What makes an LFS good?

[AmazonPredator]

The lfs selection here in Oklahoma City is poor...very poor. I have about 4 stores in total to choose from and only one might get the occasional baby predator/rare find. That particular store has a knowledgable owner but she's a ***** and a half to customers. One thing I like is that the set up is 20 gallons instead on 10's and the fishes are divided up according to aggression, while the "rare" or occasional oddities are dispersed so you're forced to look carefully into every tank. I'm more of a "scanner" when it comes to filtering out the common community fish and pinpointing something worth buying. The ideal lfs should have great customer service, ALL knowledgeable staff, fair prices, and a decent set up & selection. I have yet to find this place.

 

[rallysman]

1. No selling of dyed or painted fish. There's a great store in Phoenix called the Ocean Floor, a bit pricey, but they sell dyed fish without any warnings about how this is done. Hence I do not shop there at all, which is a pity, since they could make a mint off whatever fish the zoo might want!

2. No hybrids for sale without being labelled as such. Flowerhorns, etc.

3. Clean tanks, and tanks that have fish in them marked Not For Sale when the fish are ill.

4. Knowledgable staff.

5. Scientific names along with common names on the tanks.

6. Not just the bread and butter: give me some brackish fish, some wild caught angels, baby whales, elephantnoses the size of most adult oscars. Give me a reason to buy another tank!

And while not a key to making a great store, the most fave lfs of mine has a row of tanks with fish people drop off/donate/get store credit for. The tanks are labelled as such, and the prices lower than store stock, usually. It's great to find the oddball cory or tetra in there that I've never seen before!

AMEN! i couldnt have said it better myself, unless i drink more. #1 is totally the truth. You are a good person!

 

[repair]

I agree with most of what you have all said but I will point out a few things....

#1 we all want high quality fish at a low price..... very hard to do because of the stores overhead...

#2 I agree that we don't want to see dyed fish sold but as long as there is a demand some shops will sell them.... we need to educate the public because while we want shop owners to do the right thing we will always have some that will do most anything for money.... Heck untill this last week I don't know how they dyed the fish. I doubt that PETA would help.... not enough money in it for them too care.

You would be surprized to find out how many of the LFS people don't know how
the fish are dyed... build a relationship and then educate them and maybe you can get them to stop carying them. Remember threats don't get us anything.

#3 No hybrids for sale without being labelled as such... why? Would it make difference? Most customers buy on looks.... they don't care if it's a cross between a cat and a mouse as long as it looks good.

I find that a lot of the shops I go into ask me for info and I often hear the employees giving wrong advice. How do we stop this? heck I don't know. Ever notice that a lot of the people who work at the LFS aren't the brightest and they are just there for the paycheck.

If you figure the normal mark up on fish and equiptment you have to sell a lot of fish to pay for the overhead so don't compare the LFS store to the internet retailers who don't have much in overhead.

I ask that the tanks be clean... the shop be clean and they are eager to help even if they can't.

 

[FlammingWoodChuck]

Do you guys prefer the stacks of 10 gallon tanks? Would stacks of like like 33 long tanks be better?

What kind of filtration would you like to see? (I know I always dislike seeing box filters in stores)

at my LFS he has stacked 29g. and some 55g+ tanks

 

[pleco_fan]

Cheap prices, nice selection, and knowlegeable staff. The problem is that stores with these things have high prices.

 

[Plantguy]

Vern Parish's Basement was the best fish shop Ive ever known.

When I walk into a shop, the things I look for are healthy plants, and healthy corals, If I find those, usually everything else is good. Like most others, if I see anything dyed, dead, or dying, I dont buy. I talk to the people running the fish room about it, and come back in a week to see if they want my money yet. Unfortunately, the best shops Ive run accross, are in Japan.

Jonathan...

 

[loach43]

I love exotics but I'm also very fond of common fish too. A nicely planted tank filled with rasboras, cardinals and other little gems makes me ALMOST as happy as a big tank with rare inhabitants. If a retailer has more "commons" than "exotics", I'm usually not terribly disappointed as long as the stock is healthy. My biggest turn-off with retailers is to see a bunch of scraggly specimens that became that way from the neglect of an uneducated and/or careless store owner/manager. I feel like putting my hands around their necks when I see a a batch of ick infested silver dollars that have chewed each others fins off in an overcrowded aquarium filled with cloudy nitrate infested water. My second biggest turn-off is when fish are sold to beginners with no basic "heads up" info. Classic example: How often do you suppose oscars have been sold to people who have no idea that 10 gallons of water won't cut it in the long haul? Most first time buyers don't even know that cichlids are usually aggressive! I don't think that it would be rude or obtrusive for someone working the floor to ask things like: "What are you going to put your new albino frog in with?" or "Do you know how big pacus get?". To sum up my babblings, a good fish store, regardless of tank sizes and fish variety should have HEALTHY FISH and an INFORMATIVE STAFF that cares more about aquarium success stories than making that one extra sale.

 

[TaratronVaeVictus]

My fave lfs, called Pets Inc, is in Tempe, AZ, and basically has all the qualities I listed in my previous post. Awesome saltwater, fair prices on fish (the hard goods are a bit more expensive than other stores, but they do have to make money somewhere, after all!), and a great staff in all departments of the store. If only the place wasn't 40 miles from my home...I'd work there part time!

 

[Steve_89]

Having clean tanks and healthy fish is one of the most vital things a LFS must have and it is the first thing I look for. When I clean the tanks at my LFS I treat everyone as if its my own whether it contains neon tetras or jardini arowana.

Knowledgeable staff is another must for me, also kindness can go a long way. I also like staff that care for the fish, and will not only sell a fish for a sale but also to make sure it goes to a good home. Sometimes you cant always acheive this but I try and do this whenever I can.

I also think having display tanks around the shop also helps. I love going to an LFS that has numerous tanks setup up for display that look awesome.

As for variety, here in AUS we dont exactly get exotic fish so that limits variety but they do what they can.

 

[guppy]

Clean tanks, healthy fish, prompt treatment of sick fish, quarantine of new shipments, 20-30g tanks with a few 10g for special cases and a few big display or monsterfish tanks. Knowlegable and friendly staff, a willingness to special order, a reasonable fissh guarantee or return policy.