Biz discussion, retail... re lack of sophistication in the
trade, links check 11/5/10
I have been reading
through the pages on your site related to aquarium store business. Bob
Fenner writes some very practical advise for initial considerations.
FYI, the links under the following web page on your site don't
work: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/aqbizsubwebindex/bizsetupfaqs.htm
<Wow, all of them? Will have to check. Thank you for this>
Where does someone that really wants to start an aquarium business find
some more "concrete" and practical financial and operational
information on aquarium stores, such as:
1. Who are the 3 largest aquarium products distributors/wholesalers
selling exclusively for resale (not running online or other retail
outlets of their own)?
<Mmm, whereabouts? Central Garden is undoubtedly the largest... at
their various locations in the U.S.... Royal Pet Supplies in New York,
maybe number two... Lee Mar in S. Cal. possibly third... they don't
have "phony wholesaling", nor etailing>
I found two companies online that both claimed to be "one of the
biggest", yet neither one seemed to be interested in answering
their phones. As a future potential retailer/customer of theirs...this
makes a very negative statement about what I can expect of them in the
future.
OR, do most retail stores purchase direct from the
manufacturers/vendors?
<This is and has been a growing trend in Europe and the U.S.>
If so, how does one get in touch with them....I couldn't find a
trade directory.
<See Pet Business re: their business guide (issue as well) can be
found here: http://buyersguide.petbusiness.com/>
2. Where can a person find recommended plan-o-grams for or from
successful stores based on linear running shelves or units for
non-livestock merchandise?
<Mmm, these you may have to pay for... there are agencies that offer
such services in and outside the trade... Are you familiar w/ Streater
fixtures?
http://www.streater.com/
Do get hold of some current industry 'zines... search the
classifieds in back>
Generally these will have recommend stocking levels and turnover
recommendations so the individual store can adjust the inventory as
needed. But you need a place to start. I don't want to put in an
8' sectional wall unit of flake food if only 2 shelves are
sufficient!
3. Where can a person find a recommended inventory list for an aquarium
store offering mostly freshwater, but some marine and pond
products/livestock (by range of store sq feet would be nice; such as
1,500 - 2,500; 2,500-5,000; etc)?
<Mmm, most likely and free info. such as this can be gotten
from/through the big suppliers... W/ a "bag", not a grain of
salt>
I know it will vary by location and emphasis or interest..but surely
there is a benchmark or foundation.
<Ask your Central rep. re>
4. Where can a person locate explicit financial benchmarking data?
<Nowhere as far as I'm aware. There are some olde SBA data
about... again very dated>
In the retail industry I came from, details were available and
comparable based on size of operations and/or region of the country
giving very specific information about gross sales by category, cost of
goods sold by category, personnel and occupancy costs, sales per
sq' by category, averages of space (retail, office,
receiving/staging, etc), refund information by category, shrinkage,
online sales, major expenses categories, comparisons of all the
previous to prior years, size of store to market, market requirements,
and so forth. I am having trouble finding solid information from which
a person could make reasonable assumptions based on their own locale
and that they could use for benchmarking. I will tell you, that as much
as I love the industry, I am not going to invest $200,000 for a $20,000
salary!
<Mmm, not prudent, but your choice. How to put a response re the
information you seek... the "big players"; Petco, PetSmart,
et al. don't share such proprietary data, and the small players
don't gather such>
5. What is the recommended level of livestock for various sized
stores?
For example, it would be silly to have 1,000 tanks of fish in a market
of 50,000 people! How is turnover of livestock measured and what are
the recommended ratio's?
<Great questions... in that they have no simple, easily-defined
responses... Best for one to conduct interviews/visits in real
designated geographic/demographic markets... SEE what is being offered,
confer w/ the people owning/managing these locations... attempt to
discern what their most profitable elements are, what are merely
decorous... and which are wasteful, to be avoided>
6. For modern retailing, what systems are recommended for maintaining
the livestock?
