# Notes from Tokyo Aquarium Stores (56k Warning!)



## TPIRman (Apr 28, 2004)

My wife and I recently took a trip to Japan. We lived there (in Nagoya) in 2005, and in that whole year it never occurred to me to check out the LFS scene. Not sure why. But on this trip, I decided not to repeat my mistake. We spent a few days in Tokyo before heading off to other parts of the country, visiting friends, etc. I hit four aquarium stores (sometimes dragging my forgiving bride behind me) in the Tokyo area and took some notes for the APC community.

I picked a couple of stores that I had heard about -- on this board and elsewhere -- along with a couple that were convenient to our itinerary. I've included basic directions for each store to help you find your way if you'd ever like to visit them yourself. Let me know if you have any questions, and apologies in advance for the length of the post!

*Aqua Forest* (website)









*The Aqua Forest front display tank. (Sorry for the reflections in these photos -- tight quarters sometimes made it tough to avoid. Ignore that photographer in the window!)*

This was the first and best store that we visited. Aqua Forest had widest variety of flora and fauna, and a plethora of interesting tanks, starting with their planted discus tank that sits at the front entrance. The staff were very nice, and they were glad to have me snap pictures, as long as I didn't use a flash.









*Another view of the discus tank.*









*The store centerpiece.*

The large tanks, comprising the discus tank out front and an open-top mini-pond/paludarium in the shop, were nicely done, but I was more intrigued with the small/nano tanks that were crammed into seemingly every available nook in the place. There was a lot of staff creativity on display.









*A strange wall-mounted, framed tank. Not the happiest angels I've ever seen!*









*A staff member's personal project.*









*A rocky layout.*









*A nano tucked away among boxes of shrimp food.*

The plant stock was assembled with a completist's mindset: scores of species occupied a whole corner of the store. The plants were arranged with care and meticulously labeled with scientific and common names. The attention to detail was impressive. All of the animal life on sale was plant-friendly, naturally: lots of cories, otos, algae eaters, tetras. Plus every species of shrimp you could ask for.









*One of two long walls of aquatic plants.*









*A closer look.*









*One of the shrimp tanks.*

Like most of the stores I visited, Aqua Forest had a good selection of ADA products: substrates, CO2 accessories, etc. They had an extensive back catalog of Aqua Journal issues for sale, and I picked up a few of these, along with an Eheim 2006 internal filter. (I don't know why they don't sell that model in the US.)

To reach Aqua Forest, head northeast from Shinjuku Station (away from the nearby Takashimaya department store) until you come to the main avenue that cuts through the area. Then head east. You will soon see signs on the sidewalk for "Subnade" and stairs heading down to a huge underground shopping arcade. Aqua Forest is in the far corner of Subnade 3-chome. Just look for the section marked "3" and you will find the store soon enough.

This Aqua Forest has no affiliation with the San Francisco shop by the same name, as far as I know. Correct me if I'm wrong.

*An Aquarium* (website)









*An Aquarium's first-floor display tank.*

This shop has probably the most un-Google-able name on earth, but we managed to find it! It's atop the Matsuzakaya department store in Ginza, Tokyo's upscale shopping district.

An Aquarium was considerably smaller than Aqua Forest, but they had some beautiful quasi-Amano tanks. The fish selection in the display tanks was interesting -- more varied than the typical schools of rummynoses or cardinals I saw in the other shops. Dwarf cichlids and livebearers were liable to make an appearance, and one tank hosted nothing but a staggeringly large school of otos. A nice change of pace.









*Dwarf cichlids in the display tank.*

The plant offerings had less variety than Aqua Forest, but An Aquarium seemed to stock much more of the plants they did have. In the back corner, we found a tank of interesting plecos, including true zebra plecos and a number of look-alikes for those that can't afford the true zebra.

An Aquarium offers a tank-designing service to those that would like a little help with their aquascaping. I didn't have time to chat them up and see how it works, but it seems like a cool idea. Judging by the tanks in the store, they are definitely capable.

Unfortunately, I was only able to snap pictures of the display tank on Matsuzakaya's first floor (seen above), which was nice, but not their best. When I got to the store proper and asked a staffer in Japanese if I could take photos, he suddenly barked (in English), "NO!!!" The rudeness was startling -- to both of us! -- and made the visit kind of tense, but it clearly wasn't intentional -- a panicked moment on his part. The other, seemingly more senior staffer in the store that day was very polite and even let me head around to the store's rear section, outside on the roof, where they keep ponds and grow-out tanks for new plant stock. So I can confidently say that my bizarre encounter with Dr. No was a fluke -- the folks at An Aquarium are good people.

