Why even go to a hydro store, that charges retail plus, when you can buy alot of supplies from say a garden supply store?

I even suggest looking for a greenhouse supply distributor. In the container grow I'm a partner in, we get 3.8 cu/ft bales of Pro-Mix bx, for just under $25 and a sleeve of 125 pots (6" dia) for less then $10. They even have nutrients, clonning powders and gels, etc. The one we use is also a dist. for Hydrofarm products and can order anything in the catalog and is way cheaper then the hydro stores, especially if you pay cash.