<Centralized... commercial or custom...>
I know there was a huge controversy a few years ago between centralized
continuous flow and individual tank 'closed' systems. What are
modern successful stores doing to maintain healthy stock, prevent
disease
contamination, yet reduce labor costs?
<More to do w/ selection of better/best suppliers, preventative
dips/baths... careful accounting of origins, troubles... future
avoidance>
I tried to ask some of these questions from a larger store back east,
but they didn't want to talk to me....I think I scared them. :)
But, you need good information to create good plans if you are going to
succeed...especially with box store and online competition
pressures.
Thanks
MShires
<Mmm, do consider coming out to Aquarama in May... and chatting w/
friends in tow... and/or visiting wholesalers... if you can in LA...
I'll plan/join you. Really. Bob Fenner, out in Fiji currently,
visiting/diving w/ friends in the trade>
Re: Biz discussion... need for biz and mktg plans... incl. quantitative
analysis 11/11/10
Very much appreciated your replies. My wife, a very down to earth,
roots run deep, conservative by nature person thinks that venturing
into an aquarium store industry at this time is crazy, and that it
can't be done without very solid numbers.
<I do agree w/ her stance... Much of the industry is run blindly,
sans solid business planning, enumeration. And the times nowadays...
harrowing>
She is also concerned about the excessive high cost of inventory vs.
invested return...you have to sell a LOT of guppies to pay for a $2,000
per mo lease! Even if you have very high margins, you have to sell so
many for any practical return, she is concerned the revenue would be
too low "...otherwise..." she said, "...there would be
stores like these all over the place...."
<Perhaps>
Seems this industry is very suspicious of revealing numbers, or, simply
not interested and has no vested reason to gather this information.
<As previously stated, the sophisticated players are prudently
number oriented, but not willing to share their data>
I talked to one small store owner, and I could see panic in his
face...these were questions he never asked himself and had no idea of
even how find the answers. I resisted giving him an offer of a
financial statement or managerial accounting advise...I don't think
he knows about these and I also suspect, now, many store owners
don't.
<Correct>
I can assure you the "box" stores do! Maybe a convention
needs to have a seminar session on "the business of business"
LOL!
<These are proffered at most all industry/retailer shows... not
well-attended by and large>
Ah well.
More homework. Unless I can convince my wife that this is something we
should do, I doubt that I will see you in LA...but thanks for the
offer.
Enjoy Fiji...it is cold and rainy here in Washington!
Mill
<Am back in S. Cal... A very nice day today! Cheers, BobF>
Re: Service Gear Sterilization. billing terms
1/30/10
Hi Bob,
<Mike>
Thank you for your response! I will be sure to start with that process
and rotate more gear into the service rig. I have also gotten response
for the vet to use a Povidone iodine solution to disinfect the gear
between services. Do you see any potential problems over the long term
(or short term!) with this process?
<Mmm, discoloration of gear, clothes, hands... and tends to make
some types of netting brittle over time/exposure>
I certainly will be rinsing well, but am a little concerned about more
absorptive gear like algae sponges.
<Oh yes... these too>
Perhaps a spray bottle in the service van with a bleach solution to
spray down bucket handles and stepladders in between client visits.
Ah! Wasn't sure if I could mention specific products here. Yes, the
Spectrum line is definitely on the menu for all of my clients fish
fresh and salt, along with Omega One, Rod's Reef and dry Nori.
<Good products I agree>
Certainly hope that with the sample we are able to stop this problem in
its' tracks. It is heart breaking to see perfectly healthy fish
waste away for what appears to be no good reason. If there were to be a
bacterial relation to this wasting of these tangs, would a Melafix
treatment be of any help?
<No>
All of these tangs are in reef aquariums with some elaborate
aquascaping and it would be rather difficult to remove them. Possible
if necessary though.
<Again, prophylactic treatment with Metronidazole and an
anthelminthic...
at your shop/facility is the best>
Another question for you off topic if I could. I have been having a lot
of difficulty with clients and late payments on accounts.