*Aquazoom*

I'd heard good things about this shop, but it was a disappointment. Tucked away on the restaurant floor in a Mitsukoshi department store, it's even smaller than An Aquarium (which is already cozy), by about half. There were about ten small- to medium-size tanks, and just the most basic ADA goods on sale.

The store had its good points. Two tanks were not aquaria but rather artfully composed terraria, with no animal life. The store owner had installed a striking fog effect over the mossy landscapes. It sounds tacky, but it was done quite tastefully. I'd never seen such a thing in an LFS before. As for the aquascapes, they were more spare than those in the previous stores, but by no means less beautiful -- just employing a more reserved style.

Flora and fauna selection were both very limited -- Aquazoom seems to concentrate on selling supplies to established aquascapers, but Aqua Forest had a far more complete range of equipment. (From the phone conversations I overheard, it sounded like Aquazoom does a lot of its business through special orders for clients).

The killer for Aquazoom is its distance from Tokyo city center -- it's a 40-minute trip each way to an area with not much going for it. That's quite a hike for such a tiny shop, and I'd only recommend it if you have a lot of time. (Or if you're traveling with kids who love Hello Kitty, as Hello Kitty Town is the one other attraction nearby!) Nonetheless, if you want to visit Aquazoom, here's the easiest way to get there. From Shinjuku Station, take a Keio Line train bound for Keio Tama Center or Hashimoto. Take a "rapid" or an "express" train, as the local train will take considerably longer. Get out at Keio Tama Center and head to the station's central exit. You will see the Mitsukoshi Department Store on the right; Aquazoom is on the 6th floor.

*Ichigaya Fish Center* (website)

As you might guess from the name, this shop is more fish-oriented than the others. I enjoyed getting a look at the range of fish that are sold in Japan, but there's not much here for plant enthusiasts. We saw some interesting livebearer strains that I hadn't encountered before, and many varieties of cories and killiefish that I don't usually see in U.S. stores. Overall, this was your run-of-the-mill LFS, albeit a fairly large one by Japanese standards. If you happen to be in the area (not likely -- Ichigaya is pretty tame), it might be worth taking a look, but it's far from a must-see.

To get to Ichigaya Fish Center, take the subway to Ichigaya Station. The store is very close to the station, on the northwest side of a nearby bridge.


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## Squawkbert (Jan 3, 2007)

Very nice pics & I really like the discus & shrimp tanks.

Makes me think I need a LOT more substrate.


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## turbomkt (Mar 31, 2004)

I'll be in Japan in September... I think I'll be making a trip to Aqua Forest! Shinjuku is an easy enough place to find


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## deepdiver (May 30, 2006)

Now that's an interesting post. I think more fish stores here in the U.S. should dedicate more space to plants and shrimp.


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## TPIRman (Apr 28, 2004)

turbomkt said:


> I'll be in Japan in September... I think I'll be making a trip to Aqua Forest! Shinjuku is an easy enough place to find


Definitely! Aqua Forest is the one shop I'd say you just can't skip if you're in Tokyo. I actually have a few more photos from that shop; I'll try to format them and put them up later today so that those who can't travel there can at least live vicariously.


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## turbomkt (Mar 31, 2004)

I'll actually be down in Yokosuka, but a day trip to Tokyo is a snap


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## tundrafour (Jun 8, 2006)

Beautiful pictures! I studied in Tokyo a few years ago. In the week that I was there (and had no more classes to worry about!), a friend and I went to Shinjuku and tried in vain to locate Aqua Forest for hours on end. I still really regret having not gone (and having not tried to go earlier in my stay). My girlfriend and I are hoping to make a trip to Japan next spring; maybe I'll get to experience Aqua Forest firsthand then.


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## TPIRman (Apr 28, 2004)

tundrafour said:


> a friend and I went to Shinjuku and tried in vain to locate Aqua Forest for hours on end.


It didn't quite take us hours, but we also were lost for a while. The problem is that the address and map we had for the shop gave little indication that it was within the underground shopping center. It was written much like a standard Japanese address, so we were wandering around above ground before we finally asked at a convenience store for help, and they quickly figured out our mistake.

