Attention All LFS Owners
- Thread starter sslarison
- Start date
There's no simple answer to this question -- there's too many variables in how you design the store and livestock system.
I will tell you that AGA has a deal where tanks you will be using for livestock sales can be had at a higher discount rate than normal "for sale" tanks. Unfortunately, the actual discount is some sort of dark secret that everyone at AGA knows about, but doesn't actually know. We're trying to find out the details for some expansion work and have gotten the run-around so far...
Between build-out of leased space and initial inventory, I would not start with less than $40,000 in the bank. We spent much more, but there are ways we could have cut corners. Also, plan on starting with about 1/2 the inventory you will eventually carry -- it ties up capital while it sits on your shelf so you want to build it slowly while still having enough to start.
All the other rules of small business apply, so get a good book, or contact the SBA for advice/mentoring.
And make sure it's what you want to do! There are easier businesses to run and make money in -- any in which the inventory doesn't die comes to mind. With continuing fit-out and tweaking as well as building inventory, plan on 3-4 years before you show any profit.
What's the best way to make a small fortune in the retail aquarium business? Start with a large fortune!
I will tell you that AGA has a deal where tanks you will be using for livestock sales can be had at a higher discount rate than normal "for sale" tanks. Unfortunately, the actual discount is some sort of dark secret that everyone at AGA knows about, but doesn't actually know. We're trying to find out the details for some expansion work and have gotten the run-around so far...
Between build-out of leased space and initial inventory, I would not start with less than $40,000 in the bank. We spent much more, but there are ways we could have cut corners. Also, plan on starting with about 1/2 the inventory you will eventually carry -- it ties up capital while it sits on your shelf so you want to build it slowly while still having enough to start.
All the other rules of small business apply, so get a good book, or contact the SBA for advice/mentoring.
And make sure it's what you want to do! There are easier businesses to run and make money in -- any in which the inventory doesn't die comes to mind. With continuing fit-out and tweaking as well as building inventory, plan on 3-4 years before you show any profit.
What's the best way to make a small fortune in the retail aquarium business? Start with a large fortune!
Yes I agree there are easier ways to "earn a buck." But I also see the increasing population of marine aquarists and they spark my attention. In my area the LFS are always packed on the weekends, and their livestock sells so fast. Not to mention the Owners new cars every few months, Hummer being his latest purchase (this really doesn't mean much, he could be leasing or spending all his cash on toys).
Matt, did you design your filtration/water system yourself? I've seen a few companies that will design and build the system for you (such as Euroreef). Since I've never done this before and obviously others have more experience I would think this would be a wise choice.
Matt, did you design your filtration/water system yourself? I've seen a few companies that will design and build the system for you (such as Euroreef). Since I've never done this before and obviously others have more experience I would think this would be a wise choice.
My favorite store has around 66 20gal long tanks. Freshwater are daisy chained with a sump in the basement and the saltwater are daisy chained with a sump in the basement. They also have 2 appx 300gal tanks like an island in this room. For live rock, large freshwater fish etc. Sumps in the basement keep the mess to a manageable level.
I once asked about his VHO lighting. Around 15 years ago it was $16,000. At least that is the best guess as to age. The 20 gal long tanks are set on the side walls in tiers of three's. The lighting is overhead at an angle lighting all three tiers at the same time. There are several rows of VHO's and they are long tubes. The 300 gals also have VHO's over them.
The cost of lighting is downright scary and we haven't talked about the electricity required, wiring, etc.
I once asked about his VHO lighting. Around 15 years ago it was $16,000. At least that is the best guess as to age. The 20 gal long tanks are set on the side walls in tiers of three's. The lighting is overhead at an angle lighting all three tiers at the same time. There are several rows of VHO's and they are long tubes. The 300 gals also have VHO's over them.
The cost of lighting is downright scary and we haven't talked about the electricity required, wiring, etc.
King Jason":3azzrtv3 said:
Yes. I used Martin Moe's "Marine Aquarium Reference" as a guide, he depicts several different plumbing layouts for multiple tank systems.
