I know it costs x amount to put on a hunt. Theres the maintenance,fuel,etc etc. but even though outfitters will talk about being down on customers, some admitting to 1/3 the number of bookings in the same time frame as any other year they still havent come down in price. I priced both east and west. Let me give the east example its the easiest. I called up 4 places in NFLD for moose. In all cases the price stayed the same or went up. Two actually admitted that they went to all the shows and only had a fraction of the bookings. The other two didnt tell me that but through the grapevine I know it to be true. All 4 are drive to hunts. All are 3700 plus per person,one is 4000. I cannot believe there isnt some room in there to lower that a hair and fill some places. Is it like the farmer who knows he's got a safety net in the gov so just will not set the president of a lower price? What,I seriously do not get it. I would think at 3000 during this economic struggle there still making on each hunter. Not as much, but some. The lodge is full, and further more its full of mouths that go home and talk. If some one can recommend an outfitter who realizes the times we are in I'd love to hear about them. I do not wish to kick a man thats down, but we are all down right now, thats the point
Are outfitters just not getting it?
- Thread starter laughingfool
- Start date
Hmm, let me see if I understand this correctly. During a recession, you're calling around looking for prices for a guided hunt - what is essentially a luxury vacation for folks like us (hunters) - and you're complaining because the outfitters won't cut their margins even further?
Hmm, let me see if I understand this correctly. During a recession, you're calling around looking for prices for a guided hunt - what is essentially a luxury vacation for folks like us (hunters) - and you're complaining because the outfitters won't cut their margins even further?
"CUT MARGINS" uh 4 g's to drive around in a pick up for 6 days. Some cut. Well let them starve out I guess. the feds (which they hate) will pick them up
So if you wanted to oh say hunt NFLD you could do it yourself? How would that be?
You know it costs x amount to put on a hunt. Do you know what amount x actually is? The profit margin isn't a windfall, it's what they work for and what they live on. They can decide for themselves whether it is worth their while offering their services for less, or they would rather spend the time and effort doing something else if they can't get the price that makes outfitting worthwhile for them.
Here's some background for you. Nfld outfitters are looking at some pretty bleak numbers right now. For many years, the principal draw to this province has been our Woodland Caribou, the only population you could hunt in Canada. As someone has already alluded, moose you can get elsewhere, black bear you can get elsewhere.
In the past 15 years, however, that caribou population has dropped from around 90,000 to around 30,000 animals. Hunting licenses have also been reduced, of course, going from about 2,500 in 2007, to about 1,800 in 2008, and this year to about 800. Obviously, this means in about another year or so, there will be no caribou hunt at all on the island.
That reality, combined with the fact that the only folks who can afford to go on a guided hunt in another province or country are probably the same folks who are fairly 'recession proof', and I can easily see why outfitters are more than hesitant to drop their prices.
You want a deal to ride around in a pick up for 6 days?
Outfitters hate feds? let them starve?
I'll be sure to deliver a swift kick to your inadequately sized genitalia if we ever meet.
resident hunters are NOT the demographic an outfitter targets, and the prices reflect this. a good outfitter doesn't have any problem with the fed, they work with them.
apparently you're very ignorant to the costs in keeping a business open that needs to make 90% of it's income in a 4mth season.
- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
You have answered your own question. The outfitter has made a significant investment to be able to provide you with a service. If he is unable to make a profit on that investment he might as well have done something else with the money. Hopefully he is in the business because he loves it and is good at it. A break even year is a financial loss, and a business cannot operate very long on a break even basis. Your outfitter might not have room to drop his price, but perhaps he will add other enticements when things are slow. He might even have to attract tree hugger tours to make up the slack if he is unable to get enough hunters to pay the bills. He is entitled to make a living, but in the end it is the paying client who determines if he will, and he may end up making decisions to attract a broader range of paying clients that will reduce the access hunters have to his area.
Fool, I'd suggest you go buy some property, build a lodge, buy boats, motors, quads, trucks and put fuel in them, pay the pilot that flys you in or buy a plane, hire guides, cooks, buy groceries, insurance, taxes and then try to make enough money to pay it all back when the cost of everything is going up, you expect them to drop their rates.......hmmmm. They'd be better off to collect enough stamps at the cannery and go on unemployment.
Donny Fenn1
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- East Kootenays
laughing fool, what do you do for a living? can i get a discount?
thanks
thanks
Now theres a question you shouldnt have asked. I weld and fabricate. Without crunching numbers I'd say the average individual has realized a savings of 20-30% in my shop in recent times. The lower savings are because the amount of material was high(I have no control on that). Every year the outfitters on the rock want for more moose tags. Last year was the first year they had 2800 they couldnt get rid of and some outfitters bit the dust because of that. So let them hold their prices without one penny off. Let them also hold their head high as they drown. As they become extinct the NFLD will still want the tourism and moose control so may make it that a guide is not a requirement. Amen to that
Danny will just have to put the pucker to stevie
I think we're cutting to it now
This is very true. Outfitters don't target resident hunters because they don't want "educated" resident hunters. In NE Saskatchewan, one fella from Quebec purchased a guided hunt. The following season, the Quebec resident came back with about a dozen of his buddies and set up their camp on crown land. Because the resident hunter had been shown the outfitters "hot" areas, they hunted the outfitters lease...taking several trophy animals off that lease. Thus outfitters don't target resident hunters because they don't want anyone taking trophy animals off their outfitting lease.
Won't be hunting or even traveling to NFL in the forsee able future, I will not support anything that Danny Boy has any involvement with.
Now if you guys boot his butt of the Island I'll possibly take you up on hunting there but I want you to be my hunter host...
Fool, its a free market (thus far), and if you're unhappy with the prices for a Newfoundland hunt, you're free to look elsewhere. In fact, from the sound of it, I'd suggest just that, rather than subject local outfitters to having to spend six days in the bush with you. Doesn't seem like it would be much of a good time for anyone, ya know?
Why would you go to NFLD and hunt out of a truck? You could do that here. I went last fall and never saw the truck all week.
The only time the outfitters make good $$ is when you have a party of 4 or more. They make nothing off one hunter.
We had 5 hunters, but there were 4 guides and a cook that had to be paid. Food to be brought in, gas, equipment maintenance, (he had a dozen 4-wheelers that need repairs regularly). Each tag costs him $1000 with the non-res license fees. The outfitter we used is fully booked for this season.
I'm going back next year.
