Industry Trends - Trendline

Our industry is changing rapidly. It's our goal, in spite of the constant pressures and changes we see throughout the sector, to stay the course by continuing to offer the highest quality marine livestock available. Quality Marine stays abreast of industry and hobby-level trends, and we will continuously modify the range of our product offering, to reflect the demands of our customers, but we will not sacrifice quality and service in an effort to chase volume and price.

The biggest Industry news of the year is the continuing consolidation of both hard goods and livestock firms, both at the manufacturing and distribution level. Consolidation can have both positive and negative effects on the trade. Manufacturing costs of most aquaria related hard-goods are at an all-time low, resulting in one of the most unique conditions that the industry has ever seen; an incredible range of products at the most attractive price levels. Consolidation in that sector will mean a range reduction in lower profit, slower selling items, and continued price pressure on the best-sellers. Generally speaking, good quality competitively priced hard-goods lower the barriers of entry to the hobby at all levels, and create new or continued interest. More hobbyists are necessary for the longevity of this trade. The wild-harvest marine ornamentals industry works differently however, and every cost associated with fish collection, sustainable or not has skyrocketed. The main contributors to this cost inflation, the price of oil, and the weakness of the U.S. dollar. It's getting more expensive to operate export facilities, to collect fish, to pack them in plastic bags and styrofoam boxes, and to ship them across the world. The cost of living in most island communities around the globe is rising. Import costs have jumped stateside, and all costs of operating here in the U.S. continue to climb. To combat rising costs, many operators cut corners to maintain profits. Corners cut in animal husbandry result in higher mortalities throughout the chain of custody, resulting in less successful hobbyists, and a potential frustration with the hobby and eventual disinterest. Cutting corners with live animals, whether at the collection, export, or import levels is generally a bad idea. Creating operational efficiencies to combat increasing costs is better. Let's hope that consolidation at the livestock sector will result in the latter changes, rather than the former. It's one thing to attract new hobbyist with whiz-bang all in one micro-aquariums that are cheap to buy and easy to setup, it's anther to keep them interested in the hobby and buying bigger tanks based on their success with the previous one. After-all, the hobby is about what's going on inside the tank, rather than the tank itself, or what's under it. Quality Marine's biggest challenge moving forward is to continue securing the best possible supply, at fair value, and to continue offering that best quality product to our customers competitively. We will succeed, with the continued support of our customers that recognize the difference. We want the new hobbyist to have success with their animals, and have continued interest in the hobby based on that success.