zoogiraffe
Well-Known Member
I don`t know any more details but Bug World Liverpool has either closed or is going to close in the very near future
Bug World Liverpool has closed
- Thread starter zoogiraffe
- Start date
According to the website, Bug World is "relocating", but this is then followed by details of the animals' relocation, so presumably not a immediate move. The shop is open until Christmas eve, but it seems to have already closed as an animal collection. Annoyed that I didn't get round to it ...
Bummer, also kicking myself that I never quite got round to visiting it.
I've got to say though, I'm not that surprised it's struggling from a business perspective as Joe Public would always struggle to reconcile the entrance fee with "a few insects", especially in recessionary times. I'm not saying it was necessarilly bound to fail, just that it will always be a "hard sell".
Hopefully the relocation will not compromise the animal collection and I'll get to see them sometime.
I've got to say though, I'm not that surprised it's struggling from a business perspective as Joe Public would always struggle to reconcile the entrance fee with "a few insects", especially in recessionary times. I'm not saying it was necessarilly bound to fail, just that it will always be a "hard sell".
Hopefully the relocation will not compromise the animal collection and I'll get to see them sometime.
Panthera Puss
Well-Known Member
Sounds to me as if the animals are 'relocating' (as in dispersing to other collections), and the place has already closed apart from the shop. I met 1 or 2 of the staff earlier this year, it's a pity (for them especially) as it seemed like a good place with serious people.
A shame , another collection I did not visit .
It is possible to run an Invertebrate collection in the UK successfully - there are some very long-running 'Butterfly Farms' . 'Bug World' probably had high overheads , given its location , which needed a good number of customers to cover .
It is possible to run an Invertebrate collection in the UK successfully - there are some very long-running 'Butterfly Farms' . 'Bug World' probably had high overheads , given its location , which needed a good number of customers to cover .
I’ve often thought invertebrate zoos could become a big trend in animal display, in the same way aquariums suddenly became fashionable with advent of Sealife centres. There are some obvious advantages for anyone endeavoring to start one such as no vet bills, low food bills, few employees and probably less opposition from those opposed to zoos. The catalyst for such a trend would be innovative displays that engaged the public but personally, I don’t seem to have the imagination to think up revolutionary invertebrate exhibits. Does anyone else know of any innovative invertebrate exhibits? There are many walk-thru butterfly places which are pretty good but walk-thru exhibits seem quite limited when it comes to inverts. Cologne had a walk-thru for orb web spiders when I last went, not really one for arachnophobes.
zoogiraffe
Well-Known Member
Bug World is not "relocating" most of the animals have already been moved to other collections,and all the staff have been made redundant!
Paix
Well-Known Member
I visited BugWorld around February this year. In my honest opinion the 'experience' was extremely over priced. However, the collection was laid out very well, having a water section, savannah section etc. There were many interesting exhibits and peices of information, I saw quite a few new and interesting species, and as a whole I enjoyed my visit. An interesting part of the exhibit involved walking through a model giraffes legs! Although I would not have visited again due to the price and the fact that I am not a great 'Bug' fan.
Cheetah fan
Well-Known Member
As a side note I am guessing places like the Blue Planet Aquarium would be very interested in some of there creatures with there Venom section. Thats the only place local to Bug World that I can think that would house some of the animals so I guess the collection will be spread far and wide.
@zoogiraffe
I am saddened and sickened. Bug World was a great place for finding out about the Insect World. Fabulous interpretations and quite a nice collection of insects and bugs. Popularisation of science subject matter ... and this gets the sack?
What is the rationale here? Mere cost cutting or is their some - unknown - vision behind all this?
K.B.
Panthera Puss
Well-Known Member
News from the summer - looks like the money men changed their minds over the 'Bugworld' franchise?
balppa.org
balppa.org
Insider news on BugWorld
Hi everyone,
First time I've come across this forum while researching some of the animals I work with, and couldn't resist jumping in on this thread.
I worked at BugWorld from when it opened until I got a better offer earlier this year and I'm still in touch with a lot of the people made redundant right before Christmas.
