Start a pond fish trade delivery round

Landscapers, pond installers, garden centres, small aquatic shops and larger private pond owners.

You earn the margin between your buying price and trade price on each order, with repeat orders from regular customers building a steady round.

• Handling and transporting live fish safely
• Building trade relationships and following up orders
• Route planning and keeping simple stock records

• Check Cefas or the relevant fish health authority for registration or authorisation needed to move and sell live fish, especially if you buy from abroad
• Check the rules on transporting live animals in a vehicle, including welfare during journeys
• Check whether your council requires any licence for selling animals
• Public liability and goods in transit or stock insurance are worth checking, plus motor insurance for business use
• Stock losses from stress, heat or disease can eat into profit, so plan journeys and holding space carefully
• Avoid restricted or invasive species and keep records of where fish came from

Our estimates put startup costs typically around £3,000 to £12,000, depending on your van, the aerated tanks you need and how much stock you buy in bulk. Stock losses can eat into profit, so plan holding space carefully.

Monthly revenue is typically estimated at around £1,500 to £7,000, depending on how many trade customers you build up and how often you deliver. This is revenue, not profit, and fuel, stock and insurance costs come out of it.

Check Cefas or the relevant fish health authority for registration needed to move and sell live fish, especially if you buy from abroad. Also check the rules on transporting live animals, any council licence for selling animals, and which species are restricted.