Eager Crowd at the June meeting at Nunawading.

1st. - John  Maitland, 2nd. and 3rd. Eddie Tootell

Bert Boothman Trophy - Goldfish  ~     Orandas and Shubunkins 

      1st., 2nd. and 3rd.- Frank Berra

Life Style Opportunity

Expression of Interest

The third annual Fish Fair was approached with some trepidation, as this was the first year we were unable to advertise !

           Would the crowds eventuate or would we have a hall full of eager sellers and no buyers?

           With the demise of the traditional Trading Post in paper form we have no avenue for informing the public beyond our normal society contacts. So how good would word of mouth, supplemented by the online forums ( thanks everyone), be in filling the hall ?

Well by 9.45 we had our answer as the buying public swarmed in - some before time.

Sighs of relief.

This year we had full participation from all our sister clubs - The Victoria Cichlid Society had gone to great lengths to create a really attractive table with audio visual assistance and a super banner and display board.

All the members manning the table were dressed in the club's  most attractive maroon and gold  monogrammed tees. ANGFA - the Australia New Guinea Fishes Association - also had an impressive display of product in the form of publications and DVD s.

Both A S of V, ( Aquarium Society of Victoria) and EDAS (Eastern District Aquarium Society) had static displays with information on the club activities.

EDAS also had a table displaying, and playing, the Underwater Garden DVD, with copies on sale at a special Fish Fair price of $20 - a significant  mark down from the normal $25. Several copies were sold to customers interested in setting up a planted tank. EDAS also scored a new sponsor due to the efforts of Jan Reeves. Pet Stock from South Morang offered a Fair Special on 31 litre all-in-one tanks - $60 ea.!

At this price -  less than half retail price - they simply walked out the door and when the supply ran out orders were taken to be filled asap.

           Starting at the entrance Table #1 was admissions and EDAS with a display of the array of raffle prizes set out so people could see what they might win.

           Every entrant or group was given an admission ticket and a raffle ticket for their gold coin admission donation.

           Every half hour ( approximately) a raffle was drawn - major prize  drawn at 11.00 a.m. when crowds were at their maximum.

This was a Rena canister filter large enough to serve a 200 litre tank. With a retail value of over $300, we sold plenty of extra tickets  for this one, the eventual winner spent a small fortune to maximise his chances !

Subsidiary prizes included an EDAS mug for every winner and similar items of lesser value for second. An internal filter for instance as part of the filter prize. The “book” draw at 10.30 a.m. featured “Cichlids of West Africa” valued at over  $120 backed up with several other volumes.

The idea behind the raffles is to encourage customers to stay, hopefully buying more, until their    ticket colour is drawn. You had to be there to win !

Table #3 saw returning vendor John Maitland offering a range of rare plants and some fishes - including some beautifully coloured Rosy Barbs.

           I was tempted by a new Rotala species and  also some Vallisneria caulescens - the Red Vall.       

              Next door at #4 was Bundarra Tropicals - Marty Bell offered a range of fishes including goldfish as well as snails and other items of equipment. We were very pleased to have one of Melbourne's major wholesalers (and one of our sponsors) actively participating - Marty ( and the two girls) giving up their precious time off to attend.

This was the only table to offer goldfish for sale.

Down the southern side of the hall we had Graeme Moulden, John Cousins and Eddie Tootell with John setting up a most impressive display, including coloured photos of the rare species

 he had on offer.             

These three have been active participants in all three fairs, and their tables were always well attended by customers buying or enquiring about the specimens

on display. Altogether these three represent over one hundred years of fishkeeping experience.

As mentioned the Underwater Garden Video, played throughout the fair on a television,  so that prospective purchasers could see exactly what they were getting for their special Fair price of $20.

           Dermot Bulger, longtime member took the opportunity to clear items he no longer needed-as well as offering several bags of Killifish - a rare sight these days.

Cichlid Press - manned by the Reeves family  presented an array of the latest publications - another table which seemed to attract plenty of attention and (hopefully) customers.

Mandy and Manny - once again returning vendors from last   year had a varied setup. Among the offerings were several items of what may be termed Aquatic Art- fishes  stylised in glass and ceramics to grace the top of your tank or your crystal cabinet.

Addicted to Fish - one of our sponsors and also one of Melbourne's major online fish forums  had Table #20  with details of their activities and appropriate products - a great promotional effort.

Stalwart Ernie Hicks - working with prior knowledge of the past two fairs, had a table absolutely crammed with fishes from his Exotic Fish Hatchery.

Many of Ernie's species are  unique to his hatchery and specimens  of neon catfish and dwarf cichlids just walked out the door.

Eric Law also had a range of offerings on Table #15 to complete the run around the hall.

Ticket numbers recorded,

indicated 270 individuals or groups sought admission - which should equate to about 300+ people attending.

Add to this the 27 vendors and assistants and you have a grand total of about  320 to 330 persons

	Setting up the tables at the Fish Fair 2010		Addicted-2-fish table at the 2010 Fish Fair.		Lister Sabin manning the entry ready for the opening of 2010 Fish Fair		Eager buyers crowd the aisles  -- Fish Fair 2010