What Premium Aquatics, Inc, does

Premium Aquatics, Inc. is a privately held direct-to-consumer e-commerce retailer founded in 1996 by Jason Frey and headquartered in Edinburgh, Indiana. The company specializes in saltwater and reef aquarium supplies, serving hobbyist aquarists across the United States and select international markets. It operates a Shopify-based online storefront with phone-order support (Monday–Friday, 9:30am–5:00pm) and a warehouse in Edinburgh, IN offering pre-arranged curbside pickup Tuesday–Friday. Walk-in shopping at the warehouse is by appointment only, suggesting a shift away from physical retail toward fulfillment-only operations.

The company's product portfolio spans 12 categories covering essentially every consumable and piece of equipment required to run a saltwater or reef aquarium, including additives, aquariums and sumps, control and testing, filtration, food, frag supplies, heaters and chillers, lighting, pumps and plumbing, rock and sand, RODI/ATO systems, and salt and maintenance. Under its proprietary "Simplicity" brand, Premium Aquatics offers DC circulation pumps (1000–3200 GPH models), an 8-in-1 saltwater test strip, a modular dosing container, a precision drip acclimation kit, dosing pumps, and an ATO reservoir. The remainder of the catalog consists of third-party brands such as Seachem, Red Sea, ESV, Salifert, Tropic Eden, Brightwell Aquatics, Rod's Food, and Reef Frenzy, which the company resells.

Premium Aquatics generates revenue primarily through one-time product sales on its e-commerce platform at unit prices ranging from under $10 (e.g., Seachem KanaPlex at $8.14) to over $100 for specialty items such as the Simplicity DC pumps ($109.95–$189.95). Pricing incentives include free shipping on orders over $49, a 5% military discount, a reward points program offering up to 5% back, price matching on non-MAP items from authorized resellers, and a flat $39.99 shipping charge for frozen food. International shipping is available to select countries via UPS and US Postal Service, though live items cannot be shipped internationally. The customer base is horizontal, targeting individual saltwater and reef aquarium hobbyists from beginner to advanced levels.

Name

Premium Aquatics, Inc,

Legal name

Premium Aquatics, Inc.

Website

https://premiumaquatics.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Premium Aquatics is a privately held B2C e-commerce retailer, founded in 1996 and based in Edinburgh, Indiana, that sells saltwater and reef aquarium supplies, proprietary "Simplicity" brand equipment, and third-party brands to hobbyist aquarists across the U.S. and select international markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Aquarium Supplies Retail

akta.pro primary industry

Aquarium & Fish Supplies Retail (CRALAHAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Fish & Aquatic Feed (ornamental) (CRADAFAL)

Keywords

• Saltwater aquarium supplies
• Reef aquarium equipment
• Aquarium water testing
• Protein skimmers filtration
• Coral propagation supplies

Headquarters

HQ city

Edinburgh

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Supply Chain, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Product Sales: Direct-to-consumer e-commerce sales of aquarium equipment, supplies, additives, and accessories. Revenue generated through individual product transactions at listed prices with optional military discount (5%) and reward points program.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Premium Aquatics is a direct-to-consumer online retailer specializing in saltwater and reef aquarium supplies and equipment, selling across 12 major product categories including additives, filtration, lighting, pumps, food, and rock/sand. The company also designs and sells its own proprietary 'Simplicity' brand of aquarium equipment — DC circulation pumps, multi-parameter test strips, modular dosing containers, drip acclimation kits, dosing pumps, and ATO reservoirs — alongside third-party brands such as Seachem, ESV, Salifert, Red Sea, Tropic Eden, Rod's, and Reef Frenzy.