<Definitely a sign of these bad times>
At the moment very behind to the point that ordering and basic
operation of business has been greatly affected. I have put in place a
late fee for past due accounts with a 5 day grace period and
discontinuation of service 15 days past the grace period.
<Wow!>
How do you feel about this approach given the economy?
<In my time we were more lenient...>
Should I just bite the bullet and wait for payment?
<I would... extend terms a bit longer at least... a month... Calling
the client at two week intervals on lates>
I have considered that it may be better to be owed the money than to
not be making it at all, but at the same time thousands of dollars in
unpaid service invoices are piling up and to make matters worse some
include product! I am interested in your opinion on this and your
experiences.
Again, thank you for your advice.
Regards,
Michael P. Gillespie
<Thank you for sharing Mike. Cheers, BobF>
Re: Service Gear Sterilization. & Finance --
02/02/10
Hello Bob,
<Hey Mike>
Thank you for your advice on that last question. I thought that the
plan was fair, but wasn't sure what to look at as a standard.
<Mmm, well... I've been to several (from the Middle English
meaning "many") aquaculture facilities, pet-fish and aquatic
source protein, research and earnest production, around the world...
Some folks use nothing (!), others
have a whole bunch of separate gear, but most use formalin/formaldehyde
or a bleach (hypochlorite generally) that they switch out daily and
make anew... Some use other materials that I'd just as not mention
here for fear of having people make big errors in poisoning their
stock... The better approach IMO/E has been to have "separate
areas" like AquaTouch out in Phoenix, AZ, where all new/incoming
livestock is COMPLETELY isolated from established stocks for two
weeks... ALL gear, tanks, even filter media (which is bleached every
two weeks and replaced by established)... are distally located from
store/for sale, service/for-stocking organisms>
The other legitimate service companies in my area typically require
payment at the time of service.
<I would NOT do this... how legitimacy has anything to do w/ this
arrangement I don't see... A professional service that is ongoing
in nature will have established terms of at least monthly
billing.>
My clients are left a receipt at each visit with their totals for
service and materials or livestock if applicable for the visit.
<Really? If this works out for you, so be it. Our service companies
had a financial division that handled all billing, collection...
Monthly statements mailed out, computer generated billing, with the
cost for all (inclusive and not... i.e. cost-plus... livestock, food,
salt etc.) detailed from the service tech.s Account Folder
notes>
On the first of each month the total bills are all put together on a
statement and sent out with payment due within 10 days and then the 5
day grace period.
<Oh... I see>
Should I go with totals due 30 days from the 1st of the month?
<Yes; I would change to this last. Five days grace is not enough
time IMO>
Regards,
Michael P. Gillespie
<And you. Bob Fenner>
Re: Service Gear Sterilization. -- 02/02/10
Hi Bob,
<Again hello to you Michael>
I understand. Looks like I may have to consider making some changes to
my billing policy. I apologize, by legitimate I was speaking of other
licensed service businesses that I know of. There are some "side
job" operations that I don't know much about.
<Surely... and I do want to remark that I applaud your apparently
open attitude. Being nimble of mind (and foot) is a hallmark of a
successful individual, business person and even species>
We do a decent job at maintaining a clean shop with our holding systems
and all livestock from fish to snails are quarantined prior to addition
to the clients tanks. There are some clients that just can't wait
and will add things that they see in stores. I like the idea of the
bleach as I am sure that it will be far more effective than the hot
water alone. I feel that the service route is the area where there is a
lot of room for improvement.
I just want to make sure that I use the most effective method that is
safe for the livestock and that wont add a large amount of time to the
service visit.
Thanks You,
Michael P. Gillespie
<Ahh, and I would be remiss to not mention the need for at least
another "bucket in series" for rinsing nets and specimen
containers after sterilization/dipping. BobF>
Re: Service Gear Sterilization. -- 02/02/10
Bob,
Thank you again for all your help and time with my questions. I am
looking forward to Aprils conference! Take care and be well.
