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The aquarium business is a broad business with many branches that can fetch you a substantial income. It requires a deep understanding of the market and its potential, and you will need more than a tank and fishes to start a business. Before you draw an aquarium business plan, you must have an in-depth knowledge of what the business entails, and the acquired knowledge will help you make adequate plans and provisions to make the company a huge success.

You may be wondering what the potential of the business is? Well, according to records and surveys carried out,nowadays, more people prefer fishes as pets to dogs and cats. There are over 7.2 million aquariums in the United States alone, and this number is expected to increase over the years. So you can see the potential in the aquarium industry, which offers you different ways to make money. The industry is a silent booming industry, with a net worth of a billion dollars in the United States alone in 2016. For you to succeed in this business, you have to spend time acquiring knowledge, and you may need to invest heavily if you will be branching out to some areas of the company.

What Does the Aquarium Industry Have to Offer

Before you jump into the aquarium business, you should know that it is a vast industry. You have to know where you can fit in adequately in the market. However, in any sector of the business, you may find yourself, you will need to learn about the business, invest time and money to succeed eventually. Thus some of the ventures you can take on in the aquarium industry include:

Pet Fish Business

Many homes are seeking fish as a pet. The presence of fish has been proven to be therapeutic, for its nature looks peaceful and is known to calm the mind. And since a growing number of people want to have fish as pets, you can venture into this area of the business.

You will need to know about fishes, how to build fish tanks, and market them to the desiring customers. Knowledge about fish survival in the water is also necessary to keep the fish healthy and help your customers.

Customization of Aquarium Tanks.

Nowadays, people are becoming innovative about their tanks and design. You can hardly find conventional shapes of tanks in offices, homes and other places. People are now going for classic designs of unconventional shapes and sizes. If you know how to design aquarium tanks, then you should be in business, in the design of customized tanks.

The customers will come to you, provide you with the desired shape and size of tanks, and all you have to do is build the tanks to their requirements. Also, you can design tanks and sell them to clients who might need them. One positive note about this aspect is that you can make huge money from one tank sale.

However, you must have the engineering skills of building tanks properly. When building these tanks, you should consider places for water input and where to expel water out from the container. This is why engineering skill is essential. And you can also learn these skills as an apprentice from someone knowledgeable.

The sales of equipment and accessories

With the increasing number of pet fish owners, you can decide to venture into the sales and supply of aquarium tanks accessories and other tools that are needed in the fish tanks. People will require these types of equipment and tools to beautify their tanks, maintain the tank, and other uses that will require the necessary tools. However, this business venture is not an easy one, for you will need time to learn about this equipment and how to maintain them appropriately.

Some of the useful accessories you can put up for sale in your accessories stores include decorative items, lights, toys, cleaning tools, and other equipment you will need to maintain your aquarium tanks and put it in good use. You can imagine the millions of people that have fish tanks, and that they will need constant supplies of equipment, tools and another fish tank related apparatus. You can be in good business if you find ways to take your business to this set of people.

Furthermore, this area of the business can be a little capital intensive and will require proper management and promotion to make good money from the business.

The Sales of Different Fish Type

Broad knowledge of fishes and the various types will be essential in setting up a shop to sell pet fishes. People that want to build a fish tank will require a fish, and they may need to buy more fish to add to the tank or replace one. However, you will have to spend money and time in taking care of the fishes before they get bought. Thus you should know the risk and all you have to consider in venturing into this business.

Steps to Take in Starting Your Aquarium Business

Now that you have known what the aquarium business entails and the different aspects of the business, you can proceed with a proper business plan. And then we are going to look at the steps that you will take in starting an aquarium business, no matter the area you feel is convenient for you to venture.

Which Area of the Business to Venture

The first step in starting an aquarium business is to know the area of the market that will suit your investment plans. As discussed earlier, there are different aspects of the market, and the one to choose from will depend on your start-up capital and your preference. Money may play an essential role in deciding the aspect of the business to set up for some of them, maybe more capital intensive than others. For one, setting up an equipment and accessories shop may need more capital and can be time consuming than focusing on building a tank or selling fish.

