What would the perfect lfs have?

fishgeek01

fishgeek01

Active Member
I am doing a little research before going on a joint venture with a friend, we were thinking of starting an aquatics only store, with an emphasis on saltwater... I just wondered what everybody would want in an lfs, what types of unique things do your local lfs's have that make them better... Also how far are you willing to travel to get to a good lfs? sorry for posting in 3 forums, but i was receiving no responses when i posted, and i want everyones ideas, i want the best lfs ever
 
fishgeek01

fishgeek01

Active Member
sopunds good, but for what type of items, merchandise, livestock, obviously not everything could be buy on eget one, but i like where you are going with this
 
jleithiser

jleithiser

Member
Include a wide variety of fish. My lfs only has 1 or 2 angels, and maybe 5 tangs, a couple of percula clownfish, and lots of damsels and gobies. :mad: So include lots of fish.
 
fishgeek01

fishgeek01

Active Member
i am going to have a seperate area in the back for qt, my fish will stay there a min of 2 wks, and be eating and healthy before being put on sales floor. As for variety it is the spice of life, and its what i expect out of an lfs thanks for the input travis89
 
fishgeek01

fishgeek01

Active Member
when you guys reply to this thread would you mind taking the time to answer my poll question, i want to get an idea of how far people will travel for quality, quantity, and affordability
 
poniegirl

poniegirl

Active Member
My favorite LFS has the low open tanks for his corals, so you can also see them from the top. It really does make a difference to see them that way. Also keeps his LR that way.
He does layaway plans for me, which is wonderful for the big $ purchases on a working mom salary.
Also, if you had a Johnny Depp look-a-like, I'd drive across the country.
 
fishgeek01

fishgeek01

Active Member
i like the low style tanks as well, there is a place not far from me about 60 miles that has 2 huge tanks like that, 8 ft wide by about 15 feet long very nice... layaway is always good, and as for the J.D. connection, ist just not there..... sorry ponie girl
 
rara12

rara12

Member
I think you should have a nice display tank as soon as you walk in. Another thing i like is an unusual stock. Some of the fish i see at absolutly fish (my fav lfs) i have never seen. Oh and you need a spiffy name, like "Down by the bay" or "Full of fins". Something fun. And what i like most about some of the local shops is they always have damsels in....the back of the store

and for the buy one get one free thing, do it with the cheaper damsels
 
fishgeek01

fishgeek01

Active Member
thanks rara12 for the input i like the rarely seen items at my local lfs as well... even if they are very expensive or only for display. Also i think i might start another thread to brainstorm lfs names with, that way i have a great name or as you say a fun name...
 
ryan115

ryan115

Member
At the lfs that I worked at, we had all of the tanks plumbed together in one system. This helps by adding stability to the system as a whole, by having such a large amount of water. I dont see a whole lot of harm in doing it this way if you are going to QT your fish ahead of time, that way you wont have to worry as much about spreading diseases in the system. These were plumbed through to the back room where all of the sumps and filters are(made it really easy to top off and do water changes). The tower filters he build used the plastic drawers that you can get at wally world. Each drawer was filled with carbon, and bio media and such.
I would also have devoted systems for Coral and fish. It causes way to many problems if you are trying to chase a wrasse around through corals.
A forwarning though. Doing what is right for the hobby and doing what is cost effective are on two opposite ends of the spectrum. I would hope going into this that you think things through. Water changes can get expensive when done properly. Dont go by some LFS philosophy of keeping the salinity low just to stave off disease only to have fish die b/c people dont acclimate long enough to go from say 1.018 to 1.025.
One last thing I know some people that have gotten in touch with Anthony Calfo. And he has given them advice on setting up large fish rooms, and might be able to give some pointers. If everything works out allright I might just have to travel up to Indy to come and see the store.
 
jesikarose

jesikarose

Member
Name Your fish store... The LFS... LOL... I would loved for people to sit there and look at the sign and be like... what in the world.. lol... But i think the name is already taken by some lawyer guy...but i still think it would be cool
 
xdave

xdave

Active Member
LOL I Googled L.F.S. and couldn't find a corp named exactly that way. In the last big store system I helped set up, we used pvc drill hole shavings for the filter media. When we went to pick up the pipe it was everywhere. There was one machine that fed the shavings right into a box as it ran and they let us have as much as we wanted. It worked great. I built a filter for a bait shop and use lava gravel from home Depots garden dept.
 
darbo

darbo

New Member
I too have been thinking of opening a fish store. Here are some of the ideas I have come up with.....
1 a nice 150g display tank.
2 set up the store with most if not all of the filters behind the wall or out of site.
3 3 other tanks set up one with fish only 30g or so with a good, not top of the line filters. to get the lower budget people hooked. second one a 50g with all good filters/sump and ok lights to get the more advanced fish collector. and a third with all the bells and whistles on it to show them you can have a mini reef in your home with out taking th whole room up.
4 a nice fat friendly bench in front of your for sale fish. so fat people like me can sit and watch the fish while I think of how many big macs I will have to not get to get the fish I want.
5 A sales person that knows what they are talking about. And if they dont know, dont try to make a guess just say I have no clue but I will help you look it up or find out from someone that knows.
6 a 300 g pond with live rock for the picking.
7 ability to special order fish you dont nomaly stock
8 A service where you go to the customer and service there tank for a fee.
9 cheap RO water and mixed water
10 a frequent buyers program.... buy 2 fish get free water or a % off another fish .... buy 4 g of water get the 5th free.... for every 100$ spent get a % off an item.... stuff like that.
11 try to match any online price as well as any local stores.
its late but there are some of my ideas. if you want more E-mail me at darbo@charter.net.
Darbo
 
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