Father Hugo
3 months ago
Used to be a half-decent store that had relatively normal prices for different specimens. Checking recently as of 2025 their prices have been hiked up to extreme amounts, samples that would cost around 60-150$ normally, being sold for 5-10x the price.
For example some labradorite samples that would be found elsewhere for 60-85$ being sold at 400$+ and a rough aquamarine sample still in it's matrix that would probably cost around 120-150$ being sold at over 1000$+.
I get that the economy has been tough on many of us as of recent, hitting small shops such as this the hardest. But this is a ridiculous amount to overcharge for samples like that, it's on the borderline of being a scam to sell stuff that high.
If you are purchasing stuff from this shop, don't end up buying anything that costs over 100-200$, it is definitely not worth that amount, you'd be better off searching online on to find minerals, even on ebay where you'd have a higher likelihood of being scammed, you at least wouldn't be getting ripped off to this extent.
Find another store, one that actually values it's customers and that will uphold it's traditions. Over the years this store has gone from being decent to not valuing it's customers whatsoever and only valuing their money.
Also take the "fordite" off of your "MINERALS" section on your website, automobile paint isn't a mineral at all and you cleverly ensure that your description names it as a "material" but it should not be put in the mineral section, a lot of people won't read your descriptions and labelling it as a mineral is misleading.
Also holy god, I saw those Gibeon Meteorite spheres on your website, I'm guessing you guys bought these for some ridiculous price and can't even sell them? Is that why you guys have such high prices? Making risky purchases on minerals from people who are pricing stuff higher than you should ever purchase them for and then reselling them at like 10x the price of what you bought them for? Whoever is sourcing and doing the purchasing of your samples that you're reselling, please reconsider letting them have such a powerful position for a business, they are sucking your business dry.