R.I.P Oceanic Corals

[Aro]

Another one bites the dust.

[WarDog]

So it's official then? Bummer.

[Wretch]

I noticed their instagram was down, anyone know what their Facebook page says?

[WarDog]

I noticed their instagram was down, anyone know what their Facebook page says?

Its still up. 50% off... but that's a couple days old.

[Wretch]

I dont have Facebook. Its too bad if another local store has closed, running out of options. Hope everything works out for the guys at Oceanic.

[The Guy]

Its still up. 50% off... but that's a couple days old.
Hmm! Interesting nothing else on FB since the posted summer 50% off livestock sale. Have to pop by tomorrow and see what's up.

[spit.fire]

I dont have Facebook. Its too bad if another local store has closed, running out of options. Hope everything works out for the guys at Oceanic.
There will be a new "store" in time, in no way affiliated with oceanic tho.

[Reef Pilot]

Geez, that's too bad. Used to carry some pretty good stuff in there. I tried to support them as much as I could even though a bit on the expensive side. But it's still a 15 min drive for me and they were often closed, so haven't been able to connect there for a while. But I wish Paul the best going forward. He was a great guy to deal with, and always very willing to help.

[NU-2reef]

:sad:

[Piscez]

I called and talked to Paul the owner today and all is not lost, the business has sold to new owners and Paul staying on for a few weeks to help with the transition. So it's going to continue as a Saltwater Aquarium shop but unfortunately without Paul and Albert's wealth of knowledge and advice, you guys will be missed! :popcorn:

[Aro]

Sold ? Ok that's one way to look at it.

[gmann]

is there another way to look at it if the owner said its being sold?

[Aro]

What did you expect him to say.
" I've lost my business to creditors see ya later "

The guy finally had karma bite him on the ass. Good riddance. Hopefully someone reputable will fill the void.

[CastawayReef]

This blows. Got great advice and livestock from them with my castaway reef.

I hope there will be a another shop with same level of customer service and appreciation soon.

: (

[The Guy]

What did you expect him to say.
" I've lost my business to creditors see ya later "

The guy finally had karma bite him on the ass. Good riddance. Hopefully someone reputable will fill the void.

I don't think it's a good idea to FLAME people or places with your opinion, do you even realize the amount of knowledge that came from that little shop to help people out?
Best of luck to all the folks at Oceanic Corals in the future.

[F.H]

I don't think it's a good idea to FLAME people or places with your opinion, do you even realize the amount of knowledge that came from that little shop to help people out?
Best of luck to all the folks at Oceanic Corals in the future.

+1

Doesn't matter what your experiences were with them, shows your character needlessly flaming them online like that.

Good luck to Paul/Albert (and Tyler?), as well as to the new owners.

[Aro]

I'm sorry that you presume I'm just giving an opinion.
I actually have based my statement on personal first hand experience dealing with this shops gross negligence and poor business practices that have cost me a significant amount of money. So I repeat good riddance.

[F.H]

Fair enough.

They have always been more than patient with me and I've always had great customer service dealing with them, which can sometimes be a bit rare to find, so you can understand why I chose to defend them.

[Aquattro]

The one time I was able to make it over there, Paul was great, gave me great stock at a great price, and "most" people here have been happy with their years of service. Paul will be missed by most.

Let's keep this thread friendly, as in if you have nothing nice to say, say nothing.

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

I don't think it's a good idea to FLAME people or places with your opinion, do you even realize the amount of knowledge that came from that little shop to help people out?
Best of luck to all the folks at Oceanic Corals in the future.

+2

I've had great service and interactions with all three guys at Oceanic. Sorry to see another saltwater LFS go.

[NU-2reef]

Nothing but good things and positivity came out of that shop. Real sad to see them go. By far my favourite coral shop to visit.

[CastawayReef]

Nothing but good things and positivity came out of that shop. Real sad to see them go. By far my favourite coral shop to visit.

+2 same here.

[CastawayReef]

+2

I've had great service and interactions with all three guys at Oceanic. Sorry to see another saltwater LFS go.

Absolutely!