Regards,
Michael P. Gillespie
<Thank you my friend. B>
Aquatic Creations LLC
379 Amherst St. PMB 131.
Nashua, NH 03063
www.ReefDelivery.com
NNN Lease 8/18/09
Mr. Fenner,
<Nate>
Thanks very much for the data section on the sba website!
<Welcome>
So far things are looking good at signing a pretty nice contract to
open a 1200 sqft store. I will be bringing along the local Petco's
fish dept manager to share the work with.
<Ahh! Am hopeful you two have very confluent value systems,
goals>
He has maintained the highest salt water sales in all eastern seaboard
Petcos for a few years now. Im really very excited to see what he can
do with 3000+ gallons of salt water. :)
<Me too!>
I would really prefer not to sign a NNN lease...Are there any allowable
parts of my contract that are OK to lack in promise when I have a much
better lease? Any suggestions on how to go about not having to pay for
Utilities?
<VERY important to get as much "help" as reasonable in
negotiating your lease... I cannot emphasize enough how critically
important this is at this juncture... DO chat with other tenants at the
strip mall, setting... even properties nearby... Re what they pay, what
the history of the triple net has been... DO have someone familiar with
leases, leasing assist you here... MUCH that is proposed initially, in
"boiler plate" agreements IS negotiable. Is the landlord or
their agent offering incentives, such as monies for TI's (Tenant
Improvements)? Any allowance/free initial rent for your signing? What
is covered in the NNN? When's the last time major improvements such
as sealing, striping the parking was done? What sort of reserve funds
does the property cover? Demand to see records of all.
Believe me, "it's your money" and will be for years into
the future. Know where it's going, and limit your costs,
exposure>
I will be using all Reeflo dart gold pumps, Aquactinic fixtures on reef
tanks rather than halides, EcoTech MP pumps to add flow where needed(or
just Koralias), I've already got a 4k Deltec to use on the main
reef system...but in theory, with all of the energy efficient and low
heat products along with central air, I may not have to worry too much
about having to chill the systems.
<Good. Better to "condition" the air space by far>
I've already got some great account set up for the equipment side
of things.
For livestock I really only know of FishHeads and pacific island
imports.
I plan on doing more frequent smaller orders rather than fewer larger
ones.
Do you know of any other livestock dealers that tend to prefer the
smaller orders? And the occasional very large orders?
<Much to state here... could you give me some ideas, quality,
quantity and organism group-wise of what you think you will use? You
have surveyed your closer competitors I take it... Do you live near by
one of the major import cities? You list LA sources... if distal
sourcing will be your general practice, DO come out, visit the major
wholesalers, to establish contacts, ideas of who you will be dealing
with. I make occasional forays up north (live most of the year in San
Diego)... and can/will help to introduce you if you'd like>
Thanks again,
-Nate
<Welcome. Bob Fenner>
Re: NNN Lease 8/18/09
Mr. Fenner,
The landlord wanted $18 a sqft plus $4.5 in CAM plus NNN!
<What?!>
Hahaha pretty comical imo. That's about 325k a year before
operational costs! Next!
<Ah yes>
So I've located a few other potential storefronts perhaps not in
the most ideal of locations. But id be looking at more like 30k a year
vs close to that a month. A few of these listings do not charge CAM,
just rent and utilities..not too shabby.
My buddy from Petco was my mentor when I first got into the hobby, so I
share his personal goals/values vs the other way around. We are pretty
pumped to go forward with this.
<Very good>
"Much to state here... could you give me some ideas, quality,
quantity and organism group-wise of what you think you will use? You
have surveyed your closer competitors I take it... Do you live near by
one of the major import cities? You list LA sources... if distal
sourcing will be your general practice, DO come out, visit the major
wholesalers, to establish contacts, ideas of who you will be dealing
with. I make occasional forays up north (live most of the year in San
Diego)... and can/will help to introduce you if you'd
like"
<I will be in San Diego from Sept 2-7, so if you have the time, id
love to take you for coffee?