Basically BugWorld went bust - visitor figures were very low due to the high entry fees and rent in the Albert Dock where BW was based was sky high - coupled with owners who didn't seem to have a clue about how businesses are supposed to run, let alone about the animals, there was always doubt about how long they could last. They were very lucky with the staff they employed, and had they actually taken notice of their advice they might have pulled through. It took them 15 months to lower their entry fee (still expensive) and 3 months later they closed.
That said, this was a private business designed purely for profit, rather than a charity like a lot of zoos and so didn't get any outside funding. The fact that it was Capital of Culture and the height of summer when the owners first looked at location meant they were mislead about potential visitor numbers from the start.
Another factor that constantly came up in visitor comments is that the local museum (free entry) has a Bug House where many of the same animals are on display, although no handling is allowed. A few times near the entrance I heard "I hate bugs, who in their right mind would pay to see them?!" which probably sums up the gist of their problems - generally zoos are associated with big showy animals, or at least the furry kind.
There was talk of new BugWorld sites in Ireland and Europe, but given how quickly things went downhill in Liverpool, I'd be very surprised if it happens. Rumours that they were going to charge an extra entry fee to BugWorld within a larger established zoo highlight the owners "bright ideas". All the animals were split up between other UK Biaza zoos - unfortunately we were too slow to claim any.
In terms of other invertebrate displays, the Liverpool museum's bug house display is very popular with visitors, and there is also an aquarium. The general running costs are kept to a minimum in terms of food, with bramble/privet and grass collected free and most livefoods bred in-house. Fruit and veg are bought fairly cheaply from local supermarkets. I would guess the biggest overheads are heating and lighting, most of the animals being from tropical areas. In terms of vet fees there isn't much any vet could do for sick inverts but the zoo license does require six monthly (very costly) vet checks. The bee keepers fees for the honeybees aren't cheap either.
Hi everyone,
First time I've come across this forum while researching some of the animals I work with, and couldn't resist jumping in on this thread.
I worked at BugWorld from when it opened until I got a better offer earlier this year and I'm still in touch with a lot of the people made redundant right before Christmas.
Basically BugWorld went bust - visitor figures were very low due to the high entry fees and rent in the Albert Dock where BW was based was sky high - coupled with owners who didn't seem to have a clue about how businesses are supposed to run, let alone about the animals, there was always doubt about how long they could last. They were very lucky with the staff they employed, and had they actually taken notice of their advice they might have pulled through. It took them 15 months to lower their entry fee (still expensive) and 3 months later they closed.
That said, this was a private business designed purely for profit, rather than a charity like a lot of zoos and so didn't get any outside funding. The fact that it was Capital of Culture and the height of summer when the owners first looked at location meant they were mislead about potential visitor numbers from the start.
Another factor that constantly came up in visitor comments is that the local museum (free entry) has a Bug House where many of the same animals are on display, although no handling is allowed. A few times near the entrance I heard "I hate bugs, who in their right mind would pay to see them?!" which probably sums up the gist of their problems - generally zoos are associated with big showy animals, or at least the furry kind.
There was talk of new BugWorld sites in Ireland and Europe, but given how quickly things went downhill in Liverpool, I'd be very surprised if it happens. Rumours that they were going to charge an extra entry fee to BugWorld within a larger established zoo highlight the owners "bright ideas". All the animals were split up between other UK Biaza zoos - unfortunately we were too slow to claim any.
In terms of other invertebrate displays, the Liverpool museum's bug house display is very popular with visitors, and there is also an aquarium. The general running costs are kept to a minimum in terms of food, with bramble/privet and grass collected free and most livefoods bred in-house. Fruit and veg are bought fairly cheaply from local supermarkets. I would guess the biggest overheads are heating and lighting, most of the animals being from tropical areas. In terms of vet fees there isn't much any vet could do for sick inverts but the zoo license does require six monthly (very costly) vet checks. The bee keepers fees for the honeybees aren't cheap either.
Omanrobert
New Member
I am looking for the people who did the design work for Bug world, we are in the concept stage of looking at building a bug collection for a park in Oman. if anyone can help in anyway it would be good to chat to you. I would like to talk to the original owners of the the Liverpool Bug World and staff.
thanks
Rob
thanks
Rob