You may also consider your knowledge about the aspect of the business, for they all demand different skills sets. The building and customization of tanks may require some engineering and building skills, which may not need you to know more about fishes and what they eat.

On the other hand, you can choose to learn any aspect of the business, if you have the time and the resources. This may take some time, but it is entirely worth it on the long term success of the business. You might decide to take up apprenticeship from a knowledgeable person to grow your awareness about the market before starting yours.

Or if you have enough resources, you may hire people who know the various aspects of the business. To do this, you may not need to acquire much in-depth knowledge of the industry, but considerable capital to pay people that have these technical skills to work for your aquarium shop.

Thus, take your time to understand the various aspects and determine which one is best for you based on your resources and your knowledge of the industry.

Who Are Your Targeted Audience

In this business, you must seek your target audience appropriately. Get people who are pet lovers to patronize your business. Directing attention to the wrong people is a waste of time. You should remember that finding a suitable strategy to target your audience is vital in the aquarium business. Promoting your aquarium business to people that do not have an interest in keeping a pet is a waste of time and resources.

Now we are going to list out the target audience you should focus on:

• Pet lovers are the most prominent target in this business. People that love to keep and take care of animals are the number one priority in this business
• You should target young families with children. They would love to have a pet at home for the kids.
• Fish lovers are those who like the idea of feeding fishes, watching them play, and studying the fishes. These kinds of people are prime targets for you to guarantee sales.
• Corporate bodies, restaurants, businesses, and homes who seek to decorate their places with a lively aquarium are also prime targets. These set of people are high paying customers, and it is vital to have them for regular servicing.
• For consistent work, you should offer your services to those that have a tank. They will need you to come service the tank, cleaning, changing the water and other maintenance operations. Having such clients can guarantee you a steady flow of income at regular intervals.

You must identify a suitable client base and run promotions to target these prospective clients. In this business, one client can offer you a regular contract that pays all years. The important thing is to satisfy your customers to ensure you get good recommendations or they call you back.

Study the Market.

The aquarium business should be a long term plan, and you should. For this, you have to take time to study the market and understand how to make it. The extent of the study you will want to make should depend on the time you have to start the business. For a young person, you may go into an internship with a big aquarium company to have an in-depth understanding of the market.

Take your time to practice the business, and gather enough experience that will help you in your business. For those who do not have the time to go into an internship, they can do the following to get knowledge of the industry:

• You have the option of searching the internet for the knowledge you may require. The internet will provide us with all sorts of educational materials from books, videos, images and other quality materials for your study.
• You can buy books about pet fishes and begin to understand what it takes to start an aquarium. There are guidebooks on how to start a business and other relevant books you may need on the book shelves and online stores. You should do well to read and gather as much knowledge as required.
• Get the services of a consultant or someone that knows about aquariums. If you have enough money on the budget, you can take these expensive options, but you will get the desired knowledge and advice from the experts.
• Seeking advice from those that are in the business. Doing this may come cheap or free in some cases, but it will give you a real-life account of the business. You can meet anyone that is already performing the kind of Aquarium business you seek to start.

Using any of the above approach, you can study the market, and find a suitable approach to start the business. You can as well buy over the existing business if you have the money. Doing so will take you far away from some steps ahead in the business start-up. If you have enough capital, this is the most straightforward approach to start an aquarium business. All you have to do is insert some of your ideas to the market.

Finding a Suitable Location for your Aquarium Business

The location of your aquarium store is essential to make your business plan a success. Unless you have a set of rich client base, it is vital to establish your business in a strategic location that will attract people around the business areas. When finding a suitable place for your Aquarium store, you should consider the following:

• Locate your store in an urban area, where you will likely find potential customers. There will be fewer people in the rural area who may want to consider having a fish as a pet or build a fancy aquarium. Also, you may not find suitable companies that want you to design an aquarium for them.
• You must consider the financial strength of the vicinity before opening your shop. Aquariums may be regarded as a luxury item, so in most cases, those with high income will want to consider building or to buy an aquarium. So, you should find an area with top income earners, or high-level areas in terms of financial ability. They may likely consider buying or building an aquarium and may decide to get maintenance services.
• Also, you should consider the space available for your business. You will need space to store tanks and other aquarium accessories. Get a shop that is large enough to contain all that you will need to put up for customers to see. Any of the aquarium ventures you may seek to undertake will require you.
• There should be a constant water supply and a proper drainage system. In this business, you need to use water a lot, and there is a need to dry the tank and change the water often. And with a proper drainage system, you will avoid messing up your place with water.

