| By Rosli Abidin
Yahya
Mr Koh Chun Siong poses in front of his shop poster featuring a
Flower Horn. Photo: Norizan Murshid
As most businesses suffered
hardship following the economic crisis which began here in 1997,
the ornamental fish business is now enjoying an increase in
demand, thanks to the special crossbreed fish known as the Lou
Han Golden (Cichlasoma) or the Flower Horn.
Koh Chun Siong, proprietor of
Ilufah Aquarium & Trading Co in Kiulap said business in
ornamental fish is picking up due to a resurgence of interest in
the Flower Horn species.
Flower Horn is a special
crossbreed produced five to six years ago, and is very popular
especially amongst the Chinese community.
Koh attributed the resurgence
of interest to the physical appearance of the fish, particularly
at the forehead.
Koh added that the price of the
fish depends on the colours of some of its scales, which
sometimes resemble Chinese characters.
"If the words sound like
'rich', 'health' or 'prosperity' then the fish would fetch a
very high price," he said.
Such was the belief of the
Chinese community that a Flower Horn, whose fading colours at
the scale depicted such Chinese word, was valued at a top price
of RM1.2 million at a fish expo in Malaysia last year.
However, that special fish was
not available at Koh's shop, though he had cheaper versions
ranging between B$680 and B$1,000 in price.
He said the cheaper versions of
Flower Horn were also imported from Malaysia.
Buyers usually select the
ornamental fish based on their rarity, fascinating eyes, size,
extraordinary length, tail shape and enchanting colours. For
some people who believe that such fish may bring wealth,
fortune, prestige and happiness, they would dare to pay such
high prices.
Koh owes his success to his
childhood hobby of breeding ornamental fish.
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