So based on that, it still puts the blame on sellers. Even though retailers got it dirt cheap, they decided to mark up the price 10000% and the exporters noticed and wanted in.
Value isn't the issue there; Lack of education is. Raising the cost of corals doesn't elevate the hobby. It "flatlines" it. Eventually, it will hit the ceiling while losing many hobbyists in the process. It will deter potential hobbyists from starting. How great will this hobby be with a small group? LFS will close shop due to decreased sells. Eventually all coral sales will be online purchase which will also decrease.
The $10-$20 corals are common corals sold at local fish stores. Hobbyists will eventually want something different. Comparing Cell phones and Mercedes benzs to controllers is comparing apple to oranges. There are different ranges of cars and cell phones available. In this hobby, there are a few companies that make controllers and their prices are within $50-$100 of each other or even the same cost. This practice is pretty much the same as "price fixing".There are still several places selling $10-$20 frags that just aren't the "branded" names . I've seen several of these that look almost identical to the more popular named corals out there.
When it comes to equipment like controllers, I don't see how people can call them excessively priced. For the price of an iPhone, you get a technology-filled product that performs well for our purposes . When you consider that the manufacturers of these products certainly deserve to make a profit and you also consider how many millions more phones/computers are sold when compared to aquarium controllers, it's surprising that the controller companies are able to do it.
There are certainly more expensive ways and less expensive ways to do this hobby . But I think you'll find that true in about everything in life. We can't expect a have a Mercedes and then complain it's more expensive than a Chevy.
