Favorite Zoas to Buy

[rlkilwil]

Hey all!
I am starting a small grow out business, looking to primarily grow and sell zoas- from beginner to high end. I’m looking for some feedback from you guys about what types to grow! So here’s what I want to know- if you walked into a shop today, what 5 (or more!) zoas would you want to buy??? Or what would you want to be in stock?? I want to start with a few that are very sought after, so I can hit the ground running! Thanks in advance!

 

[Opus]

That is impossible to answer, it is like asking what is your favorite pizza. Everyone has their favorite zoas. You also have to take into consideration your area if local is going to be a big part of your business. Zoas that I see are very popular online seem to not be popular in my area and/or don't command the same price. I will see utter chaos sell for $25/polyp online in live sales but locally you will need to have a plug with 4 to 6 polyps to get $25. Also, if your local market is small, once you sell a few of a high end zoa, you may have saturated your market for that zoa.

With all that said, these seem to always be in demand:

Utter chaos
Rastas
Various hornets
Scrambled eggs
Blondies
Gobstoppers
Fire and Ice
Whammin Watermelon

 

[Stang67]

Ditto to what Opus said. Issue with zoa's (and any coral for that matter) is that there are 5 different names for the same coral. I buy based on color and what I need to go where and what I think is pretty. A few I bought that I truely regret because like GSP they take over. WWC Mohawks and Pandoras. I HATE. I also dont like the itty bitty ones. Give me a medium polyp that wont infest my tank in pretty colors.

 

[PicassoClown04]

I love ones with bigger than normal polyps. Hawaiian ding dang, pink zipper grande, etc. Example of my pinwheel Fire and ice against eagle eyes, love the pinwheels

 

[Oscar47f]

Yeah it depends on the market.... for example I have enough of the mid to low end I just look for high end... I would like exospheres, golden leopards, Koala, eyes and aphrodites, they all command an enormous price tag per polyp though and are super prone to melting or morphing... if you want to build a small grow out start growing Low and mid end based on whatever is not available at your local area.... pikachus, amor of gods, sunny D’s, Pink Constellations and stargazers were how I started selling and they were in demand in my area at the time, great growers and easy to keep... then I started going after polyps that were upwards of 50-200$ per polyp and growing those out and keeping them healthy is significantly harder and I don’t sell anymore but start slow and work your way up!

 

[Reefing_addiction]

All of them!

 

[danschoenherr]

As it has been said, different parts of the country seem to have different tastes or availability.
I started out with quantity, but am now concerned with quality because of a lack of space. Also the lower end types will grow far faster than you can sell them.
I would suggest staying with the medium to large polyp types with bright colors and avoid most others. As for going in to a shop to buy zoas, most around here get there supply from local hobbyists, so the stocks are mainly entry to mid level. The mid to high end usually are bought/sold or traded amongst local growers. Some of the hot, high ends right now would be the Exospheres, Oscar the Grouch, Flaming Mohicans and Grand Master Kraks. Little Shop of Horrors and Aphrodites are some beautiful mid range, good growers that are getting a little more affordable.
Here are some good growers for me and popular in my area:
WWC AOI's
Pink Zippers
Pink Constellations
Spitfires
Insane Rainbows
Rainbow Infusions
Utter Chaos
Shazams
Frozen Apples
Alien Antivenom
Kung Fu Fighters