Advice Please

Don't lie.
Don't misrepresent.
Get the dead fish out every morning before you open the doors.

As far as I'm concerned that alone would be a great start!

My lfs quaranteens all new fish for a month at least, whether they come from locals or shipment. This way they know that their fish are healthy and hardy. I've never lost a fish that I bought from them that could be attributed to their care (just a couple carpet surfers during the open top experiment).

The colour coding sounds like a good idea, especially for people who don't research the type of fish they want.

No bare bottom tanks, silica gravel is cheap from a local quarry and bare bottoms look bad, IMO.

Have a handout about cycling, both fishless and fishy, just a computer printout. It would be a useful and inexpensive way to educate your clientele. It won't stop those who are too careless or lazy, but those people who really are interested in the hobby will appreciate the info and you'll gain credibility.

What Cearbhail said about the dead fish. There's another shop (one of the chain stores) around here where within a minute of walking into their fish section I can find a tank with 2 or 3 dead fish and the rest looking really weak. I'll never buy fish from there.

Finally, price matching policy, something to consider. I used to avoid my lfs because it 'looked' expensive. All their tanks are well looked after and some of the gear they have is pretty expensive. When I found out they had a price matching policy, I gave it a second look. Their tanks/kits are actually the cheapest in town (by like $10, but still), their fish are either the same price for most fairly common fish, or a little more expensive for some more exotic varieties, but they carry the exotic varieties, and you know they're not gonna die!

Good luck gazza, I've heard it can be a tough business (like there's an easy one).

Folks have made some great points here.

I would put the focus on being helpful and friendly over knowledgeable. I can't tell you how much more comfortable I feel hearing the phrase "I don't know for sure but let me ask so and so" over some clearly wrong answer. I generally find this is not a probelm with the owners but with employees.

This might be a bit dificult but I like to see the scientific AND common names for each fish in a tank. It helps tremendously if there is a photo too. As fish folks we tend to have a lot more knowledge of names and appearances of fish than the casual keeper. I would think it helpful for the identification information to be there next to the tank. Ideally it would be a card with a photo (get it online or draw it if you're handy. It doesn't need to be perfect just enough to help someone realize which fish is which in the tank), the scientific name, common name(s), adult size, level of aggression, and ideal water parameters. What I would do is make up these cards, laminate them, and put velcro on the back. Stick another velcro dot on the tank or next to it and put up the appropriate card.

Tom

Free water testing is a great thing. But I must say that when the results are less than perfect don't berate the customer and try to push perfect pH on them. Yikes that sucks. I remember having my water tested and the guy was rolling his eyes when nitrates showed up. Then he told me I needed a nitrate reducer. I didn't even think there was such a thing, except water changes.

Being nice is th ebest policy and as was mentioned, admiting when you don't know. But at least know the names off all the fish and label them correctly.

Location. Location. Location.

Are you planning on offering fresh and salt water?

I agree on the information. The other big thing--and this can be tricky for any LFS--is what products you offer. I think that offering many of the items needed for DIY stuff--plans, PVC bits, lighting (including plain old shoplights), etc for a reasonable price would be great. There's a lot of stuff that isn't needed, and having it on hand leads to it being sold to the new and uninformed. Quick fix products are a great money maker, but not great for long term relationships with customers. And that, I think, is one of the most important parts of a successful business. Build those relationships, and people will take care of you just as you take care of them.

Have some nice display tanks, but make sure that what you put in them is available for sale--nothing annoys me more than seeing something awesome in a display, only to find out that it's never for sale.

I'd also compile a list of common myths in the hobby, along with the facts. For example--the whole salt as a FW additive, or that brackish fish will be fine in freshwater. Post these things, hammer them into your employees heads, and lat customers know about them as well.

I also like a place that has a library that I can use. Yes, offer books for sale, but also have some house copies that people can look through in your store. Have a copy machine and charge a small per page fee for copying a page.

