NANFA-- Re; starting your own shop (was LFS)

William Allen jr. (billandbonnie_at_peoplepc.com)
Sat, 9 Dec 2000 11:28:59 -0600

I, too would be wary of starting a shop. But I believe that the future of
the "niche" afficianado is in the guy who sells a few special interest fish
(killies,exptic and fancy livebearers, etc.) out of his house. In the past,
"connection" was the problem - connecting someone who has the special
interest fish with the person who wants them. But with all of today's
communication(BB's, clubs such as NANFA, AKA, ALA), and overnight shipping,
such problems are solved.

A guy not far from here was making good money selling bait fish - he was
raising shiners and found some red sports, they're now the "Rosy Reds" in
bait shops, when he was talking to a friend who was a pet shop owner. He got
to thinking, "Why should I be selling bait fish for two cents each when with
a little more work i can be selling ornamental fish for $ .25 to $ .50"? He
now has expanded and is selling koi, goldfish, and some "bread and butter"
tropicals. But it is a BIG operation with many ponds and a lot of work.

However, you'll never get rich doing this. As Ross Socoloff said, "The best
way to make a small fortune with tropical fish is to start with a BIG
fortune".

----- Original Message -----
From: Dave Littlehale <littled_at_cris.com>
To: <nanfa_at_aquaria.net>
Sent: Saturday, December 02, 2000 9:36 AM
Subject: LFS WAS Re: NANFA--thatpetplace.com

> Moontanman_at_aol.com wrote:
>
> > In a message dated 12/1/00 9:55:27 PM Eastern Standard Time,
> > normane_at_edelendoors.com writes:
> >
> > << I tend to disagree with you. The area I live in has seen an amazing
amount
> > >>
> > You may be right, I want to start my own shop but I see all privately
owned
> > shops going the way of the dinosaur and it scares me. I can't even
remember
> > the last time I saw something really interesting in a fish store.
>
> I think variety is the key as has been stated previously. The stores that
seem to
> do the best are those that have a selection of fw fish above and beyond
your
> "bread and butter" fish, a selection of marine fish, corals and a good dry
goods
> area. In these stores the fish are correctly named and will order just
about
> anything for you.
>
> Here in the NJ suburbs of Philly there are 5 fish stores. In 4 of those I
could
> probably name about 85% of the fish they have in stock right from home.
The 5th
> one, my favorite, has a much better selection of fish which are correctly
ID'd.
> I went to all 5 stores in one day searching for the flying fox for my
planted
> tank. I left my favorite for last hoping they would be able to save the
day. The
> other 4 had the chinese algae eaters which left me scouring those tanks
hoping
> that maybe some were mixed in accidentally and for the most part the
people
> working in these stores are "fish catchers". I purchased two that looked
> promising. The last store had them and they were actually labeled as
such.
> Imagine that.
>
> I went back a couple of weeks later looking for some fish for my planted
tank. I
> didn't know what I wanted; all I knew is that I didn't want any of the
usual fish
> that every store has. I was pleasantly surprised. I came away with 6
Threadfin
> Rainbowfish, Iriatherina werneri; they are in this month, Jan 2001, TFH,
and 6
> Celebes Rainbowfish, Telmatherina ladigesi. Unless I need something in an
> emergency, this is the store I will patronize from now on. I will
occasionally
> check the others just to see if I can be surprised. I've already inquired
about
> ordering pencilfish which I've only seen in one store in DE about 4 years
ago.
>
> If I were a shop owner I would approach it differently. Since I've never
been in
> this position I don't know how feasible it is, but I would invest time in
> educating my customers by giving seminars on a variety of topics e.g.
beginning
> fw, planted aquaria, salt water aquaria, corals, breeding fish. The store
would
> have display tanks on all these topics as to entice people to enjoy other
aspects
> of the hobby. The necessary equipment and associated dry goods would be
on hand
> to further encourage participation. Just a thought.
>
> Dave
>
>
>
>
>
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/----------------------------------------------------------------------------- /"Unless stated otherwise, comments made on this list do not necessarily / reflect the beliefs or goals of the North American Native Fishes / Association" / This is the discussion list of the North American Native Fishes Association / nanfa_at_aquaria.net. To subscribe, unsubscribe, or get help, send the word / subscribe, unsubscribe, or help in the body (not subject) of an email to / nanfa-request_at_aquaria.net. For a digest version, send the command to / nanfa-digest-request_at_aquaria.net instead. / For more information about NANFA, visit our web page, http://www.nanfa.org