DRAS AQUARIAMA
April 15 2012 |
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AJAX Community Road
75 Centennial Road
Ajax, Ontario |
Popular buck a bag auction for fish, plants and new dry goods
New Vendors Expo
Educational Section |
There is an enterance fee of $2 per person
Children under the age of 10 are free |
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| Big Changes at DRAS's 44th Annual Aquariama !!! |
There is an old saying - "if you don't change you die". The last thing the Durham Region Aquarium Society wants is to die. No... we want to grow, to become better, and part of that is looking at what we've done in the past , build on that experience , and make it better going forward.
The executive of DRAS has examined what has occurred at our Aquariama over the last couple of years, and found that the hobby is changing. Therefore, we are changing with the times. The old format, while comfortable for many, was adversely affecting the finances of DRAS. Essentially, we were losing money. Aquariama is DRAS's main fundraiser, and the money raised contributes towards our paying for our monthly meeting location, the funding of speakers for our club and our conversation activities. |
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No Show!!! – Participation in the annual show has been declining over the past couple of years.
While we understand that people are justifiably proud of the fish they keep, the interest just hasn't
been there for the majority, and the number of entries has been declining. Is there really a sense of
accomplishment in entering a category and winning just because yours is the only fish? Sponsors
don't want to support a category of one, two or sometimes no fish. We are encouraging our
sponsors to interact directly with the auction attendees instead. So remember, unless you are
selling fish in the auction, don't bring them as we aren't having a show!!! |
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| Special Notes about the Auction |
| 1 – "Buck-A-Bag" Returns!!!
There has been a bit of confusion in the past about what "Buck-A-Bag" is. Simply, every item you
place in the Aquariama Auction gives $1.00 to DRAS. Just $1.00. If your item sells for $70.00 (and
we have had items sell for that amount and higher), you get $69.00 and DRAS gets $1.00. Of
course, if your item sells for $1.00, then that $1.00 goes to DRAS.
Why do we choose this format? DRAS wants to encourage as many hobbyists as possible, and we
found that taking a percentage of the selling price discouraged many from auctioning rare and exotic
stock. Most auctions will take 10% - 30% of the selling price. Using the above example, if your item
sold for $70.00, at a 10% club / 90% seller split, it would be $7.00 to the club, $63.00 to the seller.
At at 30% / 70% split, the club would receive $21.00 and the seller only $49.00. Are you more likely
to sell something rare for a high price and get more, or would you be happy getting less? DRAS
wants to put as much money as possible in your pocket, and to encourage the sale of specials
items. Using our formula, you receive all but $1.00. We rely on volume, but we want that volume to
be special! |
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| 2 – Entrance Fee – EVERYONE Pays! |
| auction. It didn't matter if there was one item or twenty on the sheet, it was still $3.00. For a person
selling 20 items, it was a great deal, but for a person selling two special items, it wasn't. And as to
the buyers, they came and purchased items, but it was possible that their purchase in no way
supported DRAS. The seller paid the $3.00 fee for the sheet and $1.00 for every item. The seller
contributed towards DRAS, but the buyer didn't.
We must emphasize once again that DRAS's mission statement is the "advancement and
improvement of the aquarium hobbyist". We are not simply a social organization, but rather one that
is striving to support conservation initiatives both locally and globally. We are not looking to raise
money simply to do so, but rather to support initiatives that we feel strongly about. Given that
Aquariama is our main fund-raising activity, and given that it provides a valuable resource for
hobbyists from across South-western Ontario in obtaining high quality fish and plants, we feel that it
is only fair for all beneficiaries of Aquariama to share in our support of these initiatives.
This year there is no $3.00 fee per entrance sheet. Rather, every individual attending Aquariama
(except children under the age of 10) will be charged a $2.00 entrance fee. The Dog Days of
Scugog charges a $7.00 entrance fee, Canadian National Cage Bird Show & Expo – $8.00 entrance
fee, Ontario Reptile & Exotic Pet Expo - $8.00 and the All About Pets Show charges $12.00. In
comparison the extremely reasonable $2.00 entrance fee to DRAS's Aquariama gives you the
chance to bid on numerous rare and exotic aquarium fish and plants, gives you access to our
Conservation Education Pavilion and supports DRAS's conservation initiatives for the coming year! |
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So to recap:
NO Show.
DRAS proudly presents our Conservation Education Pavilion!
Fabulous vendors will be present!
Buck-A-Bag Returns!
$2.00 Entrance fee for every person (except children 10 and under) |
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Pick any 3 of them for $9.99.
- Rotala pusilla
- Ammannia Multiflora
- Narrow leaf ludwigia
- Rotala wallichii
- Blyxa japonica
- Pearl Weed
- Cardamine
- Hydrocotyle verticillata
- Red Ludwigia
etc.
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