GetFish founder Antonio Muollo plans to take company nationwide as business booms during Covid

Antonio Muollo’s business has grown by an incredible sum during the Covid pandemic, and he now has plans to take it nationwide.

Antonio Muollo is turning the business of being a fishmonger on its head, creating a business worth an eye-watering $15 million.

The Sydney-based 22-year-old had no idea he’d struck such a golden opportunity when he started the business after turning 18 four years ago.

His seafood delivery service GetFish delivers seafood from the De Costi store at the Sydney Fish Market. During the pandemic, the company has expanded its delivery model to include meat from Handler Butchers, fresh fruit and vegetables from Parisi Fruit Markets, and meal kits.

Despite the pressures of Covid-19, the company now has an impressive 30,000 returning residential customers in its database, which increased 20-fold during the pandemic.

The growth has also seen the value of the business run by Dover Heights local skyrocket by 1500 per cent in the last 18 months.

Now, Mr Muollo, who started the business with just one van has increased his ramped-up its fleet to more than 20, and has plans to expand his business across the country.

He expects GetFish to be available in Melbourne and Brisbane by the end of 2021, and in other capital cities in a year’s time.

“We’ve seen home deliveries surge during Covid,” Mr Muollo said.

“So at the moment we operate in the Sydney metropolitan area, Wollongong and the Central Coast, and I do expect we’ll be nationwide within the next year,” he said.

Mr Muollo said word of mouth had helped grow his business with the service most popular among customers in the well-heeled Sydney suburbs of Mosman, Surry Hills, Rose Bay and Paddington.

Founder of GerFish, 22-year-old Antonio Muollo. His business has grown 1500 per cent in the last 18 months. Picture: Supplied

But business is also booming in the city’s southwest in Bankstown, Liverpool and Cabramatta.

GetFish also supplies some of Sydney’s top high-end restaurants including Catalina in Rose Bay and Sokyo at The Star in Pyrmont.

“We’ve been educating our customers; educating the general public about seafood. That’s really what’s allowed the residential arm to grow,” he said.

Among the products topping customers’ seafood shopping lists were Sydney rock oysters, salmon, prawns and tuna steaks.

Growth in his business comes as more Australians in lockdown are treating themselves to the healthier foods in a bid to boost their wellness.

New research by YouGov and Fancy Pants has revealed half of Australians have started eating healthier during the pandemic in the hope it would boost their immunity.

The poll also found that 56 per cent of respondents were also actively seeking out food and snacks with added nutrition.

Mr Muollo hopes to have GerFish operating in capital cities nationwide in a year’s time. Picture: Supplied

He was tight-lipped on whether GetFish had plans for any new products and said to “expect the unexpected”. Though he did say ready meals specialising in seafood was on his radar.

Fishing has been in Mr Muollo’s family for generations, so it was only natural that he would dive into the world of seafood.

“My great grandfather was a fisherman, and my grandfather and father are in the fishing industry, so I grew up in it,” he said, adding that this meant he had well-established connections which helped him launch and grow his company.

“I wanted to follow in their footsteps, and while doing that I found a gap in the market where there was a lack of seafood delivery for residential customers.”

Mr Muollo, who has taken time out from studying his Bachelor of Economics to focus on GetFish, urged entrepreneurial-minded young folk to “have a passion and drive in the field you choose.”

“Always stay concentrated, focused and patient; I must say it’s a real hard grind when you first start off. as everything is. But if you get 1 per cent better every day and you look over a period of time, you realise have come a long way,” he said.

“And probably the most important advice... make sure you develop good habits and morals.”