HIGH POINT - There’s plenty of fish in the sea.

That’s the motto that Randy and Scott Shore, owners of the new Shore Boys seafood market at 1527 S. Main St., have adhered to while opening a seafood business amidst the oil spill off the Gulf Coast.

The brothers, who have more than 20 years of experience in the seafood industry, began leasing the building in early April, just weeks before the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion occurred in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20.

Oysters have been hard to come by, and some area restaurants have reported shortages of oysters and shrimp since the oil spill began. But the brothers aren’t worried because they’ve always relied on seafood from the North Carolina coast, said Randy Shore, who also operates a wholesale seafood distribution service with his brother.

“The seafood industry has been somewhat misrepresented in all of this,” he said. “Not every piece of seafood is coming out of the Gulf. It may be hurting oysters and shrimp, but we can get everything else right here in North Carolina.”

The seafood market held a soft opening Friday and will offer items like catfish, shrimp, blue crabs, scallops and flounder. It will be open Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Natives of Yadkin County, the brothers have ties to the area because their father was a pastor at Midway Baptist Church in Jamestown several years ago. They relocated to High Point from Atlantic Beach, where they say they fell in love with the fishing industry, to open the business.

But they will maintain their wholesale distribution route, leaving Randy to drive to Shallotte and other parts of the coast on Mondays to pickup fresh seafood. The brothers distribute the seafood to restaurants in Virginia and North Carolina, including Sanibel’s in High Point.

As far as economic conditions go, Randy also said fewer people are eating out these days, but that means more people are cooking at home.

“Places like Harris Teeter are doing great in the seafood sector because people are still buying seafood and cooking it themselves,” he said. “We’re going to have all of that fresh North Carolina seafood right here. And I’m always traveling to fish houses every week, so if someone wants something in particular, I may be able to get it.”

phaynes@hpe.com | 888-3617

AT A GLANCE

Shore Boys, a seafood market, has opened at 1527 S. Main St. next to the Salvation Army Family Store. It will be open Thursday-Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and may extend its hours in the future. The store can be reached at 889-FISH.