Redbeard Posted October 4, 2007 Report Share Posted October 4, 2007 I have been out of the loop for awhile so this is probably old news but I went by Russ's shop and it was empty. What happened? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pondmn Posted October 4, 2007 Report Share Posted October 4, 2007 Russ went for selling back to getting gold. It was posted on Rod's forum last month. More enjoyable that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reno Chris Posted October 4, 2007 Report Share Posted October 4, 2007 Its just an awful big commitment to keep the doors open on a little shop like that all the time. If you are doing it alone, it means you get like zero time in the field to actually prospect. He wasn't able to sell it, so he folded it. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redbeard Posted October 4, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 4, 2007 Too bad for me but good for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin nuggethunting Posted October 4, 2007 Admin Report Share Posted October 4, 2007 Hello Chris, Russ Ford is only one of many unfortunately that went out of business. Even with the high prices of gold, it's tough to keep the doors open when there is so much competition out there, including the Internet. One reason I love the Internet sales is the fact I can prospect on the weekends rather than running a shop. Take care,Rob Allison Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Scott Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 I seriously doubt Russ thought of it as unfortunate! In Russ's case, the closing had more to do with things like prospecting, retirement, free time etc. than it had to do with competition. (not saying it's not competetive though.) I wouldn't want to do it either. Every time I went into the shop, Russ talked about wanting to go out and being tied to the shop.Good for Russ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin nuggethunting Posted October 5, 2007 Admin Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Hello Ted, Not saying I would run a shop any better than Russ or others, but I doubt I could even keep one open for long. There is just too much overhead involved. Internet dealers don't have the expensive overhead such as a lease/rent & utilites. Also, the summer months in Arizona are very slow for sales. Just like Russ, I would rather spend time in the hills. Take care,Rob Allison Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ARIZONA GUIDE Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 I think he will still run an internet store but i am not for sure, Plus he wants to get the beck dry washers up and selling again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin nuggethunting Posted October 5, 2007 Admin Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Hello AZGuide, An Internet store might be a good idea to keep. It will generate at least some income while you're out playing around with something you truely enjoy. Speaking of drywashers, I have a customer coming down soon that is interested in a new or used drywasher. I believe he's coming down with a few friends and they want to spend some time drywashing and detecting. Do you know if Russ has any drywasher's currently available for sale (new or used)? I will place Russ in direct contact with this customer. Talk with you soon,Rob Allison Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dutch john Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Howdy All... I just finished answering e-mails and had a few minutes to spare... so I checked this forum and "what happened to Russ Ford" caughtmy eye... so here I am... At first I thought something happened to Russ...Glad all is well with him.... Arizona Guide... your post very interesting. He took over the official rights to the Beck name. So if Mr. Ford continues making it, it is the direct decendent of Mr. Becks drywasher. Occasionaly a used one iscan still be found in the Randsburg area. Usually they are bought fast. Rob... if you read this post... Heads up... I will try to give you a phonecall in a few days... just a quick question... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uncle Ron Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 A gold prospecting shop is a tough go...As many of you know, about six years ago I had the gold prospecting shop in Wickenburg for a while...One of the funniest things ever to happen in my life was when my 80+ year old Dad came for a visit...He sat with me in the shop for a few days, then one day, late in the afternoon, he said to me, "Son, you're in Hell! This is the most pointless waste of time I've ever seen. Why don't you lock the door, throw away the key and go look for nuggets!"Dad was right!Cheers, Unc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ARIZONA GUIDE Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Rob i sent him a pm on Rods site. russ has a site at Russfordprospecting.com He has an ebay store and an online store. His site shows lots of drywashers, But i think he had a couple used ones the last time i talked to him , But i could be wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Scott Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 I doubt I could even keep one open for long.Rob,It wouldn't be my idea of a good business model Rob. The way you do it is the way to go. Low overhead. I guess in Steve's case it's probably better, Alaska and all. I still think Russ did a good job with the shop and it was great to walk into a well stocked business. Lots of touch and feel appeal so to speak.Anyway, I know Russ had A LOT of drywashers in stock and closed up during the tail end of the monsoon season, so he probably does have a few drywashers available.By the way, you're smashing the competition in our dealer poll, for whatever that's worth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Herschbach Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Hi Ted,Being in Alaska does help. We have a lot of prospectors, and alternate sources are far away, with expensive shipping charges to Alaska.But the fact is that if my partner and I had stayed with being just a prospecting store, which is what we started out as in 1976, then we would probably been out of business long ago. The prospecting biz used to drop to zero for us in October and not start up again until April. Our first year of business we literally closed up shop in September and went dredging.The only reason we still exist is we started trying to fill the holes. We got into woodstoves to boost fall/winter sales and have diversified ever since. We sell more mining gear than ever these days but it is now only a portion of the overall business. But we starved for a lot of years to build the business and I think we only got away with it as we were so young, unmarried, and could live like dogs. No way I could have done it supporting a family, house payments, etc.The internet has boosted winter sales of mining gear. We used to let everything run out in the fall but now have to keep more stock on hand all winter to feed the internet orders.To be strictly a prospecting store is either a hobby or a sideline as to make a solid living doing only that is pretty darn tough. It is actually getting harder. The internet is a boon to the consumer in fostering competition and therefore lower prices. But from a business standpoint it also hammers margins making it tougher all the time for somebody to actually open up a storefront operation to sell only mining gear.Steve Herschbach Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ARIZONA GUIDE Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Yes he said he has a few drywashers so contact him through his site inf or maybe through Rods site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Scott Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 We got into woodstoves to boost fall/winter sales and have diversified ever since.That's great that you can find ways to do that. I'm sure your customers appreciate your ability to stay in business. Times have changed to the point where you can't sell Levi's I would guess but the internet and especially forums can be very much like the streets of San Francisco in '48. I'm sure those Moore Creek nuggets go a long way.I hope to visit Alaska one day, meet you and see your shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kamikaze Posted October 6, 2007 Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 Steve, a great philosophy. I've lived that same path and when asked, I recommend a similar guideline. If you want a 9-5 job, don't open your own business. If you do, expect to work 12 hour days and Saturday/Sundays and have no money. If you don't have enough business to keep you occupied for all those hours, you got to find stuff to do and I don't mean cleaning the windows or rearranging the furniture. Find additional lines or diversify so you're covered all year round. If you are fortunate enough to become a prospering business, then it's time to spend $$$ and play! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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