It's the pet shop with a name that's grabbed people's attention for decades.
But after more than 50 years in business, Gay-Lyfe in Levenshulme is closing for good.
The pet and aquatic store was first opened by George and Norma Ormrod in 1965 before their nephew, Mark Bootes, joined the business in 1980.
It sold animals of all shapes and sizes, but it was tropical fish where Mark carved out a niche for the business.
Mark, 55, from Oldham, said: “I knew nothing about fish when I first started out.
“I’d worked on markets when I was at school and I’d always enjoyed buying and selling things.
“My uncle gave me a book about tropical fish and told me to read it. That's how it all started for me."
In the 1980s, Mark and his uncle started importing tropical fish from all over the world, including Peru, Brazil, Indonesia and Nigeria.
They would pack freight boxes full of fish to supply their own shop as well as other aquatic shops around the Midlands and North West.
It was a lucrative business, one that Mark carried on after George and Norma retired around 15 years ago.
Yet the internet and changing shopping habits has gradually led to a decline in shoppers visiting Gay-Lyfe.
“It was profitable retail in the eighties and nineties," added Mark.
“Before your B&M Bargains and other discount shops came along, people went to their local pet shop for everything for their animals.
“Behind the shop in Levenshulme were rows of back-to-back houses, and everyone had pets.
"They had fish tanks, budgies, all sorts of things. It was like a club.
"Things have changed over the years. Kids used to have pets and now they have iPads.
"A lot of people in the area don't keep pets any more.
“That’s one of the reasons why we’re closing.
"When we announced we were closing on Facebook, a lot of people said ‘oh I used to go there.’
"But that’s exactly it, people used to come to us but now they go elsewhere or buy online.
“We missed the boat with the Internet 20 years ago. People can get all their hardware much cheaper on the Internet, whereas I have three people's wages to pay.
“For the last three years we have been making a profit but it’s the imports that have been subsidising the shop itself."
While the shop may have become less popular, one thing hasn't lost its novelty - the shop's name.
“Everyone knows Gay-Lyfe in Manchester, and people have always asked where the name came from," says Mark.
“I remember one man didn’t like the name so he turned the Gay Lyfe carrier bag inside out.
“My uncle was the one who came up with it, and in those days it meant colourful and happy. That's all there is to it really.
"Now it’s a name in Levy that everyone knows.
“We have had some funny phone calls over the years. A lot of people ringing up asking us where the best gay bars are in Manchester and us explaining we’re a pet shop.”
Though the shop is closing Mark will continue to import tropical fish from around the world with his colleague, James Best.
