What fish do you desire?

[bigfishrcool1193]

i agree with jgentry mix up some fish and every now and then have some oddballs/rare

I dont really know any central american cichlids, but imo for south american

geophagus/satanoperca
maybe some crenicichla (larger ones or dwarfs)
maybe some dwarf cichlids like apistos, rams, etc.
severums (like you said)
festivums
maybe some wild type angelfish (altum/leopoldi/etc.)
and if you really want maybe get a few discus (I'm sure you dont want 20 discus if they don't sell because of price)
if festae are popular try to get some more females

jgentry

I would buy them in smallish groups until you know you can sell them

i agree with jgentry's above quote

 

[bigfishrcool1193]

silver dollars,

could also do some "rarer" silver dollars like Myleus schomburgkii

 

[boxerfish]

i agree with jgentry mix up some fish and every now and then have some oddballs/rare

I dont really know any central american cichlids, but imo for south american

geophagus/satanoperca
maybe some crenicichla (larger ones or dwarfs)
maybe some dwarf cichlids like apistos, rams, etc.
severums (like you said)
festivums
maybe some wild type angelfish (altum/leopoldi/etc.)
and if you really want maybe get a few discus (I'm sure you dont want 20 discus if they don't sell because of price)
if festae are popular try to get some more females


i agree with jgentry's above quote

I actually bought a group of festivums with hopes of breeding them. About 1/3 of my set up tanks are for breeding. Good point on the angelfish. I like the wild but not the regular. i took a chance and got some Veils and sold all of them almost immediately. I may force myself to like.

I want to eventually specialize in Discus and stingray. Going to Peru in January on a fish collecting trip and hope to bring back some wild fish including discus. I plan to breed them so I can offer them at cheaper cost. Was gonna get some from Discus Hans but got put on to another source that interest me more.

 

[bigfishrcool1193]

I actually bought a group of festivums with hopes of breeding them. About 1/3 of my set up tanks are for breeding. Good point on the angelfish. I like the wild but not the regular. i took a chance and got some Veils and sold all of them almost immediately. I may force myself to like.

I want to eventually specialize in Discus and stingray. Going to Peru in January on a fish collecting trip and hope to bring back some wild fish including discus. I plan to breed them so I can offer them at cheaper cost. Was gonna get some from Discus Hans but got put on to another source that interest me more.

sounds like a good plan, I hate how all the fish I want here in AZ are either illegal or hard to get (except discus) I paid $60 for a pair of festivums only because I was looking for them for two years. I also paid $60 for a pair of rapps F0 crenicichla regani via a lfs, when rapps had them for $15

sometimes getting fish that are harder to get frustrates me...
you also could divide your store for "rarer" fish, but also have community fish especailly if you are going to sell discus (like rummynose tetras, cardinal tetras, or some other colorful tetras)

angelfish seem to always be a good selling fish (at least in AZ, lfs get a shipment in of 30 of them, and they'll be gone in a week)

 

[boxerfish]

sounds like a good plan, I hate how all the fish I want here in AZ are either illegal or hard to get (except discus) I paid $60 for a pair of festivums only because I was looking for them for two years. I also paid $60 for a pair of rapps F0 crenicichla regani via a lfs, when rapps had them for $15

sometimes getting fish that are harder to get frustrates me...
you also could divide your store for "rarer" fish, but also have community fish especailly if you are going to sell discus (like rummynose tetras, cardinal tetras, or some other colorful tetras)

angelfish seem to always be a good selling fish (at least in AZ, lfs get a shipment in of 30 of them, and they'll be gone in a week)

That sucks. I hate reading the classified and seeing fish and supplies in SOCAL sold for prices that you could even dream of over this side of country. It also kills me to know that most of these fish cost little to nothing in coutries of their origin. Its export fees and hardinest of the fish that account for the hefty price tags. Makes me wish I lived in Florida or SA.