We went with a sump that feeds a header tank about 7 feet in the air. Then water flows by gravity to the display tanks, and then by gravity again back to the sump. One of the advantages to this system is that the water pressure is dependent only on the height of the header tank, so adjusting the flow to one tank does not affect the others. We did this twice, once for a coral system and once for fish, with a connecting system that can be turned off for isolation. We also built a seperate system for quarantine of new arrivals.
We looked briefly at the MARS system by Marineland, but the cost works out to $2,000 per 33 gallon tank. Insane.
sslarison":184jyoqk said:
I don't own a pet store, and never will
, but I have a financial background. The quality of your questions indicates to me that you have a lot of homework to do before moving forward with this venture. I’ve seen MANY pet stores opened by former service people that ended in failure. The common thread was that they were over their heads financially. If you’re serious about this, you should start by having a qualified business person or accountant prepare a business plan. You’re going to need to supply information such as a potential location of the store, square footage of store, rent, construction costs, cost of furniture and fixtures, cost of products for sale, labor costs, supply costs, utilities, taxes, etc. You should also consult with local contractors for electrical, plumbing, and carpentry estimates. Greg Schiemer
GSchiemer":3ufkgvu0 said:sslarison":3ufkgvu0 said:
I don't own a pet store, and never will
Greg Schiemer
Yes, but you're forgetting that the first valid question for any person interested in starting a small business is "What is it going to cost me" and "Will I be able to afford it." With those two questions out of the way a business plan can be drawn up and more preparations can be made. If I were ever to go down the road of starting a "pet shop" I would of course do more research then asking a few people questions on a bulletin board.
G.S.,
I appreciate the remarks. I understand what your saying, although what you do not know is that I have already consulted my good friend who is a successful Bank Examiner in So Cal and he said about the same thing as you. He said the thing to do would be to draw up a business plan. I then decided to begin my research here,and as Jason said this will not be the end of my search. Im sorry I didnt make that clear.(I guess) By the way Jason Im thinking of the Downey Area because its where i live and the local stores are pretty weak. North Downey is up scale and in my opinion would be perfect for a salt water fish store.
Any other help would be appreciated.
I appreciate the remarks. I understand what your saying, although what you do not know is that I have already consulted my good friend who is a successful Bank Examiner in So Cal and he said about the same thing as you. He said the thing to do would be to draw up a business plan. I then decided to begin my research here,and as Jason said this will not be the end of my search. Im sorry I didnt make that clear.(I guess) By the way Jason Im thinking of the Downey Area because its where i live and the local stores are pretty weak. North Downey is up scale and in my opinion would be perfect for a salt water fish store.
Any other help would be appreciated.
King Jason":34ufmgl7 said:GSchiemer":34ufmgl7 said:sslarison":34ufmgl7 said:
I don't own a pet store, and never will
Greg Schiemer
Yes, but you're forgetting that the first valid question for any person interested in starting a small business is "What is it going to cost me" and "Will I be able to afford it." With those two questions out of the way a business plan can be drawn up and more preparations can be made. If I were ever to go down the road of starting a "pet shop" I would of course do more research then asking a few people questions on a bulletin board.
You can't answer the question "What is it going to cost me" or "Will I be able to afford it" without going through the process I described above. If you go about this process in a half-assed way, you're doomed to failure. This is why the majority of small businesses fail within one year.
Greg Schiemer
G.S. , I dont come from a financial field but have good friends that do. I also have a Father in Law with a very successful business.(That did start small) So its going to be hard for me to take advice from someone who is apparently a non-believer in small businesses. Never the less someone who has not tried it. I believe that if you have some knowlege and the right people at your side you've got a good chance at just about anything. I, like Jason have seen the owner of Tongs driving nice cars and seen his store packed with people spending amounts of money that made me wonder how could I get into this. So I will continue my research and I hope to see you in my store some day. :wink:
A LFS here was selling after a bad buissness year for about $90k... I thought about buying it, but decided not too as my buissness also slowed down that year. I also needed to find a knowledgeable staff, as I after 2 years still consider myself a Newbie in the hobby. Store needed a huge face lift, but had a somewhat decent set-up... I lately have wondered "what if...."
