Merchant Archive
Thread: What % do you take on sales ?
Hi, as a merchant i would like to know what margin you guys make on sold goods ?
Do you set it at 25% or something ? Do you inflate retail price to get a higher margin?
TIA, i got a few problems to make good money for now 
Coolspy,
It really depends on what kind of business arrangement you have. If a client asks me to sell a set of product for him/her worth say 100k, I might arrange a commission of 10%, meaning after I sell all the product I will keep 10k for myself, and pay the rest back to the crafter.
Another arrangement is where the crafter gives me the product and expects to receive a set price for them, and I am free to mark them up as I see fit. For example, if the crafter provides me with 10 rifles he/she values at 1000k each, afterI sell them they will expect to be given 10,000 cr.butI could have sold them for 1,500 cr./each allowing me to make 5,000 cr. for myself.
You can also buy the products directly from the crafter at a discount rate and mark them up by say 30%. This is a more secure transaction for the crafter since it guarantees the sale. You buy it from them, and you sell it again to someone else. Of course this requires you to be able to afford the items in the first place.
I dont have a set % mark up but I DO always get people who want me to sell their stuff to Offer it to my vendor.
They then get to set the price they want for it (which if it is too high I just decline to buy it), and get paid for the items as soon as it is accepted by me (no pressure on my part to sell it in a certain time). These items are then mine to do with as I wish (sell them for whatever mark-up I see fit, give them to my PA mates, use them myself etc..)
The only downside to this is that the merchant takes the responsibility for any market fluctuations, however this is not always a bad thing..
I have a tailor that sells me items of clothing at 10 credits each, I then relist them at 25cr and they're flying out of the shop (Except for some reason the PINK Wookie Helm !), for a not too shabby 150% profit. That is except the Jedi and Sith clothing which is selling for 250-500 a piece !!! ( 2500-5000 % ) - Jedi wannabes, got to love them !!!
For me it depends on the suplier. I have one suplier who is paying me 40% to handle all the details of the selling and for the convienience of my shop being available to customers 24/7. I have another who is selling to me at a very low wholesale rate and I make a lot more than 40% on my investment on that (course I risk losing all my investment if there are no sales)
On Items I craft I am marking up about 30-40% above costs unless it is a special item or a rare resuorce is required to make the item then it is a little more.
Lazaren Vex
Gorath Server
Maleck & Lazaren Trading Co.
Theed, Naboo
Draznar..
Tailor is a PA mate, so I cant divulge, but if you want to swing by my shop 
About 600, 6200 North of Keren on Nabbo (Eclipse) - House No.2 Northstar Avenue (We have about a dozen houses and half a doxen or so factories up, you can't miss it, right on the coast...
I couldnt even tell you what it costs me to make a single gun of say, fwg5, but suffice it to say at 4k per a decent one, its probably more along the lines of 100% + markup above what it costs me to physically make.
As for distributors, i have a general rule, that i charge them 50% of what i charge (ie im still makeing 50+ percent profit), but they have to purchase a minimum order of 10 guns, preferably more. And they are free to charge whatever they feel they can get for those weapons. Certain weapons are favored in certain areas, certain professions, certain planets etc so the market is different from every including my shop outside theed.