LFS Survey

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hisc1ay- that is something that I like a whole lot, if they will order something for you. Azalea Aquariums always tells me they will order something, but then they call and say they could not get it. So far no luck! Noah's Pets has offered to order for me but I have never taken them up on it (don't know how close they are to you).

Great thread! I agree with what has been posted above and wish more LFS bothered to inquire what their customers would like.
 
I'm in Orlando, FL. Just a quick reminder - I don't own a store yet. I'm just in the research phase. I'm deciding between opening a franchise or starting from scratch.
 
I live near the orlando area and there is allready a fish store that meets thoes specs. But hey i would welcome a new one! I have only gone to that one store for the past year and it is every thing you could want in your LFS you got SW FW planted FW and all the stuff the goes along with it. Sweet display tanks of all kinds. Great all around fish store. JIMK may have heard of it ( Fishy Bussiness ) Longwood area. Sounds like im very lucky compared to some other people on this forum. They hold fish order what ever you want.
 
I never go to any other fish store so mabe i just think its a great store??? But in a year i dont have anything to say but good about it! Everyone has there opinion thats why this is a forum right? But if you think you can open a better fish store than Fishy Business than i would surely give you my business!! The thing that he has that most others do not is that he has been in business for over 20 years. That is more impressive to me than i dry floor. He must be doing something right. I have followed his every word on fish keeping for the past year and have yet to have even one problem. And in closing he does provide every one of the above request that all thoes people were talking about so......... But i wish you the best of luck and if you do open it please post the add. on here so i can come check it out.
 
I really don't want to put anyone down, but I thought I would elaborate briefly:

1. The sales tanks are not lit, are bare, and have the short end facing out. It's very hard to see the fish and they don't show well in those displays. He does have a good selection of fish and they do seem healthy.

2. The variety and selection of plants is very limited.

3. The variety and selection of dry goods is limited.

4. The staff are not very friendly or helpful. but they are knowledgeable The owner can be rude. If he's been in business that long, it's either loyal customers or lack of alternatives in the area.

So, I only shop there out of necessity.
 
I know a few of my LFS hire staff and create a service in which they go to peoples houses fill up the tanks, and will go monthly or weekly for cleaning water tests and changes, this service is easy and can bring in big bucks, personally i like clening my own tank but there are many people out there who want fish but dont want to care for them
 
Interesting idea ... I am familiar with maintenance services for public places, like offices and restaurants, but I was not aware people would pay for maintenance at home.
 
oh yeah especially rich people who dont like getting their hands dirty, some will actually pay you to set up and design it then take care of it. It's like having another personal tank
 
Qt any fish trade ins, I will never buy from one lfs in my area because they simply dump their trade in fish in the tanks. I saw them dump a Green Spotted Puffers in with a tankful of columbian sharks that clearly had ick and that just raised a ton of questions in my mind as to the competance of the staff.
The maintenance of the tanks is the best determination for me. If I see dead, sick fish or dirty aquariums I just cringe and walk out.
One thing that I would really love to see is a decent fish profile at a lfs. Semi aggressive /aggressive /peaceful is just not a very good way to sort fish. I would drool if I walked in somewhere where next to the tank it had ph, kh, full grown sizes, suitable tankmates, minimum tank size requirements, and if possible ways to determine the sex of the fish. That would make me so happy I don't think I would ever buy from any other store.
Mixed species tanks at lfs are also completely awesome. It's nice to see a tank that looks like something that you're trying to create. I'd much rather look at a 55 gallon with cories, tetras, danios loaches, etc. mixed together than a 20 gallon with 500 danios in it.
NO BETTAS IN CUPS. It drives me nuts and just about every single fish enthusiast I have talked to agrees.
Buy fish from local breeders. I love when the lfs tells me "Well normally you would need to do this to the water but these fish are from a local breeder and thus are acllimated to the water conditions so don't worry about it"
Also, I would also reiterate that allowing some type of return policy is a must. I refuse to go back to possibly the best lfs in the area because I spent $60 on 2 fish (that's alot for us freshies) and had the fish die within 2 days due to no fault of my own (they even said their entire shipment died) but they said that's too bad, we have no return policy on livestock. I never return cheap fish and rarely have had to ever return a fish but I think that a week's guarantee is not too much to ask.
Basically, I think most fish people understand that you have to make money. For the most part all we want is for the tank not to look like something you see at the local dentists office and a knowleadgable person to help us.
Please come down to New Orleans and open an lfs, all of ours are horrible. :cry:
The local petsmart(I must say that not all of them are bad-no bettas in cup either) is by far the best place to buy fish and I get sick of looking at the same fish every day when I stop by on my way home. It would be nice to see a good lfs.
 
another comment on Fishy Business....... they do not label the SW fish very well and i have to agree that the staff definitely does not exude friendliness or project a willingness to help.


please keep us filled in on your plans.........It would be awesome if you opened one in this area. I live in the Sanford area.
 
Thanks for all the great feedback. Now, if I could just everyone in this forum to move to Orlando, I'd be in business!
 
Well once your business starts booming, you can afford to relocate all of us. :)

Of course by then you won't need us...

-j
 
I stopped relying on the knowledge of the staff at local fish stores a few years ago. I research what I want before going to buy. Knowledgeable staff would be nice.

My main thing is the quality of the fish and the price. I will pay a bit more than at a cheeper store if the quality of the fish is better. One example is that at many stores these days I see red tailed black sharks with gray bodies and faded red tails. About a week ago I went to a mom and pop pet store and saw one of the best red tailed black sharks I have seen in a long time. Its body was solid black (not gray) and its tail was a bright solid red. That is the one I would buy. I sometimes spend months looking at pet stores waiting for a good quality fish to show up. If it is not good enough I won't buy it and if I am shopping around for that fish that day and need other things then I won't buy anything unless you happen to be the last store I visit that day.

I like a guarantee on the fish that way I know that if the fish was sick before I bought it (even though it showed no signs of being sick) I can replace the fish for free. When I shop at a store without any guarantee then I am unlikely to risk more than $10 on any one fish.

I won't buy fish from a tank if I see a dead or sick fish in that tank.
 
rubysoho said:
My lfs owner tried doing that and now I refuse to go back to that store unless the one guy I trust is there.

what store is that?
 
Reef Magic... no offense to the owner, I know he is just trying to make money, but I know if I were in his position I'd give the customer options and realize that this person might not be able to afford some of the higher end stuff. So I just don't feel comfortable going there anymore unless the guy I mentioned it there because he is also a college student and understands.

*edit* btw, I'm in Boone, NC up in the mountains :D
 
i live in cary (right next to raleigh, and the only fish-oriented store is a place called fish pro's, which has a ton of different kinds of fish that you can't find other places around here, but i hardly ever go there because of the insane prices
 
I like having a variety of dry goods to choose from.

Dead fish aren't the most active fish to watch in my LFS :/ I like the little labels they have at petsmart. Maybe show the temperment of the fish, how large they get, and what size tank they need.

There's one store by my house that has a really need display tank for plants on sale. They have a strip of masking tape on the front of the tank that says the name of the plant. Then the plants are planted in a row behind the masking tape. This other LFS just has a bunch of "potted plants" in a tank and you have to guess and see if you got the one you want.

Organization is key! :D
 
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