Hi Richard and to TR!
I think your idea is great! I am an educated SW consumer and I am willing to pay more for captive bred. You might want to go on over to Reef Stewardship Foundation www.theRSF.org and check out the consumer education section.
Hello All,
After many years of going to work everyday at an unfulfilling job just to make money, I have reached a point in my life both mentally and financially where I've decided to spend the rest of my time on this planet doing something that I love and am passionate about. So after years of daydreaming, fantasizing and planning I have decided to take the plunge. I am opening a retail store dedicated to all things saltwater. The tentative open date is 12/1/10.
Besides selling livestock, equipment and supplies, and offering a full service department, it will also be a place where other, like minded people can hang out and talk fish, without feeling the pressure to buy. There will be a lounge area with streaming underwater videos on big screen monitors, complimentary refreshments, a kid's area and some very cool displays and technology. I also plan on selling related gift items, jewelry and home decor.
One of my primary missions is to be an environmentally responsible business that will educate the public about our fragile oceans while affording them the opportunity to bring a little piece of it into their homes and offices. My hope is that people will be willing to pay a bit more for captive bred animals if they understand the long term negative impact of improper collection practices. In fact it is my plan that if a fish or coral is currently available as captive bred then I will only sell those specimens, even if less expensive, wild caught individuals are widely available. Those animals not currently available captive bred must be MAC certified or equal. Under no circumstances will I sell animals of uncertain origin or caught with unknown collection practices. I will also not sell fish that have poor captive survival rates or that will outgrow a hobbyist's tank. In addition I plan on selling only cultured live rock. That is my mission and hopefully I can fulfill this mission and earn enough to get by. I don't want to be the biggest, just the best at what I do while remaining planet friendly. The economy may not be prime for starting a new business right now but I am convinced that my compassion for all things salt, will drive it to succeed.
I would love to hear feedback from other members of The Talking Reef as to what you think of my concept and more importantly would welcome any questions, ideas and suggestions as to what you think is important or would like to see at your LFS.
Together we can all make a difference (and create a cool store at the same time)!
I look forward to growing this thread and I will continue to give you updates on the status of the store as things progress.
Stay-tuned.
Are-Jay
Last edited by Are-Jay; 07-29-2010 at 08:04 PM.
Hi Richard and to TR!
I think your idea is great! I am an educated SW consumer and I am willing to pay more for captive bred. You might want to go on over to Reef Stewardship Foundation www.theRSF.org and check out the consumer education section.
Carmie
Only disasters happen fast!
Carmie's 54 Corner Tank
Carmie's Cube
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Hi Richard Welcome to TR!!
I think that would be and awesome idea and a great place to learn about how fragile our oceans can be. Can I ask though where is this store going to be located, like which state? Thanks
Ray or Raymond
There is no elevator to success in marine tanks. You have to take the stairs.
Raymond's 30 gallon tank
Raymond's 60 gallon tank
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Sorry. Per site rules I can't divulge location as that might be construed as advertising. What I'm hoping to accomplish, is to start a diologue about what fellow reefers would like to see in their LFS that they don't currently see.
Congrats on starting what is sure to be quite an adventure! My LFS has a lounge are as well, and I have spent many hours there with fellow hobbyists without spending a dime I like the kids are a idea as well. I always hesitate taking my kids to the LFS because they have nothing to do there.
As a site mod, it's no problem for you to give the location of your store. We wouldn't consider that advertising.
**KEEP ME AWAY FROM SUPER GLUE ... i tend to glue my lips shut !!**
Hey Richard, welcome to TR from another Richard.
Just a note of clarification. I can’t imagine you have the physical location of your store picked out already. What Raymond was inquiring about is YOUR location. As we on TR like to know where our members are from, we encourage new members to fill in their Profile completely. Some don’t and that is OK.
Wow, taking on a dream this big is HUGE!!! I’ve been in the business for many years on a small scale. There’s much advice I’d have for someone going into the SW only business. Some of it I would only give privately as there are many opinions from wannabes that don’t have actual experience.
Dick
Amphibious
Good Luck comes to those who research and prepare.
Our Talking Reef Forum The Cultured Reef Forum
My tank journal Amphibious' 135 mixed reef.
The Cutured Reef toll free number - 888 745-0449
Amblyeleotris randalli commonly, Randall's Goby.
Thanks for the encouragement Dick. I actually do have a location picked out. I negotiating the lease right now. Would love to hear any advice you may have. It's one thing you can never have too much of.
Thanks for the feedback. Do you believe Reef Central trashed this same exact thread because they said I was advertising. I asked them how it could be advertising if I didn't mention name, location or any contact info at all? They responded that despite all that "it was still advertising" and then banned me for life! (I guess because I questioned their decision). All I'm trying to do is start a diologue re. what folks would like to see at their LFS. I thinks it's an interesting thread. Nice folks there at Reef Central, huh?
Are-Jay
Well, you should feel lucky. Reef Central is not known to be reef friendly. And you are among an elite group of reefers, those band from RC. You’ve found the friendliest group of reefers right here at TR. Dream you dream and live it with us.