Product overview

Premium Aquatics is a B2C e-commerce retailer specializing in saltwater aquarium supplies and equipment. The company operates as an online marketplace offering a comprehensive portfolio of aquarium products across 12 major categories including Additives, Aquariums & Sumps, Control & Testing, Filtration, Food, Frag Supplies, Heaters & Chillers, Lighting, Pumps & Plumbing, Rock & Sand, RODI & ATO, and Salt & Maintenance. The company's own brand 'Simplicity' includes DC pumps (1000-3200 GPH models), modular dosing containers, drip acclimation kits, dosing pumps, ATO reservoirs, and multi-parameter test strips. The portfolio also includes third-party branded products for reef chemistry supplementation (ESV B-Ionic, Red Sea, Brightwell Aquatics), medications (Seachem KanaPlex), test kits (Salifert, Hanna Instruments), frozen foods (Rod's, Reef Frenzy), live rock (Tropic Eden), and filtration accessories. The Simplicity brand products represent the company's core equipment offerings while the extensive third-party brand portfolio provides consumables and specialty items.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Simplicity DC Pumps (1000, 1600, 2100, 3200)

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Dr. Reef: Dr. Reef is a saltwater aquarium supplies e-commerce retailer offering a wide range of equipment, additives, foods, and consumables to reef hobbyists. It targets the same niche consumer with a similar DTC storefront model and product taxonomy, including its own branded equipment lines.
• Bulk Reef Supply: Bulk Reef Supply is the largest US online retailer dedicated to saltwater reef-keeping, offering pumps, dosing, test kits, additives, and equipment across all major reef categories. It mirrors Premium Aquatics' direct-to-consumer e-commerce model and core product taxonomy (DC pumps, dosing containers, test strips, RODI/ATO). It is the closest comparable in scale, assortment, and target hobbyist segment.
• Aquarium Co-Op: Aquarium Co-Op is a multi-channel online aquarium retailer (freshwater + saltwater) with strong content marketing and a growing proprietary equipment line. It overlaps with Premium Aquatics in target hobbyist customer, e-commerce model, and branded equipment development strategy.
• Marine Depot: Marine Depot is a long-standing online saltwater and reef aquarium supplies retailer offering additives, equipment, filtration, lighting, and livestock. It shares Premium Aquatics' vertical focus on saltwater hobbyists, multi-category catalog, and e-commerce-led distribution, and overlaps heavily in proprietary and third-party brand assortment.
• Tidal Gardens: Tidal Gardens is a saltwater aquarium retailer and content brand selling equipment, supplements, foods, and livestock to reef hobbyists. It shares Premium Aquatics' specialty positioning, customer base, and DTC-led sales motion, with an emphasis on hobbyist expertise.
• Salty Bottom Reef Company: Salty Bottom Reef Company is a saltwater-focused e-commerce retailer offering equipment, additives, and foods to reef hobbyists. It targets a near-identical customer segment and product taxonomy, including hobbyist-grade DC pumps, dosing systems, and consumables.
• Reef Aquarium: Reef Aquarium is an online specialty retailer focused on saltwater and reef-keeping equipment, supplements, and consumables. It serves the same hobbyist segment as Premium Aquatics with overlapping brand portfolio (e.g., ESV, Seachem, Red Sea) and comparable DTC fulfillment.

Broad incumbents

• Petsmart: PetSmart is a national omnichannel pet retailer carrying aquarium equipment, supplies, and livestock across its store base and e-commerce site. It competes with Premium Aquatics for hobbyist wallet share with greater breadth but lower specialty depth in saltwater reef-keeping.
• LiveAquaria: LiveAquaria is a major online saltwater and freshwater livestock and supplies retailer, owned by Petco. It serves the same reef-keeping hobbyist segment with a broader pet-retailer portfolio behind it. Comparable as a scaled saltwater e-commerce destination with deeper resources for marketing, fulfillment, and SKU breadth.
• Chewy: Chewy is a large online pet retailer carrying aquarium supplies, additives, and equipment alongside its broad pet assortment. It is comparable as a scaled e-commerce competitor encroaching on the specialty aquarium niche, with superior logistics and marketing budgets.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/premium-aquatics

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Premium Aquatics, Inc,