Couple selling Bish’s Fishes after 33 years in business
THE couple behind a business that has been selling tropical fish and other exotic pets and related supplies for the last 33 years have decided to call it a day.
Tim and Karen Bishop opened Bish’s Fishes in 1988 after deciding they wanted to run their own business.
It was Mr Bishop’s father who suggested fish but at the time the couple knew next to nothing about them.
‘Our interest grew out of running the shop, really,’ he said.
Their first shop was in St Martin’s. A few years’ later they moved to larger premises in La Charroterie before the then-owner of the Oatlands Village site suggested a move there about 22 years ago.
‘It’s a great place to come to work every day,’ said Mr Bishop.
‘It’s been a good business.’
‘It’s been good for the site, too,’ said Mrs Bishop.
‘The kids love it.’
She said that a visit to Oaty and Joey’s Play Barn often ends with children on their way home insisting on visiting the shop to see the fish and other creatures, including mice, hamsters, tortoises, snails and bearded dragons.
But despite the enjoyment they have had, after 33 years they said it was time to retire.
‘I’m 66 and Karen is 61,’ said Mr Bishop. ‘We don’t want to be retiring when we’re both too old to do anything.’
The shop is up for sale and he said they have had a number of expressions of interest, including from long-standing customers.
Mr Bishop said that they have had a lot of regulars over the years.
‘We’ve got customers who used to come in here as little kids with their parents and they’re coming in with their own kids now.’
One youngster had always longed to have a polka dot catfish that the shop had in stock when it was at St Martin’s and when it moved Mr Bishop gave him the fish as a gift. 'He comes in here with his kids and he still has that fish after 30 years.’
While selling a huge variety of fish for both tropical and cold water tanks or outdoors, the most popular have been ‘community tanks’ in which many different fish are kept in one aquarium.
Neon tetras and guppies were among the biggest sellers, with small to medium-sized tanks the most popular.
‘There’s not a massive market for huge tanks over here,’ said Mr Bishop.
After retiring they are looking forward to taking some holidays.
‘Before Covid we used to travel to France at least once or twice a year with the car, but the shop has only got busier and it wasn’t fair to leave someone running it on their own.’