<Ahh, am down in Bonaire currently and w/o my "calendar"
(analog... sigh)... but I think I'll be in SD during this
time>
I live in Manchester, NH. About an hour north of Boston. I had a nice
chat with Frank from FishHeadsInc.
<They are fine people in my estimation. Competent and honest>
Which I'm sure I will be quite pleased with, but I know that I will
need at least half a dozen good CONSISTANT livestock sources. We will
be dealing solely with marine aquatics. As far as WHAT, everything we
can responsibly get out hands on. Is pacific aqua farms any good?
>
<IMO, yes... not for everything... but their "corals" are
excellent>
So I'm in the midst of putting together a killer business plan. I
downloaded a mock plan from businessplans.com for an aquarium store. It
isn't quite on par with descriptions/numbers etc, but it at the
very least a great mold to what I need to create. But I'm still
having a great deal of difficulty projecting my monthly/yearly expenses
on top of being able to project gross profits. I have still been
unsuccessful in digging up any useful balance sheets. Thoughts?
<... Best for you to find out, generate the hard and variable costs
yourself. Being given such figures you will not "learn" (take
in) their importance, lessons. B>
Thanks again!
-Nate
Aquarium Storefront Business Plan
8/14/09
Mr. Fenner,
<Nate>
I plan to open up a storefront I the coming months. Thus far I have an
investor more or less convinced that I am the right man for the job.
But I have a meeting with him in the next few days. I have a lot of
important useful information to bring along to the meeting such as
Income statement and balance sheets for a local store that did quite
well but eventually had to shut down due to management issues.
I was wondering if you knew of where I could get some more information
regarding first year results in particular of other aquarium stores
throughout the country.
<The SBA is your best source here period. They used to have
data/document specific info. per industry... Including retail
petfish!>
Thanks,
-Nate
<... Who else will be working this store with you? Have you read
through our Business SubWeb:
http://wetwebmedia.com/AqBizSubWebIndex/Biz%20Index/Biz%20index.htm
Tally ho! BobF>
Question you may be able to help with. Possible new LFS Yes I
and a friend are interested in starting a pet store. Our
Main focus of the store will be our Fish department. We are
also going to be focused on "new to pet owners". <Better
by far to widen your commercial focus... have something for
intermediate, advanced folks/approaches> We have an
excellent layout for a store completed and scaled and built a
model. We are having difficulty coming up with a realistic
startup cost to start pitching our idea to a bank for funding. <Some
general rules of thumb, guesstimates can be found sprinkled amongst
articles and FAQs on the WWM Aquatics Business subweb... I would count
on whatever operational costs you have not being able to cover them
from anything other than savings/borrowings for a good two years...
Utilities, rents, your wages...> We have talked to
numerous people in the business who stated that the idea was very well
thought out, and they also said that it was a very franchisable idea
and plan. <Wait on the franchising... this is an entirely different
biz, animal than owning/operating (even designing, packaging) a retail
concept> Unfortunately none of the owners where willing
to help us as i guess they felt threatened by
competition. We don' t feel that we can successfully
pitch the idea to a bank with out solid proof as to startup
cost. Any information that you could give would be greatly
appreciated. Thank you for your time. <You do need
spreadsheets detailing monthly ongoing fixed and variable costs...
along with projections (including seasonality) of product, livestock
categories. Do you have Excel or Lotus experience? What data/categories
do you already have listed? Make a two year (24 page) spread sheet with
what you have on it... and send it along... We'll go "back and
forth" a few times I believe you will grasp what is involved. Bob
Fenner> Dennis E Roach Jr..
ECO follow-up Hello once again Bob, Well we got an
"intro" letter together but wanted to holdup a little bit
before sending out to some big dogs. We're in the process of adding
FLASH to our website to demonstrate the dynamics of molecular
structures of water and what exactly our product is able to achieve.
