Building Your Knowledge About Fisheries
There are two major ways to use fisheries. One is as a consumer and the second is as a producer. As a consumer, you would need to be a high profile customer, since buying from Government or private fish farms means lowest cost, bulk purchases. On the other hand, as a producer, you could function at a micro level and still rake in high profits. One of these micro enterprises, which you could start literally in your backyard, is the farming of exotic fish, or in layperson’s language, breeding aquarium fish. It takes next to nothing (relative to what any other business would involve) to get a large aquarium, have the water treated and heated to the right temperature and breeding some of the costliest aquarium fishes available.
In many instances, the Government offers grants for this type of business. Be sure that you contact the Fish and Wildlife department in your State to find out the details and how to apply for a grant to start a micro-enterprise, if such a grant exists. Ask if you are eligible under the criteria mentioned therein. Obtaining a grant would further encourage you in your business, as these funds need not be repaid, so you would be ahead financially from the start.
The good news is that breeding a fish takes little effort from you; the work is done by a fish. All you have to do is get a few, high priced exotic fishes and breed them according to instructions that are readily available in any number of places. You could always start with a fish that is of a cheaper variety and as you gather confidence about your abilities in taking care of them, you could try some of the more expensive varieties.
Establishing great exotic fisheries is only half of the picture. The other half would consist of how you propose to see that your stock is sold off before your fish die of old age. Should this happen, you would have to purchase more breeding stock or shift to another business. You need to have a very aggressive marketing strategy, such as exhibitions where you have special discounted prices, like “buy 2 get 1 free” type of scheme, organize community shows where you target children by showing them and making them feel the joy of having a fish (or a couple of them) as a pet.
It is important that you learn everything you can about the exotic fish you are breeding. This would include any background information and stories that you can find. Operating fisheries requires that you have some technical knowledge about breeding fish, but interesting stories and background information will provide you with a unique marketing tool that will help you to be successful.