I do not own a dive shop but I do dive with a shop owner who organizes most of our scuba trips. His business has gone down.. well frankly every one else's business has gone down too... On the other hand internet has began to equalize the market so prices listed online hurt retailers.
Unlike any other sport I think diving is most undesirable sport because it requires obnoxious financial commitment not just to get into but to keep up with the sport. In my dive shop a dive class costs a ton... equipment (even if you just buy fins, mask, snorkel and belt) also a ton... and of course gear costs an arm and a leg too. My dive shop also offers a "package" for 2000 which gets you certified and sets you up with everything but the tanks. Ok fine... but 2000?! And each dive weekend of 4 dives runs into 300 bucks?! The word on the street is that scuba is an expensive hobby so people who have considered or have wanted to get certified... are opting out just because it costs so much.
On the other hand.. lets say we look at mountain bike prices. This april I bought a gary fisher opie for $400. I also purchased a hydration pack, a helmet, safety glasses and a pair of sneakers to ride in. Overall I spent $470 on everything. While I do expect my bike to peter out on me in next couple of years.. it costs me zip zilch nada nothing zero to ride my bike. Get home, grab my bike, throw it into the back of a truck and 15 minutes later I am zooming in the offroad. Now lets compare it with lets say 2000 dollars that it costs to get into diving (on a budget) purchasing gear. If I took my bike+accessories and multiplied it by 4... I would still have enough money left over for gas for the next 5 years. For price it costs to get certified for 1 person (and purchase gear) you can get 4 people into mountain biking.
That is the shortfall of diving. Yes yes yes.. its all about safety and research and yada yada... but... retailers seek to maximize their profit by minimizing cost of production. A good example is nike.. they manufacture their shoes overseas, ship them here and make billions of dollars. Likewise similar pair of sneakers made here in usa would yield manufacturer a fraction of return so thats why they all make them overseas. Scuba gear.. I am looking at mine right now. Made in thailand and thailand is where cheap labor could be found.. so... it probably costs 1 dollar to make fins and sell them to me for 50. It probably costs 1 dollar to make booties and sell them to me for 25. It probably costs 1 dollar to make belt and sell it to me for 25... it probably costs 10 dollars to make a bcd and sell it to me for 700... so on and so fourth.
This is how I see it. It should not cost 8000 to get a family of 4 certified and to equip them into scuba gear. Thats 2000 per person... are you kidding me? Scuba sport needs to be cheap and affordable. Make cutbacks without jeopardizing safety. It is possible.. I know it is. It should not cost more than 500 per person to get a person certified and equip him with gear.
Until scuba market realizes that people do not want to spend an arm and a leg.. the market will do exactly what its doing right now... float in the confusion of nothingness.
Unlike any other sport I think diving is most undesirable sport because it requires obnoxious financial commitment not just to get into but to keep up with the sport. In my dive shop a dive class costs a ton... equipment (even if you just buy fins, mask, snorkel and belt) also a ton... and of course gear costs an arm and a leg too. My dive shop also offers a "package" for 2000 which gets you certified and sets you up with everything but the tanks. Ok fine... but 2000?! And each dive weekend of 4 dives runs into 300 bucks?! The word on the street is that scuba is an expensive hobby so people who have considered or have wanted to get certified... are opting out just because it costs so much.
On the other hand.. lets say we look at mountain bike prices. This april I bought a gary fisher opie for $400. I also purchased a hydration pack, a helmet, safety glasses and a pair of sneakers to ride in. Overall I spent $470 on everything. While I do expect my bike to peter out on me in next couple of years.. it costs me zip zilch nada nothing zero to ride my bike. Get home, grab my bike, throw it into the back of a truck and 15 minutes later I am zooming in the offroad. Now lets compare it with lets say 2000 dollars that it costs to get into diving (on a budget) purchasing gear. If I took my bike+accessories and multiplied it by 4... I would still have enough money left over for gas for the next 5 years. For price it costs to get certified for 1 person (and purchase gear) you can get 4 people into mountain biking.
That is the shortfall of diving. Yes yes yes.. its all about safety and research and yada yada... but... retailers seek to maximize their profit by minimizing cost of production. A good example is nike.. they manufacture their shoes overseas, ship them here and make billions of dollars. Likewise similar pair of sneakers made here in usa would yield manufacturer a fraction of return so thats why they all make them overseas. Scuba gear.. I am looking at mine right now. Made in thailand and thailand is where cheap labor could be found.. so... it probably costs 1 dollar to make fins and sell them to me for 50. It probably costs 1 dollar to make booties and sell them to me for 25. It probably costs 1 dollar to make belt and sell it to me for 25... it probably costs 10 dollars to make a bcd and sell it to me for 700... so on and so fourth.
This is how I see it. It should not cost 8000 to get a family of 4 certified and to equip them into scuba gear. Thats 2000 per person... are you kidding me? Scuba sport needs to be cheap and affordable. Make cutbacks without jeopardizing safety. It is possible.. I know it is. It should not cost more than 500 per person to get a person certified and equip him with gear.
Until scuba market realizes that people do not want to spend an arm and a leg.. the market will do exactly what its doing right now... float in the confusion of nothingness.
