Plight of the Magic Shop Owner

[Keldin]

I'm playing an artificer in a Kingmaker (Pathfinder) campaign. We're still not at the level where we'll start creating our own kingdom, but I figured I'd do some thinking about it ahead of time.

As an artificer, my character will be spending time making magic items (unsurprisingly). Making items for the rest of the party is one thing, but the likely case is that he will open his own shop. So, I'd like to hear from others who have done this kind of thing with their characters (or in their games). What kinds of things do you do for security? (You don't want people stealing your work, after all.) Do you work solely on commission/pre-payment? What do you charge?

Basically, I'm looking for both opinions and hard gaming rules that people use/have used/will use. I'm seeking inspiration, you might say.

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

Three words: location, location, location.

Understand your customers needs and strive to meet them, but never forget you're in business to make a profit. Plus a good business plan helps.

 

[Nagol]

Don't operate a shop with wares on display.

Operate a business where persons of note can order custom crafted items (after the appropriate credit check of course). That way, you don't have assets tied up in merchandise -- nothing to steal. Get half the cash up front, the rest on delivery -- that way if something happens and the buyer reneges, you break even.