Wholesale accounts for online stores

[cattlegirl7]

We started our online business last year and it has been hard to find a wholesaler to buy coral from because they want you to have a brick and mortar store. We have our LLC, our resale tax certificate, the EIN. We have accounts with ECC, ARI, and AJC. We tried to get an account with Vivid but the denied us because there were a few LFS stores in our area..nope, there is not a few, there is 2 stores, and one barely sells coral. How do ya'll get these accounts when 85% of salea are online?

 

[Subsea]

We started our online business last year and it has been hard to find a wholesaler to buy coral from because they want you to have a brick and mortar store. We have our LLC, our resale tax certificate, the EIN. We have accounts with ECC, ARI, and AJC. We tried to get an account with Vivid but the denied us because there were a few LFS stores in our area..nope, there is not a few, there is 2 stores, and one barely sells coral. How do ya'll get these accounts when 85% of salea are online?

Yes, you are correct, the big shippers are being too loyal for “brick & motor” vendors. I tried with Seacrest, but never had enough volume to interest them. If you have records indicating volume of livestock moved, it might make a differrence. I was a startup.

Check out independent maintenance & setup individuals. My friend @Timfish has been doing maintenance & setup in Austin for 30 years; he buys wholesale. However, in doing so, they would be helping competition.

PS: Where is Mustang?

 

[Reefer Matt]

If you have three accounts already then you are on your way. I suggest sticking with them for a while and building a relationship.

 

[Subsea]

We started our online business last year and it has been hard to find a wholesaler to buy coral from because they want you to have a brick and mortar store. We have our LLC, our resale tax certificate, the EIN. We have accounts with ECC, ARI, and AJC. We tried to get an account with Vivid but the denied us because there were a few LFS stores in our area..nope, there is not a few, there is 2 stores, and one barely sells coral. How do ya'll get these accounts when 85% of salea are online?

I perused your one other thread. I got hooked into this hobby 53 years ago. After four 90 day tours of duty into Cambodia & Vietnam between 1966-70, I needed to find peace from “insanity of war”. I found that peace in marine aquariums and after 53 years: the more I learn, the more I realize how little I know.

Consider buying your high end corals as frags from reef hobby websites or frag swaps with other reef club members and then you set up frag tanks to grow your own as a sustainable coral farm. Obviously, that takes more than one year.

 

[cattlegirl7]

If you have three accounts already then you are on your way. I suggest sticking with them for a while and building

If you have three accounts already then you are on your way. I suggest sticking with them for a while and building a relationship.

You are exactly right. Thank you

 

[cattlegirl7]

I perused your one other thread. I got hooked into this hobby 53 years ago. After four 90 day tours of duty into Cambodia & Vietnam between 1966-70, I needed to find peace from “insanity of war”. I found that peace in marine aquariums and after 53 years: the more I learn, the more I realize how little I know.

Consider buying your high end corals as frags from reef hobby websites or frag swaps with other reef club members and then you set up frag tanks to grow your own as a sustainable coral farm. Obviously, that takes more than one year.

That is exactly what we have been doing.

 

[Subsea]

@cattlegirl7
Good fortune on your adventure.

Coral & marine fish collection in the ocean will be banned in many locations soon enough. Try to buy coral & fish from Hawaii.

I operated two reef hobby LLC’s: CCR (Castille Coral Ranch) & AquacultureRanch, These LLC assisted with decreasing tax burden as capital expense deductions. I never made real money but I covered my expenses. Now that I am fully retired, I will operate a small sustainable operation of Caribbean live stock that includes corals, ornamental sponges & macros. During this winter, tanks are set up outdoors on pea gravel playground. Because Gulf of Mexico live stock is very hardy with respect to temperature fluctuations I control temperature at 65 degrees falling. I previously ran 10KG of mariculture in 20’ by 40’ greenhouse on 1.5 acre farm. During the first winter while maintaining water at 75 degrees, when I got my first electric bill at $800, I shut operations down.

Now, 10 years later, I will piddle about with a few hundred gallons on peagravel.

Present grow-out tanks outdoor are: 40G Rubbermade tub with 1/2” dense insulation board that has been set up 30 days, 55G glass aquarium with no insulation and 300W heater set at 65 degrees has been setup 7 days, 30G glass tank started out as a tilapia conversion to salt water 60 days ago.

To support sustainable coral growth under natural sunlight requires a serious clean up crew to control algae. Because tilapia are serious herbivores, I experimented with converting Blue Tilapia to full strength ocean by adding 1G of mature reef tank partial water change every other day until it reached full strength in 3 weeks. After reaching full strength due to evaporation and inattention on my part salanity exceeded 40ppt. At some point during those 30 days the water turned green In the 30G glass tank. I moved the one remaining Blue Israeli tilapia and 6 mosquito fish into established 40G Rubbermaid tub.

So now, I have a 30G tub of dark green water (phytoplankton). I feed mature displays in home 3G of phytoplankton every other day. When removing phytoplankton from outside growout, I replace water volume with partial water change water from 120G & 75G display tanks. Becayse of evaporation, when salinity creeps up, I add RODI water with f/2 fertilyzer and liquid seaweed concentrate.

That is exactly what we have been doing.