Ecotech joins BRS as a sister company..

[polyppal]

What about MH? (Ducks to avoid the impending onslaught).

I’ll jump in that snake pit with you

 

[robbyg]

It's hard to remember one of these acquisitions that ended well for the consumer but there are plenty that either gutted the acquired companies or ran them into the ground with bad customer service.
I Remember the Days when Directv was a great company. Now after three years of AT&T ownership they cannot even find a buyer for the skeletal remains.
And no it wasn't just streaming that has lost them millions of customers, a lot of it was due to the constant price hikes and lousy CS over the last 3 years.

 

[rtparty]

They were (I’m pretty sure) the sole importers of Skimz. It was some Chinese company that they made a big PO with, so essentially it was like an in-house brand.

Kinda like Aquamaxx and Marine Depot (except Aquamaxx stuff is actually good, and hopefully BRS Depot continues to support it)

But BRS didn't buy them and they sold their products until it was clear the company folded.

My Skimz skimmer wasn't bad at all but it's the only thing I had from them.

Aquamaxx isn't going anywhere

 

[polyppal]

But BRS didn't buy them and they sold their products until it was clear the company folded.

My Skimz skimmer wasn't bad at all but it's the only thing I had from them.

Aquamaxx isn't going anywhere

Oh, I’m not saying they actually bought out the Skimz company. They went all-in on the Skimz ‘brand’ was the point I’m making. And they sold it until they could get rid of it, not pulled it from the shelves when the poor quality became apparent… almost everything Skimz they sold had a 1-2 star review from users.

there was one of those randy/Ryan tankside chat videos a while back I watched where Ryan mentions them being a big mistake

I had an Aquamaxx skimmer on my old tank, was prob the best skimmer I ever had. Surprised they haven’t tried to spin off Aquamaxx as a more prominent product line yet. Pretty sure they got Aquamaxx with the acquisition of MD

 

[rtparty]

Oh, I’m not saying they actually bought out the Skimz company. They went all-in on the Skimz ‘brand’ was the point I’m making. And they sold it until they could get rid of it, not pulled it from the shelves when the poor quality became apparent… almost everything Skimz they sold had a 1-2 star review from users.

there was one of those randy/Ryan tankside chat videos a while back I watched where Ryan mentions them being a big mistake

I had an Aquamaxx skimmer on my old tank, was prob the best skimmer I ever had. Surprised they haven’t tried to spin off Aquamaxx as a more prominent product line yet. Pretty sure they got Aquamaxx with the acquisition of MD

They were stoked to pick up Aquamaxx with the MD purchase.

Sadly, the pandemic has crippled acrylic production and getting a steady supply of Aquamaxx (all gear really) has been a major challenge. Even though BRS does it already, it's tough to promote products that aren't in stock for months at a time

 

[Nonya]

They were stoked to pick up Aquamaxx with the MD purchase.

Sadly, the pandemic has crippled acrylic production and getting a steady supply of Aquamaxx (all gear really) has been a major challenge. Even though BRS does it already, it's tough to promote products that aren't in stock for months at a time

I see mixed reviews on the Aquamaxx LEDs though. 2 of the 4 reviews declared them paperweights after first use. It may be a candidate for elimination by the mothership.

 

[Nonya]

Last year Reef Builders published an article that touches on this subject. One paragraph illustrates this discussion well:

"One thing which is sure to change is not necessarily how Bulk Reef Supply does their various product reviews, but how ‘independent’ they are perceived by the public. It’s going to be much harder to take BRS’s messaging about various LED lights now that they own the SKY LED light, it’s going to be taken with a grain of salt when BRS has things to say about Sicce pumps now that they own the COR pump, so on and so forth with dosing pumps, auto top off kits, refugium lights etc."

Whether the change is immediate or gradual, it's sure to come.

I'm so glad I can DIY almost everything in the tank.

 

[Nonya]

Maybe they'll make a play for Orphek.

 

[TaylorPilot]

Looks like you're right. It comes up as bulk reef supply. It's a monster.

I think you overestimate the size of this industry. You could buy the top 10 players in the the high end reef aquarium industry for the price of a new falcon jet....

 

[Nonya]

I think you overestimate the size of this industry. You could buy the top 10 players in the the high end reef aquarium industry for the price of a new falcon jet....

Not at all. I believe the new conglomerate will be second only to Amazon when it comes to saltwater aquarium supplies online.

 

[Nonya]

Not at all. I believe the new conglomerate will be second only to Amazon when it comes to saltwater aquarium supplies online.

I'm sure the clowns from ATM boosted the growth of the hobby, eating a boost in product sales.

 

[Nonya]

I'm sure the clowns from ATM boosted the growth of the hobby, eating a boost in product sales.

Creating...

 

[Nonya]

I call it expansion because they're absorbing the competition. It could also mean they'll eliminate duplication to reduce costs and increase profit margin. Unfortunately, by redirecting Marine Depot's URL to BRS' site, a lot of people may look elsewhere if they are loyal MD customers.

Funny you mention soda ash. Did you realize that Arm & Hammer washing soda is pure soda ash? And if you want to make your own, get a big bag of A&H baking soda and bake it for an hour or so at 350 degrees to convert it to soda ash (aka sodium carbonate). There's still a big opportunity out there for cost savings.

 

[Nonya]

I think you overestimate the size of this industry. You could buy the top 10 players in the the high end reef aquarium industry for the price of a new falcon jet....

This has nothing to do with the size of the market. It has to do with maximizing market share. Don't confuse company valuation with market dominance.

 

[Nonya]

If you want that boys sol you gotta pay the toll troll! Lol

Sol? Was that an ancient LED joke?

 

[Nonya]

Bertram Reef Supply, I think that’s gonna catch on

I agree with the price increase issues, there’s nothing ‘bulk pricing’ about some of their items like Carbon/GFO/2 Part etc. anymore - they can be purchased more affordably from SWA or Amazon (for a product that all probably comes from the same factory anyways). I use Kolar Labs now…

There was nothing special about their bulk 2-part. Baking soda and calcium chloride (ice melt). Anybody familiar with Randy's improved 2-part would know that. The magnesium part is Epsom salt or Epsom/magnesium chloride (ice melt) mix. I buy Excel calcium chloride (94-97% pure) at Sam's in the winter. I buy SafeStep 8300 mag chloride at the hardware store. A&H baking soda and washing soda are at Costco or the grocery store. USP Epsom salts is everywhere.

 

[Midrats]

Yeah, many years ago in the infancy of reefing, when they were more of a shop than a manufacturer, Id agree that they did a lot more on the research side. But they transitioned to blatant marketing a long time ago, that isn't anything new with their acquisition.

Also, I like BRS. They have great customer service and I use them a lot - so I'm not slamming them here. But I disagree with the idea of them testing products to find the absolute best and only offer those to their customers - BRS history proves thats not the case, in the end its about money.

Example - they purchased a Chinese brand 'Skimz' a couple years ago, and they were some of the crappiest skimmers/reactors/etc ever made. Did BRS halt sales of Skimz products when it became obvious it was junk, for the good of the hobby (or because of some ethical sales standard)? No, they kept selling them like any business would until they could get rid of them...

2007 was the infancy of reefing?

 

[Nonya]

2007 was the infancy of reefing?

Maybe the reefing infancy of the person who posted that.

 

[rtparty]

I think you overestimate the size of this industry. You could buy the top 10 players in the the high end reef aquarium industry for the price of a new falcon jet....

$50-60M??? Or did I find the wrong jet?

 

[Nonya]

Depends on th

$50-60M??? Or did I find the wrong jet?

Depends on the year and model. I'm sure a used model may be more cost effective.