| Hi Peter & Laurie, here is my list of criteria that I look for in a dealer, in order of most to least important:
1. Trust/Honesty - dealer is upfront about a particular koi, including any known defect/deformity, its age, sex if known (if not, then just say the probability of female or male), breeder, etc. Once I find out that the dealer is misleading or untrustworthy then it's difficult to build that dealer/buyer relation.
2. Knowledge - dealer needs to know everything about the koi and its history, including the breeder and possibly parent set that the koi came from. Also, the best dealers are the ones that I feel I have learned something from, someone who is willing to teach and share their knowledge.
3. Time/Patience - dealer takes the time to answer any questions that you may have. He/she does not try to sell you something. Rather, when you tell them that you are looking for a particular koi, he/she presents you with all of the options and gives you time to look over them.
4. Fairness/Indiscrimination - dealer treats you with fairness regardless of whether you are a rookie or a veteran in the hobby. He/she doesn't discriminate you based on your ethnic/financial/economical background.
5. Passion - dealer is passionate in what he/she does. This is very easily discernable and it's always more fun to work with dealers who love what they do than dealers who are trying to make a quick buck from you. I know that it's a business, but some just enjoy their business more than others :-)!
6. Quarantine - I feel that if all of the above criteria are met then the koi safety measures are there, including quarantining protocol/procedures, shipping safety measures such as double bagging, on-time arrival, arrival follow-up, etc.
As far as distance is concerned, I think that it's not that important of an issue once that dealer/buyer relationship is there. While it's important to physically be present to look at a purchase, if the trust is there then I feel more comfortable with the dealer's recommendation if I can't be there.
As for pricing, I think that it really depends on the buyer's wallet thickness and interest/level in the hobby. I know that there are dealers who deal with high-end koi while others deal with low-end koi and then there are ones that just seem to have a mix of everything.
In terms of quality of koi, it's nice to have good quality from reputable breeders. Anyways, hope this helps. Can't wait to read it in our monthly newsletter! |