Hardware Specifications & Operating System (OS version, CPU, GPU, RAM, storage…): MacOS Sequoia, Apple M2, 16 GB
My customers aren’t ordering anything, all they do is sit around, wash their faces, look into the mirror and talk.
My business is open for 8 hours so idk, i didn’t had this problem before the latest hot fix.. my zoi and the employee eventually just ended up sitting and talk as well because nobody was ordering so that means no work or profit..
Is this a bug or did the hotfix made it harder to get sales?
This happens in my game too. I mean, they buy something like 3x in 8 hours, so the business isn’t making any profits, even though it’s gained its first star already. I can’t confirm that the bug / issue only occured after the recent hotfix because I haven’t really played with the business system until a few days ago.
I noticed something strange. My bakery has two floors. When I close the second floor, customers buy approximately 8 items per 10 hours of work. When the second floor is open, sales drop to 3 items per 10 hours of work. I work without an employee. I opened the business after the latest hotfix (0.5.4), and I hadn’t tried the business before that. I have nothing to compare it to.
This could be connected, you’re right. My business lot is intended to offer drinks and coffee on ground floor and dancing + DJ-ing on second floor. I’ll try to close off the first floor next time and will report back to let you know how it went.
Wait, i think what you said makes sense. The sales started to act weird when i gave my customers permission to go upstairs and now i barely get sales, the second floor was closed first and only the owner could enter.. this might not be a hotfix problem, but maybe a bug with a business that has two active floors. I will test this out in my game soon.
Let me know about your results. I have nothing to compare it with, since I didn’t have a business before. I thought that’s how the game algorithm was designed. When a business reaches its maximum on the first floor, a second floor opens (business expansion). However, we initially have a second working floor at the development stage. Therefore, the algorithm fails in sales. This is my opinion. I hope the developers will give us a clarifying answer.
I also got into the Cafe business. While I was working alone, I couldn’t keep up with cooking—everything was snapped up right away, and people were worried that someone wouldn’t get anything. You know, I started noticing a lot of things and fixing them. Now I have the maximum number of employees and the business is booming. Now I’m expanding and opened another business. Here’s what I noticed:
You need to choose employees who have maximum experience in your field.
When assigning tasks to each employee, you need to select actions related to your business. If employees are just chatting or playing guitar and (God forbid) flirting and falling in love during work time, then nothing will get done.
Encourage employees by raising their salary and help them.
In furniture, think about maximum convenience for work (counters, refrigerators, appliances for food). Buy the best stoves and coffee makers.
Arrange the workspace so that everyone has enough cutting tables. If it’s a cafe, provide convenience for visitors (separate restrooms for men and women) and a shower for employees.
Don’t forget about external decoration—window displays, cabinets, tables, chairs, a TV. So it’s convenient to walk around.
Advertising is important in business (at home on your computer), giving lectures (board) about the benefits of products and cooking methods. This increases your rating.
Respond to your employees’ text messages, because they start to admire you—approve of them.
Talk to customers about your business and invite them to come back.
As for products, decide for yourself—don’t grab everything at once, add little by little, feel out the market.
I don’t think that’s the issue because before this problem my costumers were just buying, and the stands were like this too. I just really think it’s the second floor issue.
Honestly, the only way I found to make a profit (at least in the tutorial business) is to fight fire with fire. Namely exploit another bug: nobody seems to give a damn about the menu. I could have only baking and coffee items on the menu, and watch the 9 cooking skill employee that was previously working a hotdog stand cook a group serving of steamed fish and put it on sale. And the next customer would come and buy it.
So yeah, if you want money, just spam the most expensive dish: group steamed fish.
Otherwise, really, if you want to sell small-portion muffins and coffee, like an ACTUAL cafe, prepare to make a loss. The game makes you jump through all those hoops and still AT BEST generates enough buying customers for you to break even.