It is essential to find a favorable location for your business, to find suitable patronage.

Read Also: How to Choose Business Location for Your Business

Learning from the Competition

There are different reasons why you should check out the competition in your area. Of course, there may be other related businesses in your area, and it will be prudent to know what these other related businesses have to offer.

Your survival in that area will depend on how you can cope with the business. You may want to divert into another venture of the business if you know you cannot confidently compete with the business. Also studying your competitors may provide you with ideas that will help your business grow and attract more clients.

In checking out for a suitable location, you should consider the competitors before selecting the location. There will be no point in opening up a business in an area where you know you cannot beat the competition. Or you cannot afford to offer services that are different from that of the competitors.

The competitors are critical to your business setup, and you should consider them in your business plan. You can twerk or make relevant changes to your business plans when you know what others are offering to give your store an edge.

Legalize Your Business

A business like an aquarium store needs to have the legal backing for you to operate adequately. You must legalize the business with the right authority for you to operate legally. In the process of legalizing the store, you have to consider the following:

1. Name your business

Find an adequate name for your business, and this will become your brand name. It is essential to find something catchy and end it with an aquarium, like Distos Aquarium, to ensure people know what the business is about when they come across the name.

In legalizing your business, getting a name for the company is an essential part of the process.

2. Register your business

You have to register your business with the right authority to make it legal. Go to any government institutions and make an inquiry of the process you will need to go through in the registration of your business. Pay the necessary fees to complete the registration process and legalize your business.

3. Set up accounting and pay your tax

Set up a separate account for your business, and employ an accountant to manage your business account. For a small business, you may not have the budget to hire an accountant so you may consider getting help from time to time. With proper accounting, you can be able to manage your taxes correctly.

Promotion of Your Business

The promotion of a business is a necessary procedure for the company to become successful. And bear in mind that you will have to run a regular promotion for the business. Having a promotional strategy in mind, you have to consider your targeted audience. How are you going to find them, and how will they reach out to you? With this in mind, we have proposed a strategy that will include modern technology to reach out to your audience.

1. Using the internet

The internet has offered us the avenue for business to find people seeking their services and for people to find business service that they need. In planning suitable strategies to use the internet, you have to consider both ways. You should be able to seek interested parties, and they should be able to find you online.

Using the internet, you will have to build a website, using your name, and with Search engine optimization techniques in mind. Following this procedure will make it easy for people to search for your Aquarium Business using related keywords. You can employ experts in the field of online marketing to help you optimize your online platform. With such a process, you will easily be found by people seeking your services.

You should also consider opening an e-commerce store if you are into the selling ventures. Thus, with building a website, you have higher chances of capturing those demographic that are regular online users.

2. Adopt social media platform

Create awareness online about your business using the popular social media platforms. On these platforms, you can easily communicate with your customers and people interested in your shop. Right now, many businesses are being done online as you can upload images of your product on these platforms using the appropriate hashtags, and the targeted audience will see it online. You will be increasing your chances of making money when you create an account and post regularly on the platform like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and a host of others.

3. Design a complimentary card

This might be old fashion, but it is still relevant till date. When you visit seminars, launching, or any event related to the aquarium, you can socialize and share your cards to potential customers. After an excellent socializing, they will likely contact you, especially if you impress them with your knowledge.

Conclusion

In conclusion, starting up an aquarium store might be time and capital consuming, but it is a lucrative business. However, you have to take the necessary steps into consideration to ensure that the business picks up and maintain it accordingly.

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