I have been keeping and breeding fish since elementary school, and had a side gig in high school doing aquarium maintenance for businesses and hobbyists with larger setups. I made a great relationship with a local breeder that opened his own business primarily to sell high-end discus and angelfish (in addition to the usual freshwater community fish, and limited dry goods) in a small downtown shop. I sold him fish and volunteered around his shop on the weekends to learn the ropes and open my eyes to how an LFS actually works, and he farmed out any requests for tank service to me with some profit sharing between us. I quickly learned that there is a ton more work than the average guy would realise- and much of it isn't even aquarium related. Lots of your job will be customer service, janitorial, bookkeeping, stock lists and shipping/receiving product.
I moved away from my hometown and that store after high school and after settling in the new area for two years ended up the aquatics manager of a full-line mom and pop pet store that focused primarily on birds and fish, and I was the fish and reptile guy, with several employees under me. I had some of the most fun of my life working there, but it also was very hard work when you weren't immediately bagging fish or talking to customers. I found that it didn't limit my enjoyment of the hobby but it definitely affected my taste in products and livestock. It was also fun to set up interesting displays that you don't have the time or space for at home.
My 100% first priority advice to you is not to go in blind- find someone willing to talk to you about their business. Volunteer some hours to help out and see for yourself what it's all about. If anything it will give you helpful experience in deciding how much you intend to limit the scope of what you want in your shop to get a better idea of what to plan for.
I moved away from my hometown and that store after high school and after settling in the new area for two years ended up the aquatics manager of a full-line mom and pop pet store that focused primarily on birds and fish, and I was the fish and reptile guy, with several employees under me. I had some of the most fun of my life working there, but it also was very hard work when you weren't immediately bagging fish or talking to customers. I found that it didn't limit my enjoyment of the hobby but it definitely affected my taste in products and livestock. It was also fun to set up interesting displays that you don't have the time or space for at home.
My 100% first priority advice to you is not to go in blind- find someone willing to talk to you about their business. Volunteer some hours to help out and see for yourself what it's all about. If anything it will give you helpful experience in deciding how much you intend to limit the scope of what you want in your shop to get a better idea of what to plan for.