Oh trust me...I was putting together a business plan for a pet shop. After running the numbers I gave up even dreaming. Problem is at this point my dream job would be owning a fish store. Problems being, A. I dont have the money for start up, B. I dont have enough knowledge to be as good of a owner as I think I should be. C. I want to actually make money.
Well I can tell you this much, If I ever had a few million to blow on something and not worry about making money back, that would be it. I just think it would be so much fun to have a massive building stocked with all sorts of fish, dry stock and everything else. Do importing and exporting. Practical? No. Fun? YES! A massive scale maybe be profitable but you would still have to an insane amount of business shipping.
Way off topic but referring to the 500,000 sq.ft. aquarium...Does anyone else every drive by large empty commercial buildings and think.."wow, I could put a lot of fish in there" and then start trying to rationalize to yourself how your could make it happen and somehow actually make money?
Just think of the cost to heat and you should rationalize that it won't work. IMO the best means would be cheap, vacant, swampy land in the south where you could dig a bunch of ponds.
Just remember...I said TRYING to rationalize....it never works out.