Funny You Should Ask... - Jan. 31, 2011

 Things go in waves in the retail world.

 Today's Lulu Lemon is tomorrow's who knows what.

 Hot for awhile, then fades to black.

 Wish my hair would fade to black to cover the increasing grey. Heck, my girls got me that hair colour stuff for Christmas.

 I surely hope it was a gag gift. Don't want to feel like that guy in the commercial trying to get a job or wheel the receptionist, I can't figure out which it is.

 Anyway, things go in waves.

 Take aquariums.

 We had a bounty of aquariums when we opened Animal Essentials. We had them before we had live fish, in fact.

 And they sat there. And sat there. And didn't move.

 Why?

 Well, when you're in this business, you hear "I can get it for $10 on (fill in free Web site, their lawyers are a pain!)."

 Didn't long to figure out we can't or couldn't compete against $10 aquariums, cracks or no cracks, heaters or no heaters, glass or no glass.

 Last week I took a call seeking a quote for a 50-gallon tank.

 Sorry, we don't stock them.

 He was bewildered, but understood we carry everything but.

 Just took another request for a specific tank today, but can't accomodate. She understood why. I feel bad, but it's like the lady who told me we would make a "fortune," if we sold ferrets.

 I said, pardon?

 Anyway, there are times when we do get a few questions on why we don't carry aquariums and that's the reason.

 By the time we pay for them, have them shipped and all of that fun stuff, the ship has sailed and they sit.

 And sit.

 We found out long ago what does and what doesn't sell.

 It's not any different from the televised ads on nail grinders and other items you see on the Infomercials.

 Rarely do they stick around, rarely are they good.

 Tried, tested and true describes the vast majority of our items at AE.

 Gotta keep it that way.