Despite Brett’s magical touch having a hand in the planning, construction and installation of the gorgeous aquariums on Tanked, would you believe that he is actually not a big fish guy and doesn’t even touch the fish put in the tank—he leaves that job to someone else.
Brett enjoys designing and constructing the fish tanks the most and finds fish too squirmy for his taste!
He grew up with fish tanks, but his step-brother was more into fish and aquariums; Brett did not get involved in any of that stuff. He got his first fish tank when he was 23 and had moved into his apartment.
He got a guy to come over and do the maintenance, and it was about this time that he met Wyde, and they began making aquariums and then went on to open the ATM retail store.
Interestingly, after watching the reality TV show Orange County Choppers, Brett got really motivated about getting himself and his new hobby on television.
It is no coincidence that Brett is as famous as he is now; he’s actually always wanted to be famous. Growing up, he was the class clown and the life of the party. As a kid, he’d bring out his tapping shoes, sing, and entertain his family.
The now-famous reality TV star was an amazing athlete growing up and thought he’d get a scholarship to Syracuse. But, he ended up blowing up his knee, and his chance at becoming a celebrity athlete was over. So, he found out what he could do next to become famous, so he hopped onto TV.
That said, he and Wayde were running ATM long before filming Tanked was even an idea. The two started their fish tank business in 1997, building for celebrities like Tracy Morgan or Shaquille O’Neal, but they were building basic aquariums at the time.
The two partners ran the business for 14 years before the show began in 2011.
How Brett Raymer is Helping People Succeed in the Aquarium Hobby
According to the TV reality star, 50 percent of people who start the hobby are likely to fail in the first year. On the upside, if you stay in the hobby for the first year and survive all the trials and tribulations, you are likely to continue with it for the next forty or so years.
Brett’s built an interactive aquarium maintenance program that will launch in September 2023 and give a bunch of classes for free to help more people build a successful aquarium hobby/business.
There is a lot of misinformation out there about fish keeping, and Brett is looking to use the experience acquired throughout the year to give his fans the correct information about the aquarium hobby, regardless of age.
The platform will be easy, simple, and, most importantly, interactive. The interactive part of the training platform means you’ll be able to interact with none other than Brett! It also has social media integration and a live moderator.
Well, whatever Brett is on to with this one, it sounds like it will be game-changing.
He’s been working on this for two years, and although it has taken longer than he thought, he insists that he wants to launch the best possible program to move the hobby forward, even if that means spending a bit more time on the training platform.
Raymer’s advice for people just getting started with building or keeping aquariums?
Don’t do it like you see Brett and Wayde do on TV; what you see on Tanked is a much-edited version of what fish keeping is really about: having the correct knowledge and being patient.
Understand the hobby you are getting into— don’t just watch Brett Raymer on television and think you will instantly be a successful hobbyist like him.
If you want to know what Brett is doing outside of the aquarium world, take a look at his other recent venture!
