Does growing out really pay off?

[captmicha]

I see a bunch of people (usually FB and CG) getting fry of species that grow pretty big and then turn around and sell them for a steep price when they're busting out of their grow out tanks.

Does this actually pay off? I see some of the same species typically going for free just to take them off people's hands.

Often seems to be ridiculously huge growing cat fish, piranha, Midas cichlids are very popular, rays, anything with big teeth, tigers, etc.

To clarify, I don't mean the typical 10" or less that we often see in this group. More reasonable fish for the average hobbyist.

 

[Devin Gibson]

I have 2 150 gallon tanks. I grow fish out all the time.... My fish sell easily I fall in love with them and don't want to sell.... It's weird. Also most people don't have huge tanks so it takes the right customer for the right fish.

 

[neut]

As a one shot deal? I wouldn't consider it a reliable business model in many cases. There are a few ways it can (but may not always) work.

Breed a currently hot fish yourself and hope it's still hot by the time you're ready to sell, or that by then everyone else with the same idea doesn't already have them listed.

Breed a pricey and perennial favorite (like discus) or breed a pricey fish with a consistent track record of being desirable to a certain % of hobbyists (example: Congo gibberosa like Moba). You might also score such a deal that you can buy fry or juvies and make money growing them to sell, but as a business model, margins shrink when you account for feeding, electricity, meds if you have to treat them for anything-- but as a model for buying fish small, growing them to adult or near adult prices, then trading or selling for enough to help finance other fish on your wish list it's a decent strategy.

But with monster fish in size or aggression? I'd say hit or miss. Buy them cheap enough, get the economy of feed and care vs. market price right, have something in demand or find the right buyer(s) at the right price and you could make some money, but these are all contingencies.. Timing's a factor. I have fish high on my wish list, waiting for serious consideration when the time is right in terms of tank space, what I've already got going, etc. Even then I'd likely be choosing between multiple candidates for my next species, meaning I could be influenced by a deal.

There are a couple of other business models. Collect or have access to something new, rare, or exceptional. Or have a reputation in the hobby as a go to importer or breeder.

...Or here's another one I've seen with some species, sell them on ebay with bogus hype and stupid prices, counting on the right sucker to come along.

 

[chriscoli]

I'm not quitting my day job anytime soon. I like weird fish, and I'm horrible at predicting what other people are interested in. So, I hope here and there to offset the cost of the hobby.

 

[Freakgecko]

I’m the same way. I buy the fish that interest me and breed them. Unfortunately many of those are the ones people can’t seem to give away around here. I have guianacara daycra and amatitlania myrnae growing out right now, in hopes that I can sell them on my next trip back up to Michigan.

Some of the monster fish have major resell value, like arowana and smaller gars, however, many others lose their value as they grow due to some immense sizes. Josh was just trying to get a huge ripsaw cat rehomed for a client, but the tank those guys need is not very common among the hobbyists here

 

[stany]

I'm going with neut. I'd keep my day job. The business model moat to break into a national presence is so large and expensive in this geographic area. Not that you could not specialize in C.A.R.E.S. fish and do well on eBay or Amazon, but you need to figure shipping costs in. I would talk to Jay at CAS to understand why he has taken a different approach..