Pricing Strategy
Pricing is the single most important decision you make in Tradorn. Set your prices too low and you leave money on the table. Too high and NPCs stop buying. Mastering pricing is the difference between a struggling trader and a market dominator.
The Basics: Sell Price vs Base Price
Every product has a base price determined by the supplier tier you purchased:
- Cheap tier — Lowest base price
- Standard tier — Middle base price
- Premium tier — Highest base price
Your sell price is what you charge NPCs. The difference between sell price and base price is your profit margin. A product bought at $100 and sold at $130 gives you a 30% margin.
The Margin Sweet Spots
Through extensive play testing and community data, these margin ranges consistently perform best:
| Category | Conservative | Optimal | Aggressive |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food | 15-20% | 20-35% | 35-45% |
| Clothing | 20-30% | 30-45% | 45-55% |
| Technology | 25-35% | 35-50% | 50-60% |
| Luxury | 35-45% | 45-60% | 60-75% |
Conservative pricing maximizes volume at the cost of per-sale profit. Use this in highly competitive regions.
Optimal pricing balances volume and margin for maximum total revenue. This is where you should aim in most situations.
Aggressive pricing pushes margins higher, reducing volume but increasing per-sale profit. Use this in low-competition regions.
Price Elasticity in Practice
NPC demand drops as prices rise, but the relationship is not linear:
- 0-30% markup: Minimal demand impact. Most NPCs still buy.
- 30-50% markup: Moderate demand reduction. Revenue can still increase because higher per-sale profit offsets lower volume.
- 50-70% markup: Significant demand drop. Only worth it in very low-competition scenarios.
- 70%+ markup: Demand craters. Almost never profitable regardless of competition level.
Competitive Pricing
When multiple shops sell the same category in a region, NPCs compare prices. The shop with the better appeal (including price competitiveness) gets more customers. Watch your competitors:
- If you are the only shop in a category, push prices toward the aggressive range.
- If two or three shops compete, stay in the optimal range.
- If many shops compete (common in Central Plaza), use conservative pricing and win on volume.
Quality and Pricing Interaction
Premium-tier products have higher base prices but also higher NPC appeal. This means you can charge higher margins on Premium goods because the quality bonus partially offsets the price elasticity penalty. In wealthy regions, Premium products at aggressive margins often outperform Cheap products at conservative margins.
Tips
- Check competitor prices regularly, especially in high-traffic regions
- Start conservative, then raise prices gradually until sales slow down
- Different products within the same shop can have different margin strategies
- Revisit your pricing when you enter a new region — what works in North Harbor may not work in Industrial Zone