GaryE
Well-Known Member
I would probably ask myself why there is very little attention in your area from the major chains. I would doubt that's from a lack of interest, it's more likely due to a lack of market.
Debating starting an aquarium store
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I would probably ask myself why there is very little attention in your area from the major chains. I would doubt that's from a lack of interest, it's more likely due to a lack of market.
dvgyfresh
2500 Club Member
I love fish stores and prefer to buy livestock at them vs online as I can observe and pick out fish / coral. I will say that when buying equipment it’s not so simple you won’t have a ton of markup with major retailers and usually Amazon can beat the price with free shipping and a great return policy. So I think if you focus on fish / coral you can succeed
DaneGer21
Valuable Member
Man my eyes must be bad because I still don’t see it haha
GaryE
Well-Known Member
DaneGer21
Valuable Member
Sorry, I didn’t creep on his profile LOL
GaryE
Well-Known Member
Me either, it's right there to the left of his posts.
lpsouth1978
Valuable Member
As someone that has visited MANY LFS in different states, and someone that has made many purchases at the LFS and online...
I am 100% willing to make my purchases at the LFS even if the price is a bit higher, because I want to support the local guy, AND I prefer to be able to speak to someone knowledgeable about the purchase.
I am 100% willing to make my purchases at the LFS even if the price is a bit higher, because I want to support the local guy, AND I prefer to be able to speak to someone knowledgeable about the purchase.
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That’s funny as almost all them are gone from my area. I’ve seen store after store close. They can’t even compete in selection or price. That’s to say nothing of the ones that give bad advice or all their tanks look like crap (full of algae).
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Lowell Lemon
2500 Club Member
In my experience as a wholesaler and manufacturing company to the aquarium industry you will discover the average customer is an impulse buyer. If you don't have it in inventory you will not sell it. That said I would pick product lines that are quality and not stocked by the mass merchandise market. Eheim and Tunze were great examples back in the day. Stock a product line deeply and support it. A customer will shy away from a store with very little inventory on the shelf as it undermines confidence in the product and the store at the same time.
Store owners are impulse buyers as well. I would double my sales every trip if I carried extra aquariums in the back of my truck instead of just their orders. I was making and selling filters, light systems, and aquariums and stands. I always rolled up to their door with extra inventory in the truck. I sold only Acrylic aquariums by then and I never had a damage problem due to the way we wrapped and stacked them on the truck. The store owner often could select sizes from 16 to 240 gallons right off the truck. I made both our cash registers ring with that approach. Often the store owner made sales right out of my truck! Inventory is important. Would you buy a specialty car or motorcycle from a store that only had one example of a full range of product? Not likely, you might get the impression that the store was about to go under!
Store owners are impulse buyers as well. I would double my sales every trip if I carried extra aquariums in the back of my truck instead of just their orders. I was making and selling filters, light systems, and aquariums and stands. I always rolled up to their door with extra inventory in the truck. I sold only Acrylic aquariums by then and I never had a damage problem due to the way we wrapped and stacked them on the truck. The store owner often could select sizes from 16 to 240 gallons right off the truck. I made both our cash registers ring with that approach. Often the store owner made sales right out of my truck! Inventory is important. Would you buy a specialty car or motorcycle from a store that only had one example of a full range of product? Not likely, you might get the impression that the store was about to go under!
Montiman
Valuable Member
I think some of the confusion here about dry goods inventory is that people often feel that selection means having 3 brands of skimmer. This is great if a store has the space an capital for 3 brands, but consider this. If your skimmer died today could you go to the LFS and get a descent replacement of any brand? Say you were going on vacation the next day and just wanted there to be something on the tank, would there be an option?
The truth is 5 skimmers will cover 95% of reefers and represent a minimal capital investment. I could say the same about return pumps, wavemakers, lights, heaters, or sumps. In a traditional fish store you should be able to walk in and walk out with all you need for an average size aquarium. You don't need 6 brands of 2 part, 4 kinds of carbon, and 7 different kinds of lights. All a store needs is something that will work.
The truth is 5 skimmers will cover 95% of reefers and represent a minimal capital investment. I could say the same about return pumps, wavemakers, lights, heaters, or sumps. In a traditional fish store you should be able to walk in and walk out with all you need for an average size aquarium. You don't need 6 brands of 2 part, 4 kinds of carbon, and 7 different kinds of lights. All a store needs is something that will work.
Dark_Knightt
Valuable Member
I think owning an aquarium store is something we would all like XD definitely something im considering doing once i retire. but before i retire i acc need a job, and a highschool and university education XD
best of luck with whatever you choose!
best of luck with whatever you choose!
My LFS has been featured on multiple tanks and websites, have a great in-store selection of both gear and fish, and they make 70% of their revenue comes from moving/ setting up and maintaining aquariums for individual and corporate clients. Margins are razer thin on high end gear. He stopped carrying red sea completely because it wasn't worth it. They set prices for you.
Walmart/ BRS can't do that.
Lowell Lemon
2500 Club Member
It varies and I would not share that information because some people would misuse it! Final cost is a factor of overhead expenses like lease, insurance, cost of goods sold, inventory turnover,labor costs, utilities, equipment, loss rates from theft and spoilage, and finally profit which no business can survive without. There are other cost factors not included in my list.
While those are factors in profitability, they are not factors in mark ups of hard goods. Buy for this, sell for that.
lpsouth1978
Valuable Member
I disagree. If you don't take those expenses into account when setting your markup, you are just shooting in the dark and hoping things work out.
The price you can buy it for are given to you by the manufacturer or whokesaler. The amount you can get for it is given you you by map or general market pricing. Neither are going to move much. So because your rent is super cheap or super expensive has zero bearing on the markup of the hard goods.
Now those factors should be thought about prior to starting a business to determine profitability in general.
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