aquarium specialty
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2006
- HeadquartersColumbia, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
aquarium specialty firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- aquarium specialty
- Legal name
- Aquarium Specialty
- Website
- https://aquariumspecialty.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2006
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
aquarium specialty industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Aquarium Supplies Retail
- NAICS
- Fish and Seafood Merchant Wholesalers (424460)
- SIC
- Retail-Hobby, Toy & Game Shops (5945)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Aquarium & Fish Supplies Retail (CRALAHAI)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Live Animals & Aquatics Wholesale Distribution (CRAOAKAJ)
Keywords
Where aquarium specialty is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Columbia
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
aquarium specialty business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Retail E-commerce Sales: Online retail sales of aquarium supplies, equipment, livestock (corals, fish, invertebrates), and aquarium systems through aquariumspecialty.com to hobbyists and enthusiasts.
- Wholesale Distribution (Aqua Specialty): B2B wholesale company launched in 2010 serving retailers and other businesses in the aquarium industry.
- Private Label Products: Own brand products including BioTek Marine (acquired/launched 2015) for substrate and aquarium products.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Standard retail pricing with free shipping threshold |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
aquarium specialty product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Aquarium Specialty operates an online and retail store selling 6,000+ aquarium products including tanks, sumps, equipment, filtration, lighting, parts, food, and live livestock (corals, fish, invertebrates) for freshwater and saltwater/reef hobbyists. The company stocks top-tier brands such as Neptune Systems, Nyos, Red Sea, Ecotech Marine, Pentair, and its own private-label BioTek Marine brand, with a wholesale arm serving B2B customers and an annual industry trade show (Southern Aquatic Experience).
Product overview
Aquarium Specialty is a retail and online aquarium supplies store offering a wide range of aquarium products. The company operates a comprehensive e-commerce platform (core product) supplemented by the Aqua Specialty wholesale division (launched 2010) and acquired brands including BioTek Marine (2015). The product portfolio encompasses LiveStock (corals, fish, invertebrates), Aquariums & Sumps, Filtration & Reactors (protein skimmers, media reactors), Equipment (pumps, controllers, chillers), Lighting, Care & Maintenance supplies, Food, and Parts & Plumbing. The company stocks major aquarium equipment brands such as Neptune Systems (Apex controllers, Trident testers, DOS systems, WAV pumps), Nyos (OPUS aquariums, Quantum skimmers, TORQ reactors), and Pentair (UV sterilizers). The company hosts the annual Southern Aquatic Experience trade show and acquired the AquaNerd Blog in 2015.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Aqua Specialty: Wholesale division of Aquarium Specialty launched in 2010
- BioTek Marine
- AquaNerd Blog
Products and services
- Live Livestock (Corals, Fish, Invertebrates)
Companies that use aquarium specialty
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
aquarium specialty technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
aquarium specialty partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Southern Aquatic ExperiencecoreAnnual trade show founded by Aquarium Specialty owner in 2019. Features aquarium industry exhibitors, education, and networking. Partnered with Southern Aquatic Experience website at southernaquaticexperience.com.
- BioTek MarinecorePrivate label brand acquired/launched in 2015, specializing in substrate and aquarium care products. BioTek Marine products are exclusive to Aquarium Specialty and represent a core proprietary product line.
- AquaNerd BlogminorBlog property acquired in 2015 for hobbyist content and community engagement, expanding digital presence in aquarium hobby space.
- Aqua Specialty (Wholesale)coreWholesale division launched in 2010 to serve B2B customers including other retailers and aquarium businesses.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves8 records
aquarium specialty competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Aquatic Arts: Online live-fish and aquatic plant specialist selling livestock and supplies to hobbyists; overlapping customer base with a heavier freshwater and planted-tank tilt.
- Reef Builders: Reef hobby media and community publication that has expanded into curated product reviews and shop integrations; competes for the same content-and-commerce attention from reef hobbyists.
Broad incumbents
- PetSmart: National pet retail incumbent selling aquarium equipment, supplies, and live fish; overlaps in the entry-level and mid-tier customer segments with broader assortment and physical store reach.
- Chewy: Dominant online pet retailer with a growing aquarium category; competes on selection, pricing, and shipping scale in dry goods and increasingly in livestock adjacent categories.
Regional players
- Aqua Imports: Wholesale and retail distributor of aquarium livestock and supplies with strong wholesale ties to local fish stores; directly comparable to Aquarium Specialty's Aqua Specialty wholesale arm.
Direct peers
- LiveAquaria: Specialty online retailer focused on live fish, corals, and aquarium supplies; directly comparable in livestock-led assortment and DTC hobbyist GTM.
- Bulk Reef Supply: Largest direct-to-consumer reef/aquarium supplies specialist in the US; sells equipment, livestock, and dry goods to the same saltwater hobbyist base with comparable premium-brand curation (Neptune, Ecotech, Red Sea).
- Marine Depot: Long-established online aquarium retailer offering saltwater and freshwater livestock, equipment, and supplies — directly overlapping Aquarium Specialty's product catalog and hobbyist customer base.
Others
- Neptune Systems: Premium aquarium controller manufacturer (Apex) whose products Aquarium Specialty resells; relevant as a supplier and as a benchmark for premium reef-equipment brand economics.
- ORA (Oceans, Reefs and Aquariums): Captive-bred marine livestock aquaculture producer whose ORA corals, fish, inverts, and algae are sold through Aquarium Specialty; comparable as the upstream supplier-side counterpart in the captive-bred livestock supply chain.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
aquarium specialty social profiles
Digital presenceaquarium specialty financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
aquarium specialty leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
aquarium specialty subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries3 records
aquarium specialty funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
aquarium specialty M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about aquarium specialty
What does aquarium specialty do?
Aquarium Specialty operates an online and retail store selling 6,000+ aquarium products including tanks, sumps, equipment, filtration, lighting, parts, food, and live livestock (corals, fish, invertebrates) for freshwater and saltwater/reef hobbyists. The company stocks top-tier brands such as Neptune Systems, Nyos, Red Sea, Ecotech Marine, Pentair, and its own private-label BioTek Marine brand, with a wholesale arm serving B2B customers and an annual industry trade show (Southern Aquatic Experience).
Is aquarium specialty a public or private company?
aquarium specialty is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was aquarium specialty founded?
aquarium specialty was founded in 2006. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is aquarium specialty based?
aquarium specialty is headquartered in Columbia, United States, in the North America region.
How does aquarium specialty make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Retail E-commerce Sales are the primary driver. The others are wholesale Distribution (Aqua Specialty) and private Label Products.
Who are aquarium specialty's main competitors?
Emerging players on record are Aquatic Arts and Reef Builders. Broad incumbents are PetSmart and Chewy. Aqua Imports is listed as a regional player. Direct peers are LiveAquaria, Bulk Reef Supply and Marine Depot. Others are Neptune Systems and ORA (Oceans, Reefs and Aquariums).
Does aquarium specialty have an API?
No public API is recorded for aquarium specialty.
What industry is aquarium specialty in?
aquarium specialty's product category is Aquarium Supplies Retail. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRALAHAI, Aquarium & Fish Supplies Retail, with a secondary code of CRAOAKAJ, Live Animals & Aquatics Wholesale Distribution. Its NAICS code is 424460 and its SIC code is 5945.