[The Guy]

The one time I was able to make it over there, Paul was great, gave me great stock at a great price, and "most" people here have been happy with their years of service. Paul will be missed by most.

Let's keep this thread friendly, as in if you have nothing nice to say, say nothing.

+1 :wink:

[daplatapus]

+1 :wink:

+2.

I've never been there, but with all the math going on I didn't want to be left out :p

[gmann]

i LOL'd @ daplatapus

[kien]

I've dealt with Paul and Albert on several occasions remotely in Calgary and have always had excellent service. I will miss them +3. :-(

[Bblinks]

Me too, great service from both especially Albert. The new delivery system Albert just started was awesome and he even quarantined the fish for me for a week and a half just to make sure it ate.

[Snappy]

I've dealt with Paul and Albert on several occasions remotely in Calgary and have always had excellent service. I will miss them +3. :-(

Ditto - sorry to see them leave.

[Animal-Chin]

Ya I went there this weekend excited that everything was half off only to find out they sold the store...😕 I really hope the new owners keep up the excellent service I got from oceanic, those guys were super helpful and new me by name after 2 visits.

[gobytron]

Paul and Albert were great.

2 guys who care about aquariums and know a whole lot about fish keeping and reefing.

That being said, 3 times I drove out to oceanic and they were closed during business hours.

Once even after confirming that they would be there.

You can't run a business like that, at least not for long.

It's too bad because their prices and selection were excellent for an LFS.

Hard to imagine this store having nicer stock or better customer service under another owner...i guess we will see.

[kamloops_reefer]

I'm sure they will pop back up again - I'd doubt they would just get out of the hobby all together. Probably just letting things cool down etc. since it might not be exactly the most comfortable discussion.

wish them the best!

-Blake

[hunggi74]

I'm sure they will pop back up again - I'd doubt they would just get out of the hobby all together. Probably just letting things cool down etc. since it might not be exactly the most comfortable discussion.

wish them the best!

-Blake

Oooohhhh... The plot just thickened...

[Animal-Chin]

Ya really, what uncomfortable thing needs cooling down? :lol:

[kamloops_reefer]

you can have people that close business without any "rumors" who decide not to inform everyone that everything was swell and great.

you guys are reading way into what I'm saying. The B.S. on this forum is going to happen so there is little use for anyone involved from Oceanic to come on here - half will believe what they want to believe.

There isn't much selection now to serve the Fraser valley from what I can remember. I'm sure it was a key store for some people that didn't care to drive on the wetcoast

[Animal-Chin]

The store is on craigslist for anyone who wants to buy it.

[Bblinks]

How muchy?

[Animal-Chin]

$35,000

Just search "aquarium" and youll see it.

[Reef Pilot]

How muchy?
http://vancouver.craigslist.ca/rds/bfs/5043553870.html

[WarDog]

$35,000

Just search "aquarium" and youll see it.

Hey Rich, wanna go halfers? Lol.

[gobytron]

Remember when OA was going out of business and they wanted 400k for their operation?

35k seems like a steal.

I just wonder what chances someone else might have if two smart guys like Paul and Albert couldn't make it work.

I hope they are both healthy and that this decision to close/sell doesn't is solely a business decision.

Hopefully someone who can commit full time scoops it up and keeps it going.

[Reef Pilot]

I just wonder what chances someone else might have if two smart guys like Paul and Albert couldn't make it work.

Need more than just domain knowledge/expertise to succeed at small business. In this case, I think location and traffic was working against them. OA had the same problem.

And as Colby has mentioned, at best, it is still a very tough business. From just a business perspective, lots easier/better ways to make money. Either you need volume (like J&L) or you better have the corner on some niche where you can make some margin. King Ed has it made, too, with not just their location, but also selling all the other pet stuff (incl freshwater), and able to spread the SW expense and overhead.

[Gooly001]

Hi Everyone,

It's been while since I've posted on here and it is moving to see so many people giving us accolades for the work that we've put in over the years.

It is time for me to move on. My wife and I have other business pursuits that doesn't require us to trade time for money. I have decided to sell the business due to my core value that my wife and 2 young children come first over anything else. I have put in way too many hours in the past and regret all the time I've lost with them

So, having said that the store is profitable. It generates enough income to live on thanks to all our loyal and regular clients.