It's going to be quite interesting. It should be completed by the
end of this week, so I just wanted to let you know, why we haven't
forward an intro letter. <Okay> Also, when dealing with say, Dr
Foster, Premium Aquatics, Aqua Direct, as distributors: what is a good
estimate % discounted price to these outlets. We're in the final
stage of presenting our Business Plan and wanted to have an ideal
before plotting the core marketing strategy. We're still indecisive
with that avenue, but wanted to have a ballpark figure to juggle in our
planning. <Understood... typically there is a 40% or so net margin
between distributors and wholesalers in our trade, with some keystoning
(doubling) margin left for independent retailers... but with more
expensive items like your units the markups at retail may be somewhat
half of this> We've established a very good rapport with Sam
Gamble and things are getting interesting as well with Bob Goemans.
<Ah, good> Anyway, once again thanks for any info you can
provide. I'm sure we will be linking to WWM as a sponsor as soon as
we begin our advertising campaign. <I look forward to your success.
Bob Fenner> As always a pleasure, Carl Denzer
Re: ECO follow-up (mark-up structure structure in the pet fish
trade) Bob, Just to make sure I understood the % discount.... So on
items like ours priced at $65 to $85.... the average would be 20% to
25% discounted to dist/retailers. I didn't realize that our product
would be consider in the higher bracket of cost items. <Mmm, yes...
as a rough rule, most anything a dollar or two is double-tripled to
retail cost... a few dollars to a few tens of dollars, doubled. several
tens of dollars, to hundreds, much less scaled mark-up... Look in the
stores... what percentage products sell for about your mark? Not one
percent...> Thanks much for the info. Its nice to have your insights
to prepare us for future dealings. <These are mainly just historical
perspectives... I was the person (consultant, buyer) at the
mass-merchandiser Petco, who made the original "set" and put
together the selection for their entrance into the livestock parts of
the trade (1991-1994)... we were very aware of others costs, mark-up
structures. Things may have changed by now... For instance, you two
will have to cross the Rubicon of what to do with etailers... how is it
you will compel them to not "give away" (and ruin to a large
extent) your other markets? Should you care? Bob Fenner> Have a
wonderful day, Carl
How many of us are there? Hi WWM Crew, <Cheers, mate>
Has anyone ever figured out how many home aquarists there are in the
U.S. and the break down between fresh and salt water aquarists?
<Yowsa... heck ya! Big business... it is known and revaluated all
the time. Multimillion dollar industry> Working on a biz plan and
this info would be good to know.... <do look up, subscribe perhaps
to PIJAC (Pet Joint Advisory Council). They have some free information,
more for members (industry participants as you soon will be) exactly
for writing business plans!!! Demographics, market shares, percentages,
etc.> As always, you guys are the greatest and thanks for all of the
help. <also look to subscribe to trade journals (not cheap) like Pet
Age, Pet Business and Pet Supplies Marketing... articles, and data of
great value... also industry contacts and indices (wholesalers,
retailers, manufacturers, etc)> Wes <very pleased to hear you are
writing a business plan! Anthony Calfo>
Pet shops Bob, I hope my memory isn't failing me and you
are the one who has written a series of article for FAMA related to
starting a pet shop. <I am one of them, yes> I have a related
question for you (if you are the one to be asking). There is a LFS who
has a decent store. They seem to have a good business and deal with
everything i.e. reptiles, fresh, salt, dogs, cats, rodents, birds, etc.