It's not too tricky to find Aqua Forest once you're in Subnade 3-chome, but it might be helpful to know that the store is in one of the far back corners of this section, near a bunch of restaurants. I hope you get to visit!


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## mistergreen (Mar 3, 2007)

This puts our LFS to shame.


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## John N. (Dec 11, 2005)

Some of those stores remind me of the Aqua Forest Aquarium Store in San Francisco, CA. I wonder why there's such a sharp difference between the focus of aquatic plants in US stores verses Asia Fish Stores. Is it the cultural interest in plants and aquascapes, availability of plants, or profit involved? 

Also, many of the US fish stores I visit have a large focus on Reef and Saltwater aquariums. I'm curious to know if there's a greater dedication to aquatic plants than saltwater tanks in Asia?

-John N.


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## shake (Feb 26, 2006)

John N. said:


> Some of those stores remind me of the Aqua Forest Aquarium Store in San Francisco, CA. I wonder why there's such a sharp difference between the focus of aquatic plants in US stores verses Asia Fish Stores. Is it the cultural interest in plants and aquascapes, availability of plants, or profit involved?
> 
> Also, many of the US fish stores I visit have a large focus on Reef and Saltwater aquariums. I'm curious to know if there's a greater dedication to aquatic plants than saltwater tanks in Asia?
> 
> -John N.


It's the same here in Australia John.

In the state I live (and I would guess it would be similar around the country) there are only a few stores that would carry a good range of plants and nothing like those photos.

All other stores are geared to fish only or saltwater.

When you see these Asian shops or even shops in Europe (mostly Germany) it really gets my blood boiling.


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## TPIRman (Apr 28, 2004)

John N. said:


> Some of those stores remind me of the Aqua Forest Aquarium Store in San Francisco, CA. I wonder why there's such a sharp difference between the focus of aquatic plants in US stores verses Asia Fish Stores.


I agree with your general point, but I just want to note that the stores I visited aren't a representative sample, so the chasm isn't as wide as it may seem. For the most part, I focused on stores that specialized in plants because I wanted to see things that I hadn't seen at home. The "typical" LFS I visited presented a similar picture to American stores, albeit with a higher ratio of FW fish to SW fish, and with fewer tank-busting large fish.



John N. said:


> Is it the cultural interest in plants and aquascapes, availability of plants, or profit involved?
> 
> Also, many of the US fish stores I visit have a large focus on Reef and Saltwater aquariums. I'm curious to know if there's a greater dedication to aquatic plants than saltwater tanks in Asia?


Good questions. I can only speak for Japan, but one observation I made during my time there is that when an upscale restaurant or store has an aquarium, it is just as likely to be a FW planted tank as it is a SW tank. Whereas in the U.S., such a display tank is bound to be a SW fish-only or reef setup. There does seem to be a greater consciousness of planted aquaria on the whole.

Another thing to consider is that the plant route is more appealing if you have limited space, which is often the case in Japan. If you want to create a "wow" tank in a 12-gallon nano cube, a FW planted tank offers greater options and chance for success (esp. for a novice) than a nano reef. The saltwater side of the hobby is more space-intensive in general, so I'm not surprised that aquatic plants have taken hold among those who want to create beauty in closer quarters.

To wit, a few more nanos from Aqua Forest:









*A newly-planted nano setup.*









*A nano paludarium. That's a small goldfish swimming in the lower right. Hopefully not a permanent resident!*

And the remaining decent-looking photos I had left over:









*Another view of the plant selection.*









*Potted plants.*









*Just a few sunset platies. (Can you spot the albino?) All of the fish tanks were extremely healthy. Not a dead/sick specimen in sight.*









*Equipment, wood, and every substrate you could ask for. (The ADA substrate line was in the left corner, out of frame.)*


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## hedson_25 (Sep 20, 2005)

more pictures...


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## LindaC (Nov 7, 2005)

Very nice photographs, thanks for sharing your adventure with those of use who have to remain in the US and never have a chance to travel abroad. That would be me!


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## stepheus (Jun 13, 2006)

The pics make me feel like home. Pretty much the feeling i get when i get into a well maintained fish store =D btw i spotted the albino platy...


Spoiler



its on the upper right. :heh:


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## TPIRman (Apr 28, 2004)

stepheus said:


> btw i spotted the albino platy...
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> ...





Spoiler



LOL -- well done!


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