Cali Kid Corals

The Aquarium Showroom - San Jose, CA

[quote author=ReeferGirl link=topic=4339.msg52759#msg52759 date=1218995563]
does this place have live rock for sale yet? anyone know?
[/quote]
I saw a lot of rocks.. Live and Dead ..
 
[quote author=maxttran link=topic=4339.msg52761#msg52761 date=1218996152]
I have alot of live rock right now. What size are you looking for?
[/quote]

I'm looking for good quality dry rock to cure myself, do you guys have any?

Cheers,

Josh

EDIT: Thanks Phong!
 
[quote author=GreshamH link=topic=4339.msg52721#msg52721 date=1218941120]
DIY'ing and retail kind do not go together, well, like oil and water actually :D. For what it's worth BAR members alone compromise like less then 1% of most local stores business. If BAR drove in scores of custom tanks with service contracts now I think Max would be more then willing to hold DIY classes :lol:
[/quote]

I don't think that is necessarily true, I'm an avid fly fisherman and worked in a fly shop out east after the .com crash and 9/11 economic slump, fly fishing as a hobby parallels reef keeping, when people have extra money retail thrives, when it doesn't shops close down, the classic problem with "luxury" hobbies.

In the late 90's our shop used to do $4000 a day, after .com we were lucky to pull in $1000 a day. What we saw in the hobby was a shift from buying the $1500 state of the art rod packages, to people wanting to wrap and build their own rods and interest in fly tying also increased. The reason for this is people love the hobby, but need to stretch their dollar, so DIY not only saves you money, but it expands the scope of the hobby for the individual because they are now designing and building with their time (offering its own hobby reward) and not just running down to the LFS to buy a $600 skimmer.

The shop manager I worked with picked up on this, and started hosting fly tying nights after hours. The people that participated would all be sitting around, enjoying beer, talking spit*, but they would ask if they could buy some more buck tail, hooks, line, etc or they would wonder around and see that new model reel in the case and ask to see it. A few beers later and a little fun razzing by the gang and that guy would be walking out with $400 reel he had no intention of buying.

I don't own a business and have a very limited experience in retail, but the struggle of the LFS has always interested me and I often day dream my own model. I often think, why not capitalize on the hobbiest, they might not have the money to drop on the $800 light fixture, but why not show them how to make their own hood and sell them the ballast, bulbs, end caps and reflectors?

Again, I know nothing about retail in this hobby and if there is any markup on components and a demand to float it, but I do know getting people in the door means $$$.

Cheers,

Josh
 
[quote author=maxttran link=topic=4339.msg52757#msg52757 date=1218994815]
Thanks Gresham, but I think I am beyond Help
[/quote]
Sure that's the truth!! :)
 
I won't be doing custom tanks yet. I always use AGA, Oceanic, LeeMar, ATM, Living Color, and Tru Vu for now. One day if I find the right guy I will venture into building my own tanks but as for now No. Sorry.
 
ok.. so we went down there today, and the place is awesome. its HUGE. when everything is filled in and finished, its going to be amazing. Thanks to Max, for giving us a tour, showing us his vision and plan for the future. this is going to be great for new hobbyists, and for veterans alike. big props to Max, and thanks for hookin it up today, got some niiiice rocks, a Yuma that ive never seen before, and some other corals. love this place!!! if we could hold BAR meetings there, that would be sweeeet.
 
You never know, I can't even imagine where this shop will be in a year.

ReeferGirl, Thanks for spending the afternoon here, Sorry it took so long to get all your stuff.
Thank you BAR for all the SUpport.
 
Max

Must say it was nice to meet you today. +1 to the shop being incredible, amazing, mind-blowing, you get the idea.
To everyone else, hurry up and get down there. The place looks amazing and it's the best shop I've been to in the area (albeit I haven't been to many up here, but it definitely beats anything in San Diego).
 
it looks black. well, grey and white. its soooo sweet!!! i'll put pictures up tomorrow. tank lights are off right now. i completely redid the 60 gal. i took almost all the live rock out that i got from the 45 gal, and put the new dried rock in there, with a few pieces of the live rock to get them started. i put another bag of sand in too. ill rearrange it at some point. :D i think i want a yuma tank. haha those things are hella expensive!
 
[quote author=MontanaBay link=topic=4339.msg52773#msg52773 date=1219001415]
[quote author=GreshamH link=topic=4339.msg52721#msg52721 date=1218941120]
DIY'ing and retail kind do not go together, well, like oil and water actually :D. For what it's worth BAR members alone compromise like less then 1% of most local stores business. If BAR drove in scores of custom tanks with service contracts now I think Max would be more then willing to hold DIY classes :lol:
[/quote]

I don't think that is necessarily true, I'm an avid fly fisherman and worked in a fly shop out east after the .com crash and 9/11 economic slump, fly fishing as a hobby parallels reef keeping, when people have extra money retail thrives, when it doesn't shops close down, the classic problem with "luxury" hobbies.

In the late 90's our shop used to do $4000 a day, after .com we were lucky to pull in $1000 a day. What we saw in the hobby was a shift from buying the $1500 state of the art rod packages, to people wanting to wrap and build their own rods and interest in fly tying also increased. The reason for this is people love the hobby, but need to stretch their dollar, so DIY not only saves you money, but it expands the scope of the hobby for the individual because they are now designing and building with their time (offering its own hobby reward) and not just running down to the LFS to buy a $600 skimmer.

The shop manager I worked with picked up on this, and started hosting fly tying nights after hours. The people that participated would all be sitting around, enjoying beer, talking spit*, but they would ask if they could buy some more buck tail, hooks, line, etc or they would wonder around and see that new model reel in the case and ask to see it. A few beers later and a little fun razzing by the gang and that guy would be walking out with $400 reel he had no intention of buying.

I don't own a business and have a very limited experience in retail, but the struggle of the LFS has always interested me and I often day dream my own model. I often think, why not capitalize on the hobbiest, they might not have the money to drop on the $800 light fixture, but why not show them how to make their own hood and sell them the ballast, bulbs, end caps and reflectors?

Again, I know nothing about retail in this hobby and if there is any markup on components and a demand to float it, but I do know getting people in the door means $$$.

Cheers,

Josh

[/quote]

Fly tying and DIY'ing reefing are two entirely different worlds IMO having lived both for many many years :) With very few tools one can wrap a fly that will slay the fish, yet take the same few tools and try to DIY reef with them :) You really can save money tying your own flys, but DIY'ing reefing doesn't always equate to such savings ;)

I've worked at LFS's, and tackle stores as well. Both are equally as fun and tiresome :lol:
 
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