How can you make money from the reefing hobby?

[Gernader]

I invest my money into higher-end pieces as there is a big market for them. I prefer to go with zoas and acros as they are beautiful, easy to grow, and not hard to frag. Then, I sell the frags at cheaper prices than what stores sell them, so hobbyists can enjoy them plus I earn some money back. The only reason I can afford these corals is because I have been saving money for years and can finally invest in corals.

 

[don_chuwish]

Impossible for me to sell off frags from overgrown colonies locally - just no community. I used to trade in for store credit at an LFS in another town but they have bailed out of the aquarium business.
Sad because I desperately need to do some pruning.

 

[mbmax]

I get free salt, food and other maintenance stuff for frags,. Also get other SPS from one local store.
Don't have time for posting , selling , shipping corals.

 

[Uncle Bob]

Yes, I historically have sold monti's and stick's back to my local fish store (A Reef Creation). They are easiest for me anyway. I am lucky to have a few great reef stores in my area (Western NY). That said I get a few hundred dollars at a time which I spend on something I would not use my own money on - a high end stick or piece of equipment, often just on salt mix etc.

If I new more people in my area I would give them away! that way if mine dies (I sometimes get lazy and stop testing then things go out of wake) I can reach out to them and ask for a frag to start over with!

 

[BrandonS]

I luckily live right near silicone valley. I make about 200 a month selling my anemone splits. Pays for equipment, frags, fish. It's not much but a little can go a long way if you do it right.

 

[bam123]

THe best way to make money in this hobby, is to get a cheaper hobby.

 

[Hillbilly reefer]

I trade with my local lfs...helps offset cost..also , one hand washing the other type trades with local lfs and other reefers..

 

[Blue Carbon Reefing]

I sell Chaeto on Ebay, soon coral as well. I have been selling coral to my LFS for store credit and cash for years now. When I want to buy a piece of equipment(triton, gryphon saw, lights, pumps, salt, or other maintenance items) I trade for store credit and get a little more. When I want the cash for other things I take the cash. Making a little money back also helps keep the wife happy in a hobby that can be very very expensive.

 

[Dburr1014]

When I frag I usually bring them to my Reef Club and give awesome deals to the new people. Or sometimes I'll just trade with other people some frags that I don't have. I have a few times traded in for credit but the local fish stores don't give you much money for the stuff.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

I always viewed a "side hustle" as what happens when your tank is over grown and you need to trim to prevent coral warfare. In my mind the downfall for many new hobbyist is that they buy the cart before the horse. They see their newly purchased livestock as an investment. anytime a new branch, split, growth happens they're turning around to sell it off. Never experiencing a beautiful mature reef.

In my mind, I view those people as in it for all the wrong reasons. When I get visitors over and they ask for a frag of this or that, I point them to where I got it. Until my corals are ready to be trimmed, I'm not cutting stuff.

Now once I get to that point, I will probably work out a deal with one of the local farmers and make some trades...

 

[LRT]

I hope to one day be able to maybe at least get my initial investment back. Possibly help out with costs of maintenance and upgrades to my system.
But thats been impossible to date because all I've been doing is trading for new corals that I just have to have lol.
I dont forsee making any money on this hobby. I think that comes with lots of time, maturity and grow outs in system.
Nothing happens fast and you defientely can't rush it.

 

[GrapevineReefs]

i am fortunate to live in an area with at minimum 5 storefronts that have genuine coral sections of their stores and I’m about 20 minutes from a vendor that does live sales on here so trading in frags is super Easy even with common stuff. The problem I find with trading in to LFS is that it’s only on store credit. In my area they give between 30% and 40% of what they resell it for unless you bring In some super nice stuff that moves easy like high end mushrooms in which case you can demand 60% of what they are re selling it for. Again this is only store credit that you have to spend in their store, taking in to account the markup on their products you get very little for your coral on the bottom line when you take it in to stores. The best bet, which only seems to work in large cities, is craigslist which here in northern California works pretty well. There are a few guys I know who work craigslist and local Facebook groups rather well and get a much better return on their coral except you have to go through the work of meeting the customers and doing your own marketing. I personally make most of my coral play around money breeding freshwater fish that I have mastered the art of over the years. I continuously have high end Bettas breeding at all times(right now the galaxy koi is selling like crazy) they give me HUNDREDS of babies a month and each male sells for $25-$50 easily. The females I sell in bulk to the LFS and take what I can get for em. I also breed show guppies and exotic plecos which take so litter effort and energy once they get in a routine. That’s just me and my hustle, I don’t come out of pocket for anything anymore mainly due to freshwater bettas

