From Az I think it would be hard. Someone living by the ocean who has access to cheap and easy food, MAYBE, but I still wonder. Its really the issue with a lot of sea-life, not just for octos, aquatic foods tend to be expensive. to be profitable I think you really need to go at on a very large scale culturing both the octos and their food for each stage of there life. Even the few universities and institutions that have tried are having a hard time not only doing it profitably but even doing it at all.
some of the challenges and costs:
A)
getting two young octopuses that are suitable. There are a few problems here. First, just locating two octos can be hard. Second, most if not all public suppliers are unable to sex the octos, many can't even tell you what species they really have. Even when you do get a supplier that is pretty knowledgeable and good at IDing sometimes they are wrong, Both D and myself currently have octos that at first everyone, myself included, thought was for sure were yong O.Briareus, but it turns out they are not, we're still trying to figure out what they are. Almost every time I have ordered Octos I have ordered them in pair always in hopes I will get a breedable pair, still hasn't happened after trying several times. the cost here Buying two octos, could be close to $200 with shipping, so we are already starting in the hole.
B)
Housing. It's lot of arms to properly house and feed. Mom and Dad for several month to a year depending on there age at purchase. Then the hatchlings which you will likely have for at least three months until they are no longer hatchlings. All this making maintenance and food cost high.
C)
The Market, its generally pretty small and it fluctuates alot! Once the hatchlings are the right age to sell and you decide to do so; You might have to house and those octos for quite some time before they sell, the food and housing costs will add up quick once the octos as the octos grow. Sometimes it seems like octos sell really fast butt then sometimes its really slow. KP aquatics just recently had an O.Briareus they were unable to sell so it was given away(to DWhatley). Even LiveAquaria I have noticed sometimes have their Indonesian octos in stock for awhile before they are able to get rid of them, but then again sometimes as soon as they get them they sell right away.
D) Shipping: (D! we need an Octo in a box smilie
) the cost of this is passed on to the customer but initially you are still going to have to purchase everything needed to properly pack the animal. Its not like you just drop an octo in an envelope and throw it in the mailbox
. Typically the octo is at least triple bagged, then put in a Styrofoam box with packing peanuts and a heater, then boxed in cardboard and shipped the fastest way possible. Tom's Caribbean and KP aquatics I know deliver there animals directly too the airport, here in Maimi.....So now we have added Fuel costs for the car ride to the airport.
E)
99.99999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999% (j/k I made that number up, but at home almost all) of the people that try to raise octopuses from hatchlings have been unsuccessful. We just haven't quite figured out a successful diet yet. with every try we get a little closer but still not yet.
F)
Whatever I'm forgetting cause there is always more
. ......check out this thread on Octopus farming:
http://www.tonmo.com/forums/showthread.php?25887-Octopus-Farming