Adding Saltwater and Reef Department to a Freshwater LFS

[Okie Pride]

Hi, I work for a store that specializes in ponds. The pond side of the business is steady and relatively successful but does have a dead time in the winter so, roughly a year ago, we added a freshwater aquarium department to our store. We seem to have gotten a hang of the aquarium business and now we're looking to expand from our small aquarium section, 400 sq ft. or so, and are planning on building a new store of 5,000 sq ft. I've been a hobbyist for a little while but I wouldn't exactly consider myself experienced but, rather, fairly well-read. Anyway, I wanted to ask the Reef2Reef community for suggestions on a few things:

TL;DR

1. What R0/DI unit(s) would you use to produce RO water and saltwater for your store use and to sell to customers?
2. What fish hatcheries/fisheries would you like to see a LFS use? We've been using Segrest Farms but would like to explore other options.
3. Would you be drawn to see an indoor saltwater pond filled with small sharks?
4. Would the idea of a LFS being connected, i.e. on the same property, with an outdoor water garden and pond store be an annoyance or distraction to you?

I look forward to seeing your responses.

Cheers

 

[TruRacr314x]

1. What R0/DI unit(s) would you use to produce RO water and saltwater for your store use and to sell to customers? No recommendation on exact setup for you, but you're going to want a system capable of some very large daily production to keep up with demand from your store and incoming customers. Be prepared for people to expect you to offer RO/RODI water for free...at least people expect it from our LFS around here!
2. What fish hatcheries/fisheries would you like to see a LFS use? We've been using Segrest Farms but would like to explore other options. Quality Marine & Route 66 are good options...QM probably being one of the best
3. Would you be drawn to see an indoor saltwater pond filled with small sharks? Sounds like a great marketing tool...
4. Would the idea of a LFS being connected, i.e. on the same property, with an outdoor water garden and pond store be an annoyance or distraction to you? Not a huge deal to me....I'm not interested in that stuff myself, but if grouping several sectors of the business together helps maintain your business so that you could offer a better saltwater experience, I don't see why anyone would complain!