Many of you have expressed why we were closed so often. Because the store is owner operated and we did try hiring students, we felt that our customers were wanting our attention and not a student who's still learning the hobby and wasn't qualified to offer advice to customers who had thousands upon thousands of dollars invested in their tanks. So, most times there was only one of us present at the store and that person would need to leave to do tank consults or maintenance for clients or pick up shipments from the airport. I will admit there were times we took lunch breaks and got called away and weren't able to get back to the store as promised on the signage.

This was the biggest hinderance and a large reason why we weren't able to grow the business much more.

In conclusion, there are a few more reasons why the store ended up in this situation, but those reasons were personal and not business releated. It is my hope that someone qualified would take over the store and help serve all those amazing clients that we have built along those years. It is a huge hole that will need to be filled but it is not one that I am choosing to continue on that path.

Thank you Canreef for all your years of support. The store is for sale and if no one approaches to take over the business, all equipment will be liquidated next week.

One last favour I would ask of you all, would be to help rehome all the remaining livestock that's at the store. All livestock inventory is 50% off.

Thanks again and best wishes to all of you.

Cheers,

Paul

[The Guy]

Thanks Paul for clearing up all the speculation and wondering that has surfaced here on Canreef.
Best of luck to you and the staff , and oh Ya " THANKYOU" for your past services.

[Reef Pilot]

My thanks also Paul for the support and advice you've given me in the past. You will be missed for sure, with your store, and hope the sale goes well. All the best going forward. And hope that you can continue the hobby at least with your own home tank.

[Animal-Chin]

Paul you and Albert are aweome and your store was my favorite by far. I too hope someone takes it over as it was my #1 go to for coral over the last couple of years.

If I didn't have the exact same family values I would scrape together the money and buy your place in a heartbeat, its always been a dream of mine but with a couple of kids, mortgage, ect I can't take the risk of leaving what I'm doing now. I sure would love to though...lol

All the best to you and your family!

[gobytron]

Hi Everyone,

It's been while since I've posted on here and it is moving to see so many people giving us accolades for the work that we've put in over the years.

It is time for me to move on. My wife and I have other business pursuits that doesn't require us to trade time for money. I have decided to sell the business due to my core value that my wife and 2 young children come first over anything else. I have put in way too many hours in the past and regret all the time I've lost with them

So, having said that the store is profitable. It generates enough income to live on thanks to all our loyal and regular clients.

Many of you have expressed why we were closed so often. Because the store is owner operated and we did try hiring students, we felt that our customers were wanting our attention and not a student who's still learning the hobby and wasn't qualified to offer advice to customers who had thousands upon thousands of dollars invested in their tanks. So, most times there was only one of us present at the store and that person would need to leave to do tank consults or maintenance for clients or pick up shipments from the airport. I will admit there were times we took lunch breaks and got called away and weren't able to get back to the store as promised on the signage.

This was the biggest hinderance and a large reason why we weren't able to grow the business much more.

In conclusion, there are a few more reasons why the store ended up in this situation, but those reasons were personal and not business releated. It is my hope that someone qualified would take over the store and help serve all those amazing clients that we have built along those years. It is a huge hole that will need to be filled but it is not one that I am choosing to continue on that path.

Thank you Canreef for all your years of support. The store is for sale and if no one approaches to take over the business, all equipment will be liquidated next week.

One last favour I would ask of you all, would be to help rehome all the remaining livestock that's at the store. All livestock inventory is 50% off.

Thanks again and best wishes to all of you.

Cheers,

Paul


Well that all makes a whole heck of a lot more sense than some of the insinuations here...

Good on you guys for coming to terms with a tough decision and doing the best thing for you and yours.

[chef]

Good luck going forward Paul , a wealth of knowledge and a heck of a nice guy. When all is said and done, I'm sure you'll b happy with the decision!!! Thanks for all you've done and starting my addiction!!!

[H2o2]

Just would like to add all the best Paul on what ever path u turn down