickets, we'd even pay a few bucks more if required. Last show we went to was $10 for adults and I think $5 for kids, which was a little steep, but not too bad.

As far as our kids being future owners, I fully agree, ours kids love ours so much I can't imagine them not having them when their older.
 
Hey Steve. The St. Louis zoo is just fantastic. They have an enormous reptile collection including a large venomous collection. I was fortunate enough to be friends with a former keeper that gave me a behind the scenes tour a few years back. They have tuataras, many very rare European vipers, komodo dragons, a giant asian softshell the size of a small car and much more. Lots of great rattlesnakes and they had a leucistic alligator on loan when I visited. They were also breeding croc monitors and lots of hot stuff behind the scenes in the keepers areas. Beautiful grounds and best of all, something we have no comprehension for in this part of the country, it is a free admission zoo. You do have to pay for parking though.

Also very nice is the Toledo Zoo's reptile collection which includes some really impressive king cobras, fiji iguanas, lots of tortoises, etc.

In the black hills of South Dakota, not far from Mt. Rushmore, I went to a private reptile museum a few years back named "Reptile Gardens". They have an incredible venomous collection including some mutations. Large groups of adult aldabra and galapogos torts, and a large selection of every other kind of herp. I think they had the largest collection of hot stuff I have ever seen in a zoo/museum. They also had about the largest and nicest gift shop I have ever seen, a big rainforest room and bird sanctuary. If you are ever out there check it out. Evan Stahl
 
I totally understand the bratty kid syndrome. I usually do not take littler ones with me only older for that reason. Not that my kids are bad, just that I want to take the time to look and learn and possibly (always) buy. I can't do that with little ones so I leave them at home. This summer I am going to Daytona, are the little ones going? NO! They go to Nana's house. Do they help out at home with the herps? YES. And I will take them somewhere else, like a zoo.
Periodically I may take the little ones, but they know to be on their best.:D I am also strict. There are just sometimes I want my own time, and a big herp show, sometimes, is one of them.
By the way, great snake Evan.
 
Bringin' the Kids

We usually bring the whole troop, but they are well attached, strapped, and contained (hee, hee) If I think it's gonna be nuts, I'll just go and Daddy stays with the kiddies...
 
When I was around 10 years old we went on a family vacation to the Dakotas. We did the Mt Rushmore thing, wall drug, the corn palace and all that. And we were planning on hitting "reptile gardens" we got there, parked at the end of the lot, walked all the way to the door, saw the price of admission (I can't recall what it was about 25 years ago) but my dad said "thats crazy I'm not spending that much to se a bunch of damned snakes" so we went back to the car. I really wasn't into reptiles so I don't know if I really made a fuss or not (I'm sure my mom was happy) But thats my experience with reptile gardens. To top it off though, by the time we got back to my dads 2 week old new car someone had already slapped a reptile gardens bumper sticker on it. If I remember correctly I learned a few new words that day.

Steve Schindler
 
Yeah, I think it was $10 or $12 to get in to Reptile Gardens. I guess it has been there for like 60 or 70 years now. I found that pretty impressive. They have pics on the walls of the place being buil and early pics of the first stuff there.

The suckiest thing was that Bob Ashley and I paid to get in and then once we did, the manager heard who we were and why we were out there and offered to let us in for free. Once he heard we had already paid though, he never offered a refund. Oh well. It was a really cool place and I am glad that I went. We even found a good spot in the shade since we had a van full of herps.

They call their venomous collection, "Death Row" and have most of the top twenty most lethal hots. The whole herp area is a big two level circle so you go around and up or down and you are on to the next thing. Neat stuff. Evan
 
Hey Evan,

I am just curious. I have been to several shows and have never seen anyone who actually cheap styrofoam containers in varying sizes. I know that I always bring containers to carry my animals home in but have already purchased more than planned and had to make a quick trip to the local store to get a cheap cooler and a few more heat packs. Have you ever seen them offered as a sale item?
 
Hey George, I had that same thought. I brought some to my show as it is in November in Michigan and gets pretty cool out. The only other time that I saw anyone do it was at the old Orlando expo, Ves from Superior Enterprises would bring deli cups, bags, styros, heat and cold packs, etc. He is a good guy to deal with for all of that stuff. I order a giant pile of delis from him every year and he sells great little styros for shipping. Evan
 
This is something I've also wondered about - especially after the very cool day my friend and I had at the VA show on the 22nd. I saw no one selling any type of bags or shipping supplies though all the vendors did have containers for you to take the animals home in. For myself, I make cloth snake bags for the animals my friend & I are selling - small bags for small boas, big bags for large boas. They 'seem' to help insulate the animals a bit more than the deli cups, and I find it easier to carry multiple animals in one box this way. Do you think it would be worthwhile to make extra bags for sale at the shows we attend? For the most part, I see people bringing their own rubbermaid style containers or cardboard boxes but I could also try to find a source for inexpensive styro boxes for cold weather shows, if this is something that others think would be useful. Any comments on this idea?

Dianne
 
Hey Dianne, bags are always a good thing to have extra on hand. I feed pretty heavy so invariably some of the animals defacate in the new bags and I need extras on hand to re pack them. Keep in mind if you are making them though, that they can be purchased for $1 ea for pillow case sized ones. That may save you some time for not much money, unless you don't mind. Evan
 
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