I do sell community fish. Cardinals are one of my biggest sellers since I sell them 6 for $10. Had a guy drive an hour and half away just to buy large order of cardinals and rummies. I try to sell cories but have a hard time keeping them alive, those and GBRs are the hardest for me tho recently I've been doing good with rams.

South Americans are my fav but I am really starting to get into Lake Tangyinkan cichlids but not too many people realize how colorful and personable these fish are. Currently setting up six 40G tanks for Lake Tangs. Gotta switch it up like you guys said.

 

[Plec123]

I suggest selling angelicus botias more than clowns. sure, sell clowns too, but, keep in mind that angelicus botias stay smaller, and , in my opinion, are much better looking.
also, always keep a variety of plecos other than commons.
... and, keep some exotic characins like annostomus, abramites, and glass headstanders.

 

[bigfishrcool1193]

That sucks. I hate reading the classified and seeing fish and supplies in SOCAL sold for prices that you could even dream of over this side of country. It also kills me to know that most of these fish cost little to nothing in coutries of their origin. Its export fees and hardinest of the fish that account for the hefty price tags. Makes me wish I lived in Florida or SA.

I do sell community fish. Cardinals are one of my biggest sellers since I sell them 6 for $10. Had a guy drive an hour and half away just to buy large order of cardinals and rummies. I try to sell cories but have a hard time keeping them alive, those and GBRs are the hardest for me tho recently I've been doing good with rams.

South Americans are my fav but I am really starting to get into Lake Tangyinkan cichlids but not too many people realize how colorful and personable these fish are. Currently setting up six 40G tanks for Lake Tangs. Gotta switch it up like you guys said.

I and my moms co-worker (also a fish hobbyist) can never keep GBRs alive, yet i have discus (which in fact aren't that difficult to keep)

I have some sterbai cory's with my discus, they are amazingly colorful little cory's and prefer the higher temps that discus like.

Great that you have some of the "non-persmart" tetras (but i have seen cardinals at a petsmart here) because selling community fish is where you'll make the money (hate to say it because I love the rarer fish)


and you are mixing it up, i really dont care for african cichlids, but once i get my three main tanks/ponds of SA fish, then I'll do a little shell dwelling tank....... but first I have to move out of my parents house

 

[kevbc03]

Electric Blue Jack Dempseys?

 

[bigfishrcool1193]

I suggest selling angelicus botias more than clowns. sure, sell clowns too, but, keep in mind that angelicus botias stay smaller, and , in my opinion, are much better looking.
also, always keep a variety of plecos other than commons.
... and, keep some exotic characins like annostomus, abramites, and glass headstanders.

IME abramites are very fin-nippy, anostomus dont like eachother unless you have a school of about six or more.

also chilodus dont really like each other, I got four because they were cheap, dominant one was the only one left.

i still like all of those fish because of their looks, and how unusual they swim.

OP, you could also do the occasional predatory characin, hujeta gar, sailfin tetra, exodons, boulengerella species, etc.

Another fish that interests me are the spash tetras, copella arnoldi, how they jump out of the water to lay their eggs on leaves above the waters surface, and then the male spashes the eggs every 10 seconds or something like that... every interesting IMO

 

[Kcoastsurfguy]

Thanks jgentry,
I've been bugging my wholesaler to get tapajos and chocolate cichlids but they haven't yet. I also been hesitant of getting EBJD because I didn't want to lose money on them but i probably will make good money on them too. I also just ordered a few Synsipilums. I have about 55 tanks but only about half are up and running. I'm a one man crew with occassional help but I've been getting good business so far. Most of my sales are from repeat or referred customers.

Kcoast. I didn't mention it but I don't have a physical store. I operate out of my basement and don't do persoanl visits. I don't think i want to do a petstore, I will probably upgrade to a warehouse sometime next year and concentrate on breeding more and selling online and to stores. My website is very basic but its www.skoolzoffish.com I am currently working on a better site but my time is very limited now a days.

Thanks for the help and please keep the desired fish list going.

Ooh Ok thanks, I didnt realize it wasnt a physical store LOL, but Im checkin out the site now