I swear the business part is about as unbalanced as a three-legged pig on ice
So i tried to play again, but now with the second floor closed for my customers and my employee’s but the sales are still not coming, again sales worked just fine before the hot fix.. but now my customers are again just hanging out around my place and not buying anything, so 8 hours no sale lol, like they want my cafe to be a club so bad
I’m very sorry that this is how it works for you. I can still make a little money at the bakery. I tested the game again with the second floor open. The result is the same - with two floors there are no sales, with one floor there are sales.
Well, the tutorial business does have two levels (and it would take some remodelling to move the toilets to the ground floor) and people still buy there for me. Just not enough or barely enough to cover the expenses, unless I spam very expensive group meals.
So the number of floors can’t be the whole story. There must be something else different between my game, your game, and Deniice’s game. Possibly even a bug.
And that is my evidence that it’s an inconsistent and poorly explained feature.
I just opened the second floor in my business and it actually works fine. So I agree with @Moraelin it must be something more / else or a bug which is causing it.
In my game I have bathrooms on both floors. Upstairs I have a kind of gaming center with computer spaces and places to read books, no sales for food or drinks. Downstairs also bathrooms and kitchen with kiosk to order and 4 market stands which are filled with juices and dishes from one of my employees. Also downstairs an eating area and a lecturing area which is covered by my second employee for giving lectures. On days where lecturing did not work for whatever reason the shop still makes around 2-3k from sales. Maybe I should also mention that I sell both single drinks and dishes as well as full jars and jumbo plates for purchase only as these bring much more income (especially steamed fish and English breakfast as jumbo version).
Well, I wouldn’t necessarily say less bugs, but this one works differently for me than for some others. Which is not unusual for bugs. Only Yog-Sothoth knows what different items or architecture throw your game, my game and NyushaDm’s game into very different behaviours.
Guys, you’re completely forgetting about avatar training. Their level and professionalism help earn more money. Place a board on the 2nd floor, conduct cooking classes and other arts lessons, and you’ll immediately see people coming to you. Install juice vending machines, they also make money. Mine earns about 10k money for the cafe, and that’s not just from product sales. I control what to cook myself, and it doesn’t have to be expensive—on the contrary, the fastest options. Pay attention to the fact that visitors don’t always come in crowds; they also learn along with you. I also want to say that you need to try what kind of authority you need to give to employees—there are quite a few positions and not just cooking. In general, this greatly affects income. I also bought a place for a gym, I’ll develop it and work out myself at the same time. Oh, and also, install the latest terminal, maybe that makes a difference.
I’m not entirely sure what you mean by avatar training. My avatar has level 10 in cooking, level 10 in rhetoric (for those customer interactions,) level 10 in performance (for telling jokes), level 10 cleaning (which seems to do nothing anyway), and getting close enough in baking and coffee. Oh, and also 10 in fitness, so training any further would probably not be the best use of my time at work.
The employees are both high level too. The first one came right from the start with a level 9 in cooking, and the second one with 9 in coffee and 7 or 8 in rhetoric.
And yeah, the customers don’t come in crowds. They come one by one… and then they pretty much just sit around and chat
And yeah, I could try some artificial ways to bring people in, like making it a combo of bakery, lecture hall, gym, tavern, and only Yog-Sothoth knows what else. Effectively turning it into a whole mall, I guess. But that feels more like a way to game the system than operating a realistic business. I mean, even in a mall, IRL the bakery and gym are different stores.
Edit: hmm, I haven’t tried messing with the terminals, though. I’ll give that a try. Maybe add more of them too, in case each item has its own roll for what a customer can do. Thanks for the idea.
I think you’re mistaken. If you spread yourself too thin across multiple services, clients will be confused. Try advertising your cafe. Maybe it would be better to open a second business and give your avatar freedom to let assistants work. After all, there’s a “attract customers” button in the game for a reason.
I can still make a little money at the bakery. I tested the game again with the second floor open. The result is the same - with two floors there are no sales, with one floor there are sales.