Now that I had my mother's blessing, I proceeded to fill my basement bedroom, the only room my parents would allow me to fill wall-to-wall with aquariums.  I would purchase fish for clients and quarantine them, so they could add new specimens without the fear of spreading disease to their beautiful, healthy, happy displays.  Then it happened.

The recession hit, and Fish World, who now had 3 large stores (which I miss to this day!), were forced out of business by the bank pulling their note.  I was devastated.  Where were all the fish going to go?  Where am I going to be able to work with such a large display?  I was actually involved with the bank, trying to rescue animals from the store with the doors locked and no power.  It was cold and dark with wet floors from the sumps running over when the power was shut off.  We managed to save a lot of fish and invertebrates. Yup, you got it, now my tanks were packed!

This was a very exciting time in the aquarium industry as systems became available to support animals that we once could not.  Aquarium Showcases was the first professional aquarium maintenance and service company in the state of NH.  They specialized in custom aquarium systems, and I installed them all throughout New England, penthouses in Boston, colleges and universities, and homeowners in MA, NH, ME, VT, CT, and RI.

As a young, aquarium service technician (that is what we were called back then), I knew I had chosen a career that I truly loved.  Well, things were great for a while until the partners split up, and the business was shut down.  Now what, well, I told my parents that not to worry, I received aquariums and supplies for my last paycheck, and everything was going to be fine. Right?? With a handful of clients from Fish World and now Aquarium Showcases, I was working full-time (still no money to speak of yet), but I had a lot of aquariums teeming with live goodies!  I continued to service my clients but really missed being involved in the retail store atmosphere. 

So with resume in hand, I applied to Boston Pet and Sea World Pet Center, which was the newest, biggest, baddest fish store in NH at the time.  I applied over and over, to no aval."That was it," I thought. I needed to open my own store. I hope I'm not boring you yet...it starts to build up now, I promise.

In April of 1992, Tim Gauthier and I opened up "Aquariums Are Us" in the Londonderry Crossroads Mall.  At the time, there were 11 open stores in the mall, and the economy was real slow.  This didn't stop us though.  People were eager to go to a store with 123 aquariums packed with fish and coral and not have to smell all of the "other" animals at a typical pet store.  We provided a full line of aquarium maintenance services that were not available anywhere else at the time.  Things picked up for us, and we went through 3 stages of expansion, making us the most complete fish only store in the state!  At the time, there were only 300 +/- fish only stores in the entire country, compared with today's 3000 fish only stores (Pet Age Magazine).

We were on the cutting-edge, using Reverse Osmosis De-Ionized (R.O.D.I.) water throughout our store and our maintenance service.  Back then, SeaWorld didn't even have R.O. water.  We explained to our customers how important good water quality was and is.  We continued to improve the store and service company until my partner had to move on to a "real job" with health insurance,  and benefits, because he had a wife, a little girl, and now a new baby boy.  I decided to hang in there solo and ran the store for 2 years. However, it turned out to be too much for a young, single guy to handle alone with over $10,000 per month overhead.  When my lease was up, I decided to close the store and just focus solely on my aquarium service accounts. 

You guessed it, I was eager to be back in the market, so I applied at SeaWorld, and this time I was able to meet the owner and his wife at the time.  He told me he had heard good things about my shop and customers always spoke good of me.  He also said that although customers would come in and tell him about other "professionals" from different stores, bad-mouthing him and his store, he never heard my name associated with "the talk." He respected this, and told me I could work for his store and still provide aquarium service to his customers.  He told me that this arrangement would stay in place as long as there were no issues, such as, me providing my own supplies to his customers.  The deal did work out, and I continued to stay and work for SeaWorld for close to 10 years.

I really enjoyed my time there.  The people were great at the time, and I especially liked working with Chris Quinn, the saltwater manager.  He was very passionate, writing articles for fish magazines at the time.  Chris has a tremendous amount of knowledge about SPS Corals, and his personal tank at home was a true work of art.  He was heavily involved with experimenting with different light sources and UV exposure to the corals to bring out the best colors.  This was not heard of at the time, and the research and experiments were great to discuss at lunchtime and the many late nights we spent together at Sea World putting fish away on the drip systems to acclimate them to the store systems over a full 24 hour period.  They were way ahead then, thanks to Joe F.  God Bless him! He will be missed.

