Commodore's Community - Emerald, Floor 2, #2

[Commodore]

Commodore's Community

Become a Shopping Mall trader today for Ð5

...You have items to sell
...You're a skilled crafter/tailor getting started in business
...You're a crafter/tailor who can't competitively sell at auction
...You're freeing up peds to invest in other ventures
...Auction unsuitable, such as art, content not visible
...You don't have 20k+ to invest in a premium retail outlet
...You have 20k+ and can think of better uses



This thread introduces the shop, for background please read the post below. Ð is the currency symbol of the EU dollar and is used in place of the accronym PED. Item points are listed on the info panel of all items, as far as I'm aware item points above 1 are only in use on certain types of signs/displays/screens

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Update
15 of 18 Associate Retailer positions available
10 of 10 Classifieds available

Current Associates
IronFist | Easy4Kill | CIA

Commodore's Community is delighted to welcome Calypso Investment Agency

Website is not ready yet - work in progress!
This shop is expecting to host a tailor with the ability to become renowned!
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I'm offering two selling plans within my shop, Associate Retailers and Classifieds.

Associate Retailers
Pay a monthly fee of Ð5 to rent a 5 item point slot. This allows the seller to list 40 items in that month. See the graph in the post below.

• Ability to rent multiple slots
• Flat monthly fee
• No commitment
• Quick Listing
• Your name on the shop front
• Global advertising Inititive
• Advertising Via EF
• Web site listing sellers & typical items
• Monthly Competition: * Seller
• Monthly Competition: Ð Peddler

Classifieds
Pay a one off fee of Ð1 to rent a 1 item point slot, for 1 use. This is suitable for the seller who only has one item, or is keen to try out the service my shop offers. Apart from the great rate, none of the benefits of Associate Retailers are offered.

* Seller
A monthly competition for the most items sold. The winner is announced on the website and shop front, they will be offered 1 free item point in the shop front, for the following month, where Associate Seller status is maintained. Multiple sales of stackables may be discounted (ie: 10 piles of 1,000 mind energy may count as 1)

Ð Peddler
A monthly competition for the highest total retail value sold. The winner is announced on the website and shop front, they will be offered 1 free item point in the shop front, for the following month, where Associate Seller status is maintained.

[Commodore]

Auction over 7 days?... No Thanks!
Commodore's Community provides 7days +extra 300% (4 weeks)

5 item spaces costs Ð5 per month, not 7 days but 4 weeks. (Ð5 / 5 spaces)/4 = Ð0.25 per item per month. The auction charges double this and allows only 7 days for a sale.

Whenever a new idea is presented, it rightly attracts both interest and critique. In an effort to present a balanced picture. I'm going to assume, that you've paid your rent but only use 1 of the 5 item spaces. Thus (Ð5 / 1 space)/4 = Ð1.25 per item per month. Even at this rate, for modest sales line, you can still make a saving. Selling more than 1 item makes a generally attractive proposition, a whole lot more exciting! On the basis of 5 spaces being used the effective cost is Ð0.25 rent for item space.

Anything over Ð2000 markup incurs a fee of 2% on the markup, chargeable after the sale. Even with this fee, the income is still higher than auction.

Click to enlarge

[Commodore]

Power Seller
If more than 40 items are sold per month, the following sale in that month will only be possible after Power Seller status has been bought. This fee is paid once in a given month, allowing further items to be listed. The cost of Power Seller status is a mere Ð10.

Share The Wealth
If your item markup exceeds Ð2k then a 2% fee is charged on that markup and payable from the income of sale. Yes - you're more than welcome to request a markup listing of Ð1,999 to avoid the fee.

Limitations
So that I can provide a good quality of service to everyone, in addition to taking steps to make the listing process simple, I also have to impose a few rules. The rules are not intended to be used in malice or otherwise trick fellow Entropians.

