+1 that was my idea as well so I guess im not the only one lol
Looking for advice with my new store
- Thread starter xdunaticx
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+1 that was my idea as well so I guess im not the only one lol
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1. It'll be awesome to have something up in this area.
2. I'll be yet another one that echoes the "QT and preventative care path". Most of my fish have been from Diver's Den and if had the added ability to see them before paying, I wouldn't think twice about paying more. An extra $20 or $30 (or more) for a fish is way less painful to me than the thousands upon thousands I've dropped elsewhere in this hobby.
3. The vast majority of your customers likely wouldn't feel the same. I tend to agree with those that suggest you don't forget the "first time family buyers" that will likely form the bulk of your income.
4. To revisit #3, I do wonder how feasible a one off approach to ordering is for folks who know exactly what they want and would prefer the QT approach. To the effect of "Hey, I want a dalmation puffer. Here's a deposit of $???, lemme know when you find something, Then, the shop observes/QTs and the customer pays balance upon pickup. I don't know how much of an extra cost would be incurred through this process but holy cats, I'd be interested. I know that, for instance, Aquatouch has a request sheet although it occurs to me that I've never once heard anything back from any of the times I put in a request there.
5. Best of luck! It takes some moxie to open up any business but from what I've seen, opening an LFS around these parts is next level stuff.
2. I'll be yet another one that echoes the "QT and preventative care path". Most of my fish have been from Diver's Den and if had the added ability to see them before paying, I wouldn't think twice about paying more. An extra $20 or $30 (or more) for a fish is way less painful to me than the thousands upon thousands I've dropped elsewhere in this hobby.
3. The vast majority of your customers likely wouldn't feel the same. I tend to agree with those that suggest you don't forget the "first time family buyers" that will likely form the bulk of your income.
4. To revisit #3, I do wonder how feasible a one off approach to ordering is for folks who know exactly what they want and would prefer the QT approach. To the effect of "Hey, I want a dalmation puffer. Here's a deposit of $???, lemme know when you find something, Then, the shop observes/QTs and the customer pays balance upon pickup. I don't know how much of an extra cost would be incurred through this process but holy cats, I'd be interested. I know that, for instance, Aquatouch has a request sheet although it occurs to me that I've never once heard anything back from any of the times I put in a request there.
5. Best of luck! It takes some moxie to open up any business but from what I've seen, opening an LFS around these parts is next level stuff.
fishntyme1
New member
When I hear "North Valley" I dont think of Scottsdale, any part of it. I think of Bell Rd and I 17 or there abouts. Scottsdale is east of me by 15+ miles. Thats considered East Valley for us that Have Tropical Treasures as our closest store and next is Aquatouch.
This is pretty exciting to hear! I am moving to Arizona from South Dakota near the North Scottsdale area. So I would be pumped to see a LFS up in that area. Although I probably will be a browser for a couple years until we settle into a house. I think that a proper QT/Observation/Hospital policy would be worth it. Also a knowledgeable staff is #1. I can't count how many times I've gone into a LFS and talked to someone that has given me bogus information. I made sure to comment on it and to avoid certain staff when buying. If there is any expertise, a custom tank build or stand build would be a nice option to have as well locally. A nice selection of emergency equipment such as pumps, silicone, and medication is always nice too.
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Agreed. While I know it's tough to pass up on a sale, if I overhear an employee pushing a customer to get a clown trigger to throw in their 55G tank along with their Harlequin Tusk for life, I won't be returning on pure principle.
Stolireef
Active member
How about a 'sell on consignment' section. As I see it, most new aquarium stores don't have sufficient capital to last until they are well established (this is true for most new businesses). One way around this problem would be to sell both hardware and livestock on consignment. How often do you read 'getting out of the hobby' threads where the seller is moving out of town and needs to shut down quickly. Seller drops off (perhaps with your help) livestock and equipment. You QT livestock, clean equipment and keep X% of the sale price. Of course, the question is always how to define 'X'.
The upside of this approach is that you should have a fairly constant supply of goods for sale without making a major investment in inventory. Many variables on this and just my two cents.
The upside of this approach is that you should have a fairly constant supply of goods for sale without making a major investment in inventory. Many variables on this and just my two cents.
The best advice i can give is have corals that are beginner corals but not ugly looking something other than grey leather or finger coral's
i'm more of an sps guy so a store that doesn't carry sps is a store i will spend less money at, that is where i want them to fill my test kit, salt, dosing and fish /coral food, i don't mind going to a store more geared to softie's and lps/zoanthids if they carry the other supplies i love to use.
Rod's reef food and coral food are the best i've ever used for fish food and coral but on the expensive side, other than that any place that carry's DT's pyhtoplankton and oyster eggs, or the new stuff i'm using now which is the Reef Nutrition line of coral food, if i could buy a better salt than IO reef crystals locally i most likely would switch salt brands, carry B-ionic or BRS line of 3 part and make sure to sell ELO's test kit's as ELO's are the only test kit i would ever recommend for a new or older hobbyist they are acurate easy to use and easy to understand even for a beginer, maybe have a write up or booklet you can hand out to break down the most important things to make a customers reef a success.
Such as giving them parameters to keep in check like Alk,Calc and Mag (unless waterchanges are enough for what they have stocked)
the proper salinity and how the evaporation process works as salt doesn't evaporate
The importance of lighting and photoperiod, light intensity
The importance of having a ton of flow/circulation
The importance of doing at least a water change every week no matter the size of the tank
a break down of what fish are appropriate for what the given tank size in gallons is
getting that information upfront and from the store owner in a booklet would make it easier and simpler for new hobbyist that don't research on forums to understand how to be sucessful even if they aren't keeping corals that considered HARD
Either using good water or buying a RO/DI machine a lot of stores i have been too will sell RO/DI water as well as water already mixed with salt, but it would be nice if they carried at least 2-3 of 1 good 5 stage RO/DI to sell to hobbyist
i'm more of an sps guy so a store that doesn't carry sps is a store i will spend less money at, that is where i want them to fill my test kit, salt, dosing and fish /coral food, i don't mind going to a store more geared to softie's and lps/zoanthids if they carry the other supplies i love to use.
Rod's reef food and coral food are the best i've ever used for fish food and coral but on the expensive side, other than that any place that carry's DT's pyhtoplankton and oyster eggs, or the new stuff i'm using now which is the Reef Nutrition line of coral food, if i could buy a better salt than IO reef crystals locally i most likely would switch salt brands, carry B-ionic or BRS line of 3 part and make sure to sell ELO's test kit's as ELO's are the only test kit i would ever recommend for a new or older hobbyist they are acurate easy to use and easy to understand even for a beginer, maybe have a write up or booklet you can hand out to break down the most important things to make a customers reef a success.
Such as giving them parameters to keep in check like Alk,Calc and Mag (unless waterchanges are enough for what they have stocked)
the proper salinity and how the evaporation process works as salt doesn't evaporate
The importance of lighting and photoperiod, light intensity
The importance of having a ton of flow/circulation
The importance of doing at least a water change every week no matter the size of the tank
a break down of what fish are appropriate for what the given tank size in gallons is
getting that information upfront and from the store owner in a booklet would make it easier and simpler for new hobbyist that don't research on forums to understand how to be sucessful even if they aren't keeping corals that considered HARD
Either using good water or buying a RO/DI machine a lot of stores i have been too will sell RO/DI water as well as water already mixed with salt, but it would be nice if they carried at least 2-3 of 1 good 5 stage RO/DI to sell to hobbyist
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