Not Your Average SAE

When most think of entrepreneurial SAEs, most of us think of simple experiences such as nursery production and crop production, but when members of the Webster County FFA chapter think of SAEs, they are reminded of their fellow member, Gabe Vincent.

Gabe, a junior at the Webster County FFA chapter in Webster County, Kentucky, took a different approach to his SAE. Shaped in a love for aquatic life, Gabe decided to breed and sell fish for his SAE. When asked, Gabe said, “I’ve always liked fish, and after I got my first tank, things really just took off from there.”

Gabe’s SAE grew quickly from that first tank. What started as a hobby soon turned into a full fish room and a small business. Over the years, Gabe continued learning and improving with help from others in the fish community. He explained, “Over the years of doing this I’ve met a lot of people who have pushed me to get better at this and work on it wholeheartedly.”

In June of 2025, Gabe was given the opportunity to compete for the KY FFA Shark Tank Grant. The grant is a program that allows FFA members to present their SAE business ideas to a panel of judges in a format like the TV show “Shark Tank.” Members explain their projects, how the grant money would help their businesses grow, and how their SAE involves agriculture. After he presented his business and plans for expansion, Gabe was selected as one of the grant recipients and was given funding to help grow his operation.

As his project grew, Gabe was able to make major improvements to his production. He shared that “the grant helped me upgrade my fish room big time.” With support from the grant, he installed a new air system that powers all of his tanks. He was also able to expand his operation by adding more equipment and different species of fish. Gabe explained, “I was able to put in a whole new air system to power all of the tanks. I was also able to add more rare fish and more equipment to better the tanks.”

His SAE has also allowed him to begin creating content relating to aquatics on YouTube. His page, Gabe’s Aquatics, has over 2,000 subscribers with some videos viewed over 100,000 times. On his page he shares videos of his experiences raising fish, maintaining tanks, and growing his fish room.

Today, Gabe keeps a large number of fish available for customers. He said, “I keep a wide variety in stock for sale. I’ve probably got over 300 fish for sale right now.” Depending on the time of year, his fish room can hold even more. Gabe added, “I usually keep 1–500 fish at a time.”

Gabe encourages others who are thinking about starting a project or business of their own to take the chance. His advice is simple: “Shoot for it. Sometimes it might not work out, but if you have a dream and you’re passionate about it, go for it.”