Other Important Points

1. Rent will be handled as normal in-game. If multiples of the rent fee are paid in advance or at any point during the month, the extra time will be added to the end of the current month, ensuring maximum display time for minimum fuss.
2. Consecutively months are not required, but are advisable, as the maximum benefit will be gained from advertising and common knowledge of Associate Retailer staus within the Eudorian population.
3. A month is 4 calendar weeks, measured Mon-Sun for the same day, 4 weeks on.
4. Participant content(PC) items, such as artwork, that are distasteful or otherwise liable to bring dis-repute upon the shop won't be listed.
5. Listing price is entirely your choice, however attempts to list at extreme prices that would bring disrepute upon the shop will be refused. This is subjective, but won't be draconian.
6. The entropian who lists, is the entropian who collects (items or income). This is final, multiple avatars will not be traded between.
7. If the account that listed an item is cancelled by MA, lost by the avatar, to claim the item/income will require a confirmation of avatar change directly from MA support.
8. As is EF policy, disputes for whatever cause will not be discussed. The website will maintain a list of any disputes, which will show both sides and the resolution.
9. Liability is limited to the Ð1,000 max, which does not include consequential loss. Where the liability is MA's fault, you are expected to follow this up with them.
10. Items that have not sold by the end of the month will be placed into storage unless the following months rent has been paid in advance.
11. Unsold Items that for whatever reason are not collected, will be held in storage for 6 months (awaiting collection), after which time they will be listed on the public auction for 7 days with no initial markup and no buyout. Where the item is off such low value that auction fee can't be recouped, the item will be tt'd.
12. Uncollected income is held on record for 12 months, after which it is transferred to myself.
13. In the interests of open & accountable business, the full records may be requested by MA support, other avatars may request the full records for the fee of Ð1k.
14. I maintain the right to refuse to list an item. This may be for any reason, though will typically be where listing an item would have negative impact on the shop.
15. I maintain the right to refund rent. This may be for any reason, though will typically be when space is rented and left empty, which could lead to a negative impact on the shop.
16. Any changes to the details will be listed here.

Listing Procedure
I can't always be online, and won't always be at the shop.
Please bear this in mind when arranging items for listing.

Having paid the relevant schemes fee, the avatar will be added to my Friend List for the duration of Associate Retailer status. At that point, or within that time, they can contact me to list items. I'm not highly active in hunting or other time consuming profession, the shop takes priority.

Item trades are always carried out by myself Michael Commodore Ludgate, within the shop. The trades will not take place anywhere else, and no other avatar acts with authority in my shop. If you have a tendancy to forget full names or trust easily, please print or write my full name before entering EU.

Before requesting a meet, please ensure you know how much you want to sell the item for. This helps to speed up the process, ensuring that everyone recieves a better service.

Trading your item with me, should be carried out in the standard way for all trades. Please check the item you wish to list, if you require keep adequate records of the value and the requested listing price. I highly recommend the use of image capture (I'm a registered Fraps user). I will record all transactions via screenshots which are used to maintain record on the website. The item will immediately be listed at the markup specified.

Collection of income doesn't have to be done immediately, a banking style record will be maintained. Your funds remain seperate and accessible when you require. However for my sanity meeting more than once per day at the shop will be discouraged.

About Commodore
I have been an active member of EU since ~March of 2002, for ceremonial reasons (MA don't keep records that far) I state my EU birthday as my rl - 11th July; Making me resident for 6yrs this summer.

I have quite a large value in peds, tied for better or for worse, in estates, home currently being my long term owned house in Hadesheim West. I'm a fustrated hunter who decided that his love of pragmatic business could be applied to the virtual world. I purchased Emerald Lakes, level 2, shop #2 just over a week ago, using funds worked up from (expensive!) auctioning of skills and Angel helmet & shins.

Why is this service here, and why the reasonable rates?
I've seen shops I like, and some I love (Eto, Freyer, etc.) and then the multitude that disapoint me. I have a passionate desire to capitalise on my strengths to bring a rl interest to Entropia. Aside from dashing looks I rate my most valuble socio-personal skills as honesty and pragmatism. However my crafting skills never allowed me to do much more than loose vast quanties of peds with the typical, paid for, globals and occasional hof. I'm not interested in making a killing for a few months and fadeing away. I'd rather make a humble sum for my efforts, and become a globally respected member with a surviving business!

The shop will be open as of the public posting of this thread. Please remember, when you visit, that the items in the shop are limited - as it's not my primary goal to sell many or specific items through the shop. It will look less interesting until the Associate Retailers are in, will that be you! An official 'ribbon cutting event' will happen after the initial traders are settled in.

I use, and highly recommend everyone invest the very small sum of Ð250 for a gold card & reader. This should be viewed by all participants with more than Ð1k as essential.

[Oleg]

Originally Posted by Commodore

Auction over 7 days?... No Thanks!
Commodore's Community provides 7days +extra 300% (4 weeks)

5 item spaces costs Ð5 per month, not 7 days but 4 weeks. (Ð5 / 5 spaces)/4 = Ð0.25 per item per month. The auction charges double this and allows only 7 days for a sale.

Um, that's some very creative mathematics (I think you mean 0.25 per item per week).

Interesting idea, good luck with it.

[Commodore]

Hello fellow England player

Actually no I didn't, the comparison is based upon equivalence with auction. As the items spaces are rented for a month, you could list up to the maximum (before power seller) of 40 / month.

For Ð5 you have 40 spaces over a month.
5 / 40 giving a rent cost per item point of Ð0.125 - that's 12.5 PEC!

At auction you'll have 7 days, and pay 50 pec before u even think about having a markup.