My LFS is great because the owner ALWAYS says Hi.
And he inquires about my day, etc, doesnt even ask what I am looking for, lets me browse around, doesnt shadow me, ya know what I mean?
All the ideas about labelling are great.
One thing to note, I have been to the stores that have the massive pool style filter for every tank.
And the ones that have seperate filters for each
and variations of both.
I have noticed that the massive filter, IE ich breeding tank, lol is a VERY bad choice.
Course, if you properly care for the fish, N/P
And the look of seperate filters, to me, is kinda ugly, makes the store look......less organized.
But, one thing I DO like is the idea of my LFS
They have tanks stacked one to 3 on top of each other
and each tank is drilled for overflows, FW, SW, and the like
makes them look clean inside, no heaters, etc, and the tank just looks better.
Oh! My big peeve about some stores, DONT GET PAINTED FISH!

I just visited San Antonio this weekend and had some extra time so I stopped by a few LFS's that were recommended. The first place had huge display tanks and gobbs of stuff with cheap prices but I was never asked if I needed help and when I asked for an item they didn't have I simply got a "no we don't have those" and the guy went back to what he was doing. No recomendations or anything. the other two had overwhelmingly helpful people even after I told them I was just visiting and wouldn't be buying anything. As it turned out, we ended up picking up some fish at the last two places when I went home so their friendliness helped out a lot. Don't be ashamed to mention a competitor for a product you don't carry. I am more appreciative of a person who is honest and helpful than out to get my buck and keep it out of everyone else's pocket. My regular LFS has the color coded cards and it does help for those people beginning in the hobby. Selection and the ability to special order is also helpful at retaining customers. Large displays are attractions but don't necessarily keep regular customers as was the case of my first stop in san antonio. I really like the idea of the website or book or something to look up the fish on their own. Every hobbyist, book and LFS employee has contradicting advice and information but if you can give them one more source, your advice has more credentials. As with any business, you aren't gonna get rich in the first years of being open. Your goal should be to win over customers and grow a reputation. Keeping good selections and the lowest prices in town is the #1 way to do this. Sell 5 filters for $5 profit instead of one for $25 profit and you have 5 customers instead of 1. Repeat business will earn more profit in the long run than ripping a few off for a big hunk because once they figure out what happened, they're walking across someone else's welcome mat from now on. Eventhough your fish may be more healthy than the guy down the street, offer a return policy. I use the LFS I use because I rarely lose a fish but they are more than willing to give me another one if it happens. Another place in town has a lot of fish my LFS doesn't have but when they didn't even offer to make any reparations with my losses after 2 days, I won't be back. maybe it was my fault, maybe it was theirs but they didn't even bother to investigate or ask. friendly people are definitely more valuable than knowledgable. My LFS has a handful of employees. One guy is overly knowledgable but has a very coarse know-it-all attitude but I prefer the friendly lady that will find out the information for me instead of knowing it all. In addition, nothing turns me off than an LFS employee/owner that bashes their competitor. Let me make that decision, not you. I buy several things from several places. It's not likely one place has everything I need so this is necessary. Another thing you might do is set up some "cookie-cutter" tank setups like you will find on www.cichlid-forum.com only using multiple types of fish. This will take a little work but trust me, it helps. I don't know for sure but I imagine 50% of the people walking in your shop won't know a cichlid from a guppy so having a plan will help them. I constantly hear "how many of these can I get?, will this fish go with this fish?". A small flyer with instructions on cycling, tank setups, and "recipe's" like this will help out a lot and gain you more repeat customers in the longrun. A pleasant experience for a first time aquarium owner will allow you more sales in the future. Location at first is a good idea but the best stores here and the ones I was recommended in San Antonio weren't in the best locations. My two favorite local LFS's are on fairly major streets but you'll drive right by and never see them if you don't know where they are. the best LFS I went to in San Antonio was in a low income neighborhood next to a shoe repair shop and a local bar. good luck, Kyle