Every business started out small some day...If you want to spout statistics you should also take note that 90% of our economy is based on the small business community. I thank people for thinking of taking a chance and starting up a new business. This is what helps our economy grow and provides jobs for our communities.
I think we are getting off topic and I want to focus the attention on the first questions before a moderator comes in and locks this thread.
I think we are getting off topic and I want to focus the attention on the first questions before a moderator comes in and locks this thread.
I am very good freinds with the owner of my LFS. Here is what I know from his experiences. The hardest part is finding good help for the wages you can afford to pay. Knowledgable reefers dont want to work for 8.00-10.00 per hour.
We built all of the interior of the store ourselves. Store consisted of 8-125 gal tanks, 8-75 gal tanks, 10 -55 gal tanks, 60 20 gal tanks, 10-40 gal breeders. Also a custom 560 gal reef, and custom 1700 gal FO. He estimates he spent 75K to get the store up and running, and stocked.
You can save $ by doing a lot of the work yourself. We drilled all of the tanks ourselves. A couple diamond bits and bulk heads are way cheaper than RR tanks. We also built the custom sumps from Outdoor pond liners, and the bio towers were rubbermaid trash cans. Other filtration items were top of the line, like Ozone, Skimmer, etc...
Good luck, it is not easy
We built all of the interior of the store ourselves. Store consisted of 8-125 gal tanks, 8-75 gal tanks, 10 -55 gal tanks, 60 20 gal tanks, 10-40 gal breeders. Also a custom 560 gal reef, and custom 1700 gal FO. He estimates he spent 75K to get the store up and running, and stocked.
You can save $ by doing a lot of the work yourself. We drilled all of the tanks ourselves. A couple diamond bits and bulk heads are way cheaper than RR tanks. We also built the custom sumps from Outdoor pond liners, and the bio towers were rubbermaid trash cans. Other filtration items were top of the line, like Ozone, Skimmer, etc...
Good luck, it is not easy
There good, I know in the short time Ive been serviceing tanks around here Ive seen that people want salt water but they think they cant handle it. There is a possible market. IMO thats what you need(you need the people that have the interest) They will eventually learn that they can do it and come running.
King Jason":xuu18tpo said:
It's great to talk about small businesses and the American way, but if you jump into to this without proper planning, despite all the confidence in the world, you WILL fail. How can anyone expect an intelligent response to a question about the cost of outfitting a store without at least disclosing such basic information such as the square-footage or gallons of livestock? We can all throw numbers around, such as $90K, but it's meaningless.
Recently my wife and I walked into a newly opened neighborhood fish store. It was primarily freshwater livestock, but included a saltwater aquarium and a spinning rack of dry goods. After looking around for a while and speaking with the young owner, I commented to my wife that he'd be out of business within three to six months. Unfortunately I was right. How did I know this? There were two clues. First, the owner was cocky, arrogant, had no prior business experience, and no one with business experience to assist him. Second, he didn't have enough inventory for sale. If someone had walked into the store and purchased his entire inventory of livestock and dry goods on the spot, it wouldn't have been enough to meet his monthly rent.
Then there's the story of the small fish store that opened up in a strip mall only to discover that a PetCo was opening across the street two months later. He closed three months after that.
Then there's the small pet store owner that was successful and decided to expand his business to a new and larger location around the corner. During the course of the process he ran into a number of unexpected expenses, such as replacing the floor and upgrading the air conditioning system. He was also virtually out of business for 6 weeks during what would have been a busy time of the year. By the time he was finished, he was finished. He didn't have enough money to stock the store with enough livestock or dry goods to support the business. It spiraled downhill from there and he went from a successful business to “out of business” in less than six months.
I can go on with the stories. The moral is don’t “pooh-pooh” proper business planning or advice from someone who just might know more than you when it comes to business.
Greg Schiemer
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