Meet Chris Kline of Discount Aquarium Fish and Reef in Tempe

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chris Kline.

Chris, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
My love for fish and aquariums started as a young boy when my friends and I would ride our bikes down to Phoenix Tropical Fish after finishing delivering newspapers on the weekend and spend hours looking at fish we hoped to have in our tanks. I dabbled in the hobby throughout most of my adult life while working in various careers and building a family before finding my way back to it in a big way. After graduating from ASU, I opened my first business, a martial arts training facility in Chandler Arizona, which was the culmination of a dozen or so years training, fighting and teaching martial arts. While the business survived for three years, it was not all that profitable, and I made the decision to close the gym and go to work for Motorola as they would pay for me to continue my education and get my MBA. After a couple years at the big M, I found that the big corporate shop was not a good fit for me, so I decided to pursue a career in education. My wife likes to joke that I am the most over educated fish guy around. I worked in education for many years as a teacher, principal, college instructor and instructional specialist and that tends to lead to more and more schooling. I have two masters and a doctoral degree which have nothing to do with fish. A dozen or so years ago, my wife and I adopted our first of two girls from China, and I wanted to be home more, so I began work as an online college instructor and instructional specialist and quit my job as a school principal. With the extra time away from a traditional job, I spent time training for and competing in triathlon, completing many fun events including a few Ironman distance events, and yes found my way back to aquariums in a big way. I began a small aquarium business at home and soon it was time to look for a shop. Our first shop was in North Phoenix and then a couple years ago we moved the shop to Tempe. In Tempe, we quickly outgrew our first shop and moved three doors down to the much larger facility we are in now.

Has it been a smooth road?
I already knew from starting one small business that it is a difficult thing to do. I did not have a lot of funding for startup, so our shop had to be opened and stocked on a very conservative budget. I made lots of mistakes along the way and was only able to survive because I had the support of a working spouse. It was a good two years, before I took home my first dollar. My business is very competitive with several new shops opening and others closing each year. Most of the new shops do not make it past year two, but I guess that is not all that different from what happens with other types of startups. I think my biggest challenge was lack of working capital, but perhaps needing to be lean starting up in a down economy had some benefits for making it in the long run. We have seen a few very well-funded aquarium shops open in the last few years and still not survive past year two.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Discount Aquarium Fish and Reef – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Our shop is different from most others, in the aquarium industry in that we specialize in dealing in used aquariums and equipment. Without a doubt we sell more used products than all the other valley aquarium stores combined. We help to make an expensive hobby affordable by giving generous trade in allowances for quality used aquariums and equipment and offering great prices. We also work hard to offer healthy, competitively priced livestock and new supplies and equipment for both fresh and saltwater aquariums. I am most proud of our reputation of taking the time to work with hobbyists of all levels, so they have the knowledge and support to be successful in this exciting hobby.

As with many other industries, ours is becoming more technical with new innovations coming online all the time. Most new lighting is controlled by your smart phone or computer, there are controllers to automate everything from feeding to dosing chemicals to calling your phone if there is an issue with equipment. With innovation comes a high price tag, and where innovations are cool for the tech savvy hobbyist and may help make some things easier, fortunately they are not a must for being successful. Almost all small businesses are under increased competition from Big Box retailers, especially online giants like Amazon. We work hard to give customers reasons to come to the shop and do business with us rather than always going online. Our customers depend on us for problem solving and support that you just can’t get online.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
Tempe, being a college town, has a festive atmosphere that I think the city leaders tend to foster. Creating the town lake and bringing in events like the Rock and Roll Marathon and Ironman Arizona (bragging rights, I completed each of these four times). One problem I see is the number of homeless people living in the city. That is something the City should address.

Contact Info:

• Address: Discount Aquarium Fish and Reef
  1753 E Broadway Rd. #105 Tempe, AZ 85282
• Website: http://discountaquariumsaz.com/
• Phone: 602-861-6728
• Email: ckline72@cox.net
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/discountaquarium/

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