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Please note:
These articles, written 2003-4, were intended not just for the benefit of local aquarists and visitors to Vancouver. Rather, they were written as part of the Travel section of Aquarticles, to show people from other cities and countries what the retail aquarium scene was like in Vancouver at that time. The articles will not necessarily be updated and things will inevitably change, so use caution if actually using the articles as a guide.

The Aquarium Stores of Vancouver Canada
by Howard Norfolk
Original to Aquarticles.com

Part IV:
Fraser Aquarium
4364 Fraser Street, Vancouver.  604-879-1112
Does not have e-mail
For location go to MAP

Fraser Aquarium has been a feature of the East Side of Vancouver for 35 years, which is how long Hok and his wife Margaret have owned their shop. In the last fifteen years or so they have seen their neighbourhood of mostly Germans, Italians and other Europeans change, due to an influx of immigrants from Hong Kong, China, Vietnam and other Asian countries. "Little India," a shopping area catering to people from the Punjab and elsewhere, is just up the road. Hok and Margaret have soldiered on all this time, successfully adjusting the attitude and stock of their all-aquarium store according to their customers' preferences.

Click on photos for enlargements, then go "Back"

      Fraser Aquarium

    Hok and Margaret have served behind this counter for 35 years. No, they haven't blended into the fixtures! - they just preferred not to have their photo taken.

   Behind the counter are books for sale in both English and Chinese, and some colourful fish models from Asia.

     
The store is one large open room, with stock tanks lining the walls on three sides, and equipment, food and accessories in the centre. It is spacious, efficient and tidy.

      
There are 120 tanks in two different sizes. They are exceptionally clean and well-maintained, and full of lots of colourful healthy fish.

Hok and his customers like their fish to be colourful! Not too many "dull" catfish, cichlids and big ugly fish here, but instead lots of livebearers, goldfish, koi, discus and "novelty" fish varieties.

     
Fancy male guppies, $8 each.

     
Large healthy swordtails, $9 each.

     
A beautiful juvenile arowana, $55.

   A nice group of pearl danios.

   Weather loaches, and a fish not often found for sale in Vancouver, the North-American sunfish.

Fraser Aquarium is particularly notable for its koi, which are in stock year-round. Common pond koi are available from $15 up depending on size, but the imported Japanese koi are more spectacular. Hok and some other store owners get together to import these fish from Japan.

  
6" Japanese koi are $45 each, and  larger ones, $60.

   
These koi are $100 and $120 respectively....

   
....and the biggest ones cost $125 and $250.

     
A change of pace from koi are "purple parrots," $69.99, and "black streak blood parrots," $59.99.

   Or how about discus? These discus are "Special $49.99"...

   ...and these "hi fin body blue discus" are "$124.99."

   
The sunny front window is where Hok keeps aquatic plants in plastic wading pools. They stay healthy in the natural light.

Hok and Margaret open their store seven days per week, with only occasional part-time help. They offer a generous discount of 20% off everything except sale items to members of the Vancouver Aquatic Hobbyist Club.  For large healthy colourful display fish and a few special imports, Fraser Aquarium is well worth checking out.

Go to Part V: Noah's Pet Ark

Or: Go to the beginning of this series: Part I, Introduction and the Pet Boutique