On 2001, September 17th, to be exact, I joined the United States Army Infantry.  I was motivated to help my country defend itself, and I thought I could utilize my Alpine Mountain experience.  I joined the 3/172 Mountain Infantry Unit, NH Army National Guard.  Although I enjoyed my military experience, I knew that working with aquariums was what I was meant to do.

December 29, 2004, I introduced the owners of the local fish store in Hudson, NH to the owners of, the now famous, Aquarium Gallery.  They worked out a deal and acquired the previous shop's aquariums and fixtures and retail location.

In April 2005, I took on the position of the President of The Aquarium Gallery, LLC, as well as part owner.  I created the concept, name, aquarium systems, layouts, and numerous aquatic operations for the store then!  The store opened in September 2005 and was an instant success.  It was voted by Boston Reefers as one of the best.  And in March of 2006, I sold my interest in The Aquarium Gallery.

I went back to school to pursue my B.S. in Aquaculture and Aquarium Science.  I built a custom aquatics laboratory for the shipment, arrival, quarantine, treatment, and research of aquatics specimens for my now thriving aquarium services business.  In the process, I also built a custom aquarium service workshop.  Here I can provide state of the art technology and resources to produce "today's" custom aquarium systems, by providing services and supplies that you just cannot find available at most retail stores.  To complete my line of custom "modified" Oceanic Systems, Reef-Ready Aquariums in Starfire Glass, I also offer deluxe acrylic aquariums from Clarity Plus Acrylic Aquariums.

In 1993, I was a preferred dealer for Clarity Plus in my Londonderry store.  We sold numerous, large acrylic aquariums that are still on display to this day.  I truly love all the extra things we can do with acrylic for custom jobs. Some of my best-looking displays in the service field are acrylic.  It allows you more flexibility in the overall system design and look.  But if you prefer, there are many new and exciting designs in glass.

Once upon a time, acrylic was always more expensive than glass.  Not today, different options in glass cost as much, if not more.  With high-end options in clarity available, as well as colors, frames, braces, tops, supports, you can choose which options fit your project best.  Take the time to meet with a true "professional" in custom aquarium services.  The more I can teach you about how to truly pick your Dream Aquarium system, the more you will reach your goal of having a dream aquarium you've always wanted.  With my knowledge, tools, and vast inventory of today's top-of-the-line supplies, I can build you your Dream system.  Your life support system or filtration system will be as much a part of the overall display as the aquarium itself.

Since 2006, I have been specializing in aquatic system operations and services for retail stores.  I've had the pleasure of working with Aqua-Addicts (Salem, NH), SeaWorld (Salem, NH), and Pets Plus (Londonderry, NH).  I've been involved in many custom projects recently.  2009 has been my busiest year yet, with many new clients this past November.

Commercial work for custom aquatics has taken me to large projects out-of-state.  I have also worked on projects for the State of NH Fish and Game Department, National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration in conjunction with the NH Great Bay Discovery Center.  We are currently involved in shellfish and lobster system design and installation. 

I continue to study at the University of New Hampshire in Manchester.  I am very active as a responsible owner in the live, marine trade.  I'm involved with many organizations devoted to protecting the Coral Reefs and responsible harvest and trade in marine ornamentals.  I’ve devoted my adult life to the success of ornamental and exotic aquarium fishes and invertebrates in closed, captive systems.

My resume, as well as my references, will be available upon request.  With 20 years as a "true professional, Aquarium Biologist," you can trust me to make the right decisions concerning your aquatic "wet pets," whether you bought them from me or elsewhere.  My true joy has been the success of my customers and their living specimens. In the aquariums that I maintain and service, the clients' animals don't just survive, they thrive.  This, to me, is success!

                                                  William Seddon
                                                  Owner/Proprieter
                                                  Dream Marine Aquarium Services