Dick
Amphibious
Good Luck comes to those who research and prepare.
Our Talking Reef Forum The Cultured Reef Forum
My tank journal Amphibious' 135 mixed reef.
The Cutured Reef toll free number - 888 745-0449
Amblyeleotris randalli commonly, Randall's Goby.
Richard, I will echo what Pearson and Dick both said. We are friendly here. Unless you are a sponsor (as Dick is) we wouldn't let you, for instance, post a link to your store in your signature but we wouldn't mind you posting the location and name in a thread like this. I know a few people who have been banned from RC and they are all good guys. It just reinforces me desire to not frequent their forum.
The store I used to patronize had a couch set up in front of a huge tank. You would find people just hanging out there and talking. (Then the owner sold it and the new owner is just running it into the ground. For instance, one of the employees sold a Moorish Idol as a heniochis, the RO/DI water has a TDS of 10, I heard the owner tell a customer that they could put fish in a tank after week (no mention of the cycle or parameters) and they have ripped off multiple people.) One of the things the old owner did was to host frag swaps and club meetings at the store. These were very well attended!
Carmie
Only disasters happen fast!
Carmie's 54 Corner Tank
Carmie's Cube
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If you weren't going to stock difficult to keep fish to the general public, would you be willing to special order them for some people that have the experience to keep them?
Renee
. Yes, of course. I'm going to stock fish for all different skill levels, I'm just going to be careful who I sell what to. The point is, though the store needs to support itself, I don't care to be the biggest store in the world and just sell, sell, sell. I'd rather lose a sale and save a fish from certain death than make a quick buck like so many other LFS do. There are some species I won't sell to anyone as some are best kept in the ocean. Animals such as Moorish Idols (IMO), Reef Sharks, Nurse Sharks, Nudibrachs, Nautilus, Longnose (Orangespotted) Filefish, etc., etc. We've all seen these species in LFS and it's the exception rather than the rule if an individual survives beyond a month or two, regardless of skill level. Again, lose a sale, save an animal. I also want to promote fishless cycling and other practices that unecessarily stress or kill fish. Any other ideas? I'm all ears.
We had a store here that had a mentoring program they offered to new owners. It helped prevent people from stocking too fast or keeping inappropriate fish. They also had these really nice tags that gave information about the fish.
(Check out page 16-18 for more about this store http://rsr.reefstewardshipfoundation.org/vol1iss1/ )
Carmie
Only disasters happen fast!
Carmie's 54 Corner Tank
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rayme07 (08-07-2010)
i admire what your doing for our addiction. if a salt only shop opened within two hours of rutland vt, i would live in it. there are some ok stores here, but mostly they rely on fresh water sales to keep the store alive. not a big salty fan base around here. now in michigan where i hail from, there is a major calling for it, and is a few awesome shops. a lounge is a wonderful idea. ive always been impressed with a big display tank at the entryway to the shop also. ive even been into shops with an aquatic theme to decor also, and that was neat.
we are all on the long road to our dream tanks, im going slow and enjoying the journey!
I'm afraid I won't be within 2 hours of you but thanks for the encouragement and ideas. Keep them coming! Things are progressing nicely. I'll be finalizing the lease this week and construction will begin! More updates to follow.
make sure you post pics! ive seen many marine tank builds, but never a marine store build!
we are all on the long road to our dream tanks, im going slow and enjoying the journey!
Good idea! Will do.
Awesome I'm with Nick on this one. Watching a saltwater store build is going to be great!!! I cant wait.
Ray or Raymond
There is no elevator to success in marine tanks. You have to take the stairs.
Raymond's 30 gallon tank
Raymond's 60 gallon tank
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i do believe it will be the most expensive build ive ever watched.
we are all on the long road to our dream tanks, im going slow and enjoying the journey!
I'm afraid you're right! All told $150-$200k.
wow. are you in an area where salty fish is popular?
we are all on the long road to our dream tanks, im going slow and enjoying the journey!
FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY... PLEASE BE SURE YOU TRAIN YOUR EMPLOYEES!!
I'm sure that you as a hobbiest are knowlegable or you wouldn't be jumping into this venture. Gratz to you for that. BUT PLEASE TRAIN YOUR PEOPLE. That alone will make you stand out and earn you a golden reputation.
I just had a LFS tell me not to put LS/LR in my sump because its no benefit and it make your sump more difficult to clean! I was all WTF??!!
Thats exactly opposite of EVERYTHING YOU READ ABOUT FILTRATION.
PLEASE DON'T BE THAT GUY.
Matt Colson
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 10-6
See you in 2012
agreed 100%
we are all on the long road to our dream tanks, im going slow and enjoying the journey!
First of all, I plan on keeping it small. Just me and a few employees. When a store or business is too big then you need a lot of help and it's difficult to find one good employee let alone a dozen. By keeping it small I can really keep an eye on everyone and dedicate more time to each one as well. Second, I'll pay more than the competion does and will not hire anyone without having them take a written knowledge test of some sort. And once working on the floor, if they don't know the answer to a question, don't wing it! Ask me or research it. One piece of wrong information can loose a hobbiest for life!
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