 

[oldbob50]

My coral growth is such that I have been selling frags to my LFS now for over a year from a 3 year old tank. One gives me 50% on their resale price in cash and the other 60% in store credit. I usually go with the 60% since I buy most of my new corals and frozen food from them. Over that year I have fragged out and sold 7 trumpet corals, 8 or 9 Kenya trees, 20 + Green Star polyps, 7 Frog Spawns and 5 Hammers. I'm looking at a major frag out on a huge Birds Nest in the next month. I have two Acans that are growing very well and may need fragging in about a year but I am not sure how to go about doing them. I'm limited in equipment to using a Dremel like tool with a 2 inch cutting wheel. Anyone have experience cutting Acans in this way?

 

[jda]

I think that it is OK to raise stuff and sell it as long as you remember that stores still need to exist or else we all lose you, not to get greedy, treat your customers well and always replace/refund stuff if there is any doubt, do what you say, don't sell fakes and don't be afraid of feedback or criticism.

All of this said, it is not as easy as it looks. Local markets get saturated quickly if you grow stuff well. Shipping is not all that it is cracked up to be and you might even get a dude who asks paypal for a dispute because he left his box outside over the weekend because he forgot to bring it in. Build in some reship and loss costs.

I will do retail for retail or wholesale for wholesale to a few LFS. I only bring them top-shelf stuff and all that they have to do is add something else onto their order form for me, so they don't get to make money off of me on both ends. The good ones are OK with this since they don't have a stock of CSBs or Bounces to sell anyway, so if they just make money on the sale and let me have a few fish wholesale, then they made money that they would not have otherwise. I will sell to them for less in cash, but few of them want to do this too often.

The most important thing to remember is that this is not super easy and it is not always a great money maker... so don't get greedy and try and over trim your stuff to break even. Greedy cuts kill corals. Be a hobbyist first and enjoy your purchases and if you happen to get some back later, then that is just gravy.

 

[Roosterjack]

For the average hobbyist, when it comes to money and reefing the only way to win is not to play.

 

[ca1ore]

While there is absolutely nothing wrong with making $$ from this hobby, it has been my long held view that there is nothing that quite sucks the fun out of a hobby than turning it into a business. Pass for me ......

Im quite happy to do a quid pro quo trade here and there, buy a fish from a local reefer or give away frags rather than toss them.

 

[BackToTheReef]

There's nothing wrong with making money from this hobby to "reinvest" into it right? What if you're wanting to make a little side money to help feed the addiction? There are several ways of doing it and it's not just selling coral frags although that has to be the number one way to make side money! But what are they? That's what I want to talk about today!

1. Do you have a little reefing side hustle that helps you earn money to put back into your hobby? What is it?

2. What are some easy ways, easy corals etc. people can get into selling to make some extra money?

image via @leo

#2 looks like the grinch talking out of the corner of his mouth. No way I sell or trade that until it grows to point it loses that look! lol

 

[Steven Garland]

I invest my money into higher-end pieces as there is a big market for them. I prefer to go with zoas and acros as they are beautiful, easy to grow, and not hard to frag. Then, I sell the frags at cheaper prices than what stores sell them, so hobbyists can enjoy them plus I earn some money back. The only reason I can afford these corals is because I have been saving money for years and can finally invest in corals.

You are what the hobby needs.

 

[mainereefer]

Who was it that? said you can make a small fortune in reefkeeping you just need to start with a large one

 

[Eb1air]

Yes, I historically have sold monti's and stick's back to my local fish store (A Reef Creation). They are easiest for me anyway. I am lucky to have a few great reef stores in my area (Western NY). That said I get a few hundred dollars at a time which I spend on something I would not use my own money on - a high end stick or piece of equipment, often just on salt mix etc.

If I new more people in my area I would give them away! that way if mine dies (I sometimes get lazy and stop testing then things go out of wake) I can reach out to them and ask for a frag to start over with!

Yes I'm from western ny too and sell back to local stores too but never there yet hit me up some time and I'll do some of coral trade if you're up for it..