Thanks for taking an interest!

[Oleg]

Ah, I see your point, but it doesn't make much sense as a comparison, since you wouldn't be listing 40 items for a month, you'll be listing up to 40 items over the space of a month.

To display one item for a month on auction costs 4 x 0.50 = 2 PED (plus starting markup %).

To display one item for a month in your shop costs 1 PED. So it's half the cost, assuming a minimal starting markup. You can save more if and only if you sell and replace items within that time, or have an item with a large mark-up.

I guess it could get quite complicated after that

PS Come on England!

[Commodore]

Getting closer

Your right in saying that 40 items sold per month does not compare with auction, that's why I didn't use that as the comparison. I used the breakdown you refered to as 'imaginative' pay 5 ped rent then you have 1 whole month of 5 consecutive items to be listed. Thus 5 ped / 5 items = 1 ped / item. The term of rent is 4 weeks, thus 1 / 4 = 0.25.

The offer is better than auction. 100% comparrison wasn't intended as the offer is different in more than 1 way. While the statement "it costs 1 ped to display 1 item for a month in my ship" is correct, it is a misnomer, as it is also true to say that 'it costs 1 ped to display 10 items in my shop for a month' The selling frequency and restocking is dependant upon prices and availability. On the same count, you can't list an item at auction for a month. Every time it expires u have to re-list it.

I'm pleased you've stated that the cost to list in my shop is 1/2 the cost to list in the auction. If you examine the data/graph image above, you'll see this is very much the case. The point where it becomes exciting is when Associate Retailers use the 5 concurrent slots to list further items. This where the further example given in response to you generates a price point of 12pec. This is not intended to map back to the auction comparison. Otherwise I'd have been quicker to point out the price point of 12pec instead!

The offer does not become more complicated. It remains perfectly simple. A fixed monthly rent charge (as described above) is paid. Then items are listed with only other cost within the appropriate scheme being the sum MA takes from the income after a sale. As with all activities in life, hard working peeps who make the effort to list more items will of course save even more

Aside from the points you've picked at, I feel that the general purpose of the system has been lost. Even if through commited and active listing of items did not result in a large saving. Even if I had bigger ambitions for higher profit and ate away all the money saving to match the auction like for like. At the end of the day, the real purpose is to provide each and every citizen of Entropia with the option to sell within a mall without having to fork out ~20k

[Toast CHG]

Welcome to the Emerald Lakes Mall! We wish you a prosperous year.
You definitely have a great service to offer to many Entropians.

[Oleg]

Originally Posted by Commodore

The offer does not become more complicated. It remains perfectly simple. A fixed monthly rent charge (as described above) is paid. Then items are listed with only other cost within the appropriate scheme being the sum MA takes from the income after a sale. As with all activities in life, hard working peeps who make the effort to list more items will of course save even more

When I said "more complicated", I meant that the comparison with auction prices gets more complicated, because of the various possible combinations of numbers of items. The basic system behind your offer is, as you say, quite simple.

Originally Posted by Commodore

Aside from the points you've picked at, I feel that the general purpose of the system has been lost. Even if through commited and active listing of items did not result in a large saving. Even if I had bigger ambitions for higher profit and ate away all the money saving to match the auction like for like. At the end of the day, the real purpose is to provide each and every citizen of Entropia with the option to sell within a mall without having to fork out ~20k

I think that's one purpose, but I can see this deal being useful to a very wide range of people for a wide range of reasons. It's certainly something I'll bear in mind for the future.

I wonder if there is any way you could divide the shop into themed areas (armour, weapons, materials etc), just so that the shop would be a bit more ordered instead of the potential chaos that might result from several people selling various items. I guess you'd have to rely on the service users to stick with the plan, but that would make it easier from the buyer's point of view.

[Commodore]

Originally Posted by Oleg

I wonder if there is any way you could divide the shop into themed areas (armour, weapons, materials etc), just so that the shop would be a bit more ordered instead of the potential chaos that might result from several people selling various items. I guess you'd have to rely on the service users to stick with the plan, but that would make it easier from the buyer's point of view.

Yes! This point kept me thinking for a while. I think the best method is to list items in groups by type. Initially I wanted to offer each Associate Retailer a table or such of their own; However I don't think this works well due to the reason you've highlighted. It would look more like a flea-market! To avoid the chaos, show the sellers what to expect, and make it easy for people browsing the shop - I'll place items in the most suitable place for the size and type of item. The fact our items are controlled by MA lends itself to this. Where Associate Retailers have unique (PC) items, these will of course be given special thought as to preferred location.

An interesting aspect of multiple sellers under one roof, is the natural competion I expect will emerge. I'm hoping this will cause competative low prices that result in high sales volume and lots of new listings by Associate Retailers!