I wish someone else in Cozumel would start doing Nitrox fills...

[Christi]

Sorry christi but I am not shooting the messanger. I am trying to get accross that there is almost always a solution to a business problem
Such as this and it is never "that easy" (but the solution still exists). I was not picking on anybody. I just look at where a lot of companies are today and blame most of their problems easily on poor or mismanagement.....and yet the taxpayer is bailing them out because they complained. In business, I prefer a proactive problem solving approach rather than the other option.

I too will step away and allow the thread to move forward in it's intended direction.




Posted via Mobile Device

Yes of course there is always a solution...easy or not. But you've made the assumption, based on a very short internet forum thread that no one here is working on a solution/alternatives...and furthermore have implied that we are not intelligent enough to do so. That's simply not the case.

 

[stortecky]

I think we are being a little to quick to make judgment on this forum. We would all like nitrox for less but I am pretty sure there are many issues in Mexico that different from your home town dive shop that we have no idea about.

 

[sddiver]

Sounds like the Cozumel group of Dive Shops needs a professional business person on the island to represent them in such matters. This is what I do for a living (around the globe including MX) a

I am for hire

Dude,

You are killing me. Read between the lines. This is Mexico, not Canada or the USA. Power, especially economic power, rests in the hands of a very small minority of people who will protect that power at your cost. Christi lives and does business in "their" community. Raising a furor over the price of nitrox or fills in general could bring on all kinds of unrelated issues to your doorstep.

Since your looking to put your professional business acumen to use I Propose you work on the following.

1. Affordable and frequent local transit service for locals and tourists on the island.
2. Affordable and frequent ferry service both passenger and auto with the mainland.
3. Affordable and efficient land and cell based communications services.

Please update us on your progress.


Rich

 

[Dive Choice Mexico]

I have to back up Christi here.
It is not a easy in Mexico as it seems.
What is logical in the rest of the world, does not always apply here.

We have investigated the possibilities to open a new filling station only for small dive operators to improve the quality of the service, the quality of the maintenance of the tanks and to offer nitrox at a better price for every one.

This has happened with an other new entepreneur before. The company who holds almost the monopoly on Cozumel reduced their prices and just waited until the dive operators came back to them and the new operator went bankrupt.

 

[FishOutUvH2O]

You are right. My experience is on the Mainland for Mexico but I stand by my experience. I do ask why one would bother to complain if they are not going to do anything other than sit back and take it? I still stand by my last statement that something can be done to make it better....it is a matter of somebody having the ability to do it. It may not be quick and it may need to be creative, but something can almost always be done to get around any problem.

You mentioned the fact that others now have their own fill stations so obviously somebody has some business sense and avoided the situation. The rest of the businesses that choose to only sit back and complain will have to suffer I suppose.

After you're done solving the fill station problems that apparently only you, and not the dive operations that work, live, and survive on the island, are skilled enough to solve. Maybe you can work on the plumbing stores. It seems that they've realized that it's more profitable to sell an entire new drain with gaskets for a kitchen sink, than to sell Plumber's Putty. Start with the one on Avenida 30 and then work your way down to the ones on Avenida 65.

 

[RonFrank]

I dove Coz for six days (one dayoff), four tanks a day, and rarely used Nitrox. I guess if you have an op that skips surface intervals, it could make a big difference. I did do Nitrox on a few dives, but IMO it's not all that necessary.

If you have the bucks, than I guess pay. If not, than make sure the dive op you use is providing adequate surface intervals. I would have *preferred* Nitrox, but at the upcharge even back then I think it was about $30 bucks a day extra for 4 tanks.

 

[ScubaSteve]

Whining gets nobody anywhere and does nothing to help solve the problem. We all have two choices....whine and do nothing or stop whining and work on a solution. Looks like you've made your choice.

This is only one of the many reasons I choose other dive destinations in the Caribbean with Cozumel trailing close to the end. I get way more diving bang for my buck in a place like Bonaire (by the way I also get free Nitrox) and I do not come home full of complaints. If you do not like the cost of Nitrox....don't dive it. That is the easiest of solutions. If you are a dive shop and do not like paying for it, then do not offer it. If your kitchen sink is broken and you cannot afford to fix it, use a bucket and empty it outside. Problems solved.

If you are not part of the solution you are part of the problem. Now, I will gladly cancel my subscription to this thread.

 

[ggunn]

Now, I will gladly cancel my subscription to this thread.

Don't let the door hit you...

 

[jd950]

I think $10-$12 for Nitrox is pretty typical, but for me it is just one more incremental cost. $60-$85 for a 2-tank, a tip for the DM, a tip for the Captain, $20.00 for Nitrox. For my wife and I that would mean around $1200.00 per week to do just 2 dives a day with Nitrox. It adds up fast and has driven me to much more shore diving. At least in Bonaire it is easy to get free Nitrox and since I can do 3-4 dives a day pretty easily and cheaply there, that is a good thing.

These days, I can hardly afford more than 2 dives a day and maybe one or two night dives in a week on Cozumel, so nitrox isn't much of an issue there and I have cut back on it when I go.

I think the larger operators should purchase their own cylinders, compressor and related equipment and fill their own tanks. Beyond the basic air station setup cost, I believe it is only a few thousand bucks more to be able to do Nitrox as well. I would think the larger operations, like Christi's, Aldora, etc., could save enough in tank rentals, fill fees, gas and employee time to pick up and drop off tanks to recoup that investment in a couple years at most and then begin turning a profit on it. They could even offer nitrox as a no cost or low cost upgrade and that would be a draw for customers. And, I would think the people who want nitrox tend to dive more and are a desireable customer base.

I guess this would be bad for the small op, though.

Of course I have never run a dive operation and may be full of you know what. Isn't the internet great?

 

[Rhone Man]

Is $10 extra a tank really that big a deal? Lots of places in Caribbean are more then that, and accommodations and diving is more too, not to mention food and drink costs. Even adding $10 for each Nitrox fill, Cozumel is still one of the best dive vacation values in the Caribbean.

I think I pay $12 a tank when I dive Nitrox in St Thomas (and what really ticks me off is that they still call the dive at the end of the air NDLs) - can't really source it at all in the BVI (outside of Virgin Gorda or one of the liveaboards).

I would love the opportunity to pay $10 a tank for Nitrox here.