Basically, they have it all. <Admirable. A difficult proposition>
I was talking to one of the employees the other day and he said he
thought the store grossed about $800K. I've always thought about
opening a store (I know, there's a screw loose somewhere). When I
was in there today, I jokingly asked the owner if he wanted to sell and
he said he would for $1.6M which is what he says he grosses. Both of
these figures seem impressive but really don't have a bearing on my
questions which has a lot of variable. But basically I was wondering:
If buying an established store, how does the gross receipts typically
relate to the asking price? <In highly variable ways... There are
stores that are profitable that have sold for little more than their
stock/inventory and depreciated fixture prices... Others folks ask a
fortune for, like in your example> I know that there is no hard
answer but my first impressions was that if he is grossing an amount,
whether it is $800K or $1.6M, then expecting to get that for it is
unrealistic. I know the price all depends on the demand but what is
your feeling on what a person could expect to get as a percentage of
gross (or net) receipts? Thanks for your time. Kirk Pfeffer <Mmm,
the gross and often net are typically employed in some fashion in
estimating a sale price for a going business. In the service side of
our industry some 3,4 to six times a months "take" is about
right for buying actual accounts, routes. For retail stores, I would
pay no more than a few months worth of sales...> Kirk R. Pfeffer
<Please read over the Business part of our site: www.WetWebMedia.com
for much more, particularly my re-use of Musashi's "Five
Elements of Successful Retail" series. Be chatting, Bob
Fenner>
hope Hawaii was great (sources of educational seed money)
Hello Bob, I hope you had time to rejuvenate your spirit in Hawaii. I
think the best time I ever had was while on vacation on Maui. <Great
places to become oneself> In the process of putting together my
business plan, and thanks for the info from your web site, I was
wondering if you know of any grants available to help support public
education and coral propagation. <There are a few... Sea Grant takes
forever but has a lot of the publics money... NGO's like the Ford
and Packard Foundation have sponsored quite a bit of pro-reef work/ers
the last few years (the MAC for instance)... Really, you've got to
collect catch-words, phrases, put together your organization, goals...
and write, make presentations, write, call... write... and write, oh
and wait, be patient. Best to go the "self finance" route...
if you can (this has been my means)> Also, you mentioned your fish
list. Is it setup in a way that lists good fish for a reef tank, or
does it just list the fish by species and then you indicate whether or
not it is good for a reef tank or not? <Hmm don't know which
list you're referring to... the AMDA has one... Bob Fenner>
Thanks, Bruce Azzarito hope to be doing business as: Captive Reef
Systems
Request for help in making a new LFS I have a quick question,
can you lead me in the right direction? I was seeking a small business
loan to open up a small decent size tropical fish retail store fresh
and marine. strictly fish! that's it. aquariums and deco, filters,
sumps, etc... you get the picture right? lol:) if you know of any
websites that I can surf for a small business loan would be highly
appreciated! thanx again rob!:) <Please take a long look at the
Business Index of articles posted on our website: www.WetWebMedia.com
for this and other valuable insights into what the pet-fish trade is
about, "Finance", "Location"... Have you worked for
others in the field? You should first... Much more that we'll be
talking about, I'm sure. Bob Fenner>
Average Profit Bob, What is the average gross profit
(expressed as %) of Marine Fish? Of course not counting fish loss or
any other factors only that I would be able to buy at reasonable prices
and sell in a market with out tons of local pressure. <At retail,
most shops employ a "sliding scale" of initial mark-up... For
very inexpensive livestock items (like Damsels), 3-400%, which at a few
dollars doesn't cover bagging, ringing, maintenance... but is the
market. For "medium-priced items" (ten to a few tens of
dollars) many folks double/keystone their initial costs... Where
expensive live product is involved, often 50% is all that can be
charged... Let's say, a large marine Angel costs you two hundred
dollars, you may only be able to charge three hundred retail for it...
As you can/will see/understand, the vast majority of profits in the
trade are made through drygoods sales... with the livestock being a
draw (to the public and hopefully a "tie" in cost/return on
equity/sales), with many smart independents tying service work in with
their outlet sales... or subbing this out in turn> What would you
guesstimate as a reasonable goal to set for % of fish brought in that
are losses in the store before going out the door? <Hmm, reasonable?
In the way of relative % of pieces, ten or twenty... Look over the
Loss/Replacement book/system piece I've stored recently on the WWM
site for more specifics on developing/implementing your own protocol
here... very important to secure good suppliers and deal/make them deal
with you, fairly, reasonably and consistently...> Thanks, Sean
Warren <Good questions my young friend. You're thinking. Bob
Fenner>