The Three Types of Koi Keepers

The Three Types of Koi Keepers

Koi-keeping often becomes quite a social pastime, although not necessarily so. If you do interact with other enthusiasts, it may help to know what you have to look forward to (and where you may be heading as well!).

The koi market has three levels of koi-keepers:

1. The koi kichi (koi crazy) bunch: These folks buy very expensive koi, so it follows that they know a lot about koi and how to keep them. These individuals feel the best koi are nishikigoi (koi from Japan) and they’re able to pay the price. Not surprisingly,
this is the smallest of the three groups.

2. The competitive sort who set koi-keeping boundaries: The second level of koi fanciers are those who enjoy koi, exhibit them in competitions, and form the backbone of koi clubs. They buy good koi no matter where the koi hails from (although all things being equal).

3. The casual hobbyists: The third group is by far the largest. These hobbyists want good-looking fish that get big and do well in a pond. They want fish with bling (which explains why metallic koi are so popular in the United States!). Some of these individuals eventually join the competitive middle group, and some even move into the upper echelon of the koi kichi group. But as casual hobbyists, they furnish most of the money that runs the koi industry, and they’re happy with koi from Israel, Hawaii, South America — basically anywhere.