Chef Archive

I am working my way up the Artisan ladder to be a chef. So far I have had to beg people to take my FREE food. At what point should I attempt to sell my food and stop giving it away? Chef is a profession that noone seems to love.

That depends on how much product you need to push.

I've been selling my products on the bazaar now for about a month and I'm still wallowing at Novice Chef with no other chef skills. I don't play a whole lot, but every day I'm on I put 25 items on the bazaar (low level Chef items and sometimes a few Dom Arts items) and they usually sell within 24 hours or less. If I'm online during peak sales times, I can sometimes sell 30+ items over the bazaar in one night. While I'm online I will RP a bartender and I can sell another 10+ items in a couple of hours.

Here's the tricks:

1) Post your sales on a bazaar in a heavily populated city - Theed, Bestine, Corellia, etc. where the Creature Handlers will see your stuff. Early on they will be your best customers.

2) Don't over charge. Find a price that will give you a good profit but will keep your product moving. I started posting my sales at various prices - I'd sell 5 of the same item at various prices: say 80, 100, 120, 140 and 160 credits to get a feel for the market. If all five sell quickly, it's time to up the prices. Also, check the bazaar and see what others are selling for and price accordingly - If the sale has been up there for a long time and nobody is buying, the price is probably too high.

3) Sell the right product in the right place. Foods that enhance action traits will sell well in then cantina. Those entertainers need energy. Foods that enhance mind traits will sell pretty well at the med centers sometimes.

4) Roleplay your butt off in the cantinas. My best night happened when I was just RP'ing as a bartender in Bestine. I wasn't selling much, but a very kind person tipped me 5000 cr and said drinks were on him. I tried for an hour and wasn't able to GIVE away 5000 cr worth of product, but I did get rid of some, made some UXP and pocketed 5000 cr. Once the people in the cantinas get to know you, they might come back for more - even if it isn't super-food, they might help you out with tips anyway.

Thanks for your advice it will help me out greatly, now my next dilemna, I got me a regular customer for bofa treats, A CH needs a steady supply, I gave him a really good deal for first shipment 20 groups of 4 bofa treats for 350 credits. I am trying to build a clientle. What is a good price for bofa treats and..... is there a way to group them in stacks so I dont have to trade 4 times to give them to him?

Thanks for all your help!