David,
It's heartening to see your passion for the hobby growing strong. I do agree that the hobby is not what it used to be for various reasons. The pace of life and the cost of living being a major factor, most folks would opt for lower cost hobby with instant gratification. Not to forget other distractions such as online gaming/console gaming taking friends away from the hobby too. Given the cutthroats style of running business and the natural tendency for hobbyist to gravitate towards low cost retailers, it's hard to keep good LFS in business. Whilst all of use agree that some shops are good, but do we patronise them? Or do we run to shops like C328 for the best bargin again?
As for spreading the interest, that's what AQ is all about. It's an online platform for like minded hobbyist to gather and take it further offline. The more people see beautiful planted tanks, the more chances there are for the hobby to survive. Beside exposure, we also need to focus on education. With the right knowledge, at least new comers won't be "doom" from the start as they will have the skill sets to manage the tank and keep it beautiful.
If you are interested, perhaps we can meet up for coffee one of these days and let's work out something. Nothing happens overnight and a good plan will be advantageous to set the cornerstone for those with the passion to share to take this further.
Cheers,
I have dwarf cichlids in my tanks! Do you?
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