Most hormoned fish will most likely fade over time. The reason they are juiced or color-fed at a small size is to bring out the adult coloration prematurely, so people will see a pretty 2" fish and buy it. This is why discus were so often hormoned when imported from Asia. A lot of discus strains look like any other cichlid at 2" -- brown with stress bars. No one wants to pay $20 - 40 per fish on something that they have to wait 6 - 10 months to see the color potential on. When you think about the hobby from the standpoint of the average aquarium owner, they just go into a store and buy what catches their eye. They'll almost always go for the more colorful choice. Only hardcore hobbyists would understand that most fish are pretty dull until they reach maturity.
Since we opened SimplyDiscus in 2002 we have seen literally thousands of people come on with the intention of making money off spawning discus. My suggestion would be not to fall into that trap.
Discus require a lot of work to raise, and wholesalers can get them way cheaper from Asia (and way more colorful, too!) than what you could sell them for. I love discus and I have them all over my house, but I know I'd never come close to actually making money from them if I sat down and added up all the food, time, water changes, etc. it takes to raise them properly to sellable size. One of my favorite quotes about discus has always been, "How can I make a small fortune in discus? Start with a big fortune."
