A word to the wise: a diverse toolkit is only as impactful as your proficiency with it.

A word to the powerful: blowing up stuff is fun, isn't it?

A word to the smelly: bathe.

-The entirety of Basen Koh's first and last Royal Avennish Academy commencement address

"I believe one of your problems stems from the very nature of the Immaculate Collection," Kenagavis said.

Reid stood next to Kenagavis in the magic lift, the orkenna towering over him. Not all non-humans were tall, but it sure seemed like most of the ones Reid had met were.

"What's that?"

"Have you been in any other magic item shops, Reid?"

"Yeah. I don't remember what it was called, though. The clerk there was named Terrance."

Kenagavis shook his head. "I don't know anyone with that name. What was different about that shop and the Immaculate Collection?"

"Well, they sold factory made items, according to Terrance."

"Ahh. Yes, there are several of those in the city. I should be more specific. Have you been in any shops that sell more unique items, like the things you sell or the things Mr. Foursprout sold?"

"I guess I haven't."

The lift chimed, and the doors opened into an upper floor of the merchant's guild where Kenagavis worked when he wasn't at the front desk. Kenagavis led Reid across a room filled with mostly empty desks, continuing the conversation.

"The difference between the Immaculate Collection and most other specialty magic item shops is one of scale. Basen has, quite frankly, a collection of staggering proportions. Most other magic item sellers in the city specialize in particular item types and hunt those down to restock their wares. Merchants like Mr. Foursprout serve as those who help restock these specialty shops, but I would expect most have fewer than a few dozen items."

Kenagavis stopped at a large wooden desk with a comfortable looking chair behind it and two equally fine chairs in front. It was close to the large window at the end of the room, and Reid had to marvel at the view of the city sprawled beneath them. Beyond the city looking south, he could see the foothills he and Arvind had crossed on their way to the city, but the cloudy and rainy weather made it impossible to know if the peaks of the mountains just south of Glarrus were visible from this vantage point. Kenagavis sat in one of the two chairs in front of the desk and patiently waited for Reid to finish his survey of the city.

"Welcome to my desk; please have a seat. If I'm not at the front desk, I can often be found here, and you are welcome to visit any time you wish. I only ask that you do not disturb the people working on this floor. During the day, most of the desks are occupied, and the guild officials working are quite busy."

"Thanks. This is nice. Honestly, I'm not sure I'd want to work the front desk with a view like this."

"It is an excellent view, but I prefer being able to interact with my fellow guild members and anyone else who wanders through the doors."

"The view is worse, but the people are more interesting?"

"Something like that."

Reid shrugged. "Back to the shop, I'm not really seeing the downside of having a huge collection. I guess we're not specialized, like you said, but we have a lot more things to sell. That seems like a good thing."

"That is a benefit, but it does have some hidden downsides. The point I want to make is that to get people into your store, you need to give them a reason. Specialty stores have that by their very nature. If you're looking for an item that will assist with anything related to farming, you head to Hampton's. If you need an item with a spell, you go to the Spell Store. If you want broken items for crafting, you go to Cracked Curios."

"That's a good name! Where's that?"

Reid hadn't seen that one on Quinn's Map, but he hadn't even had time to check out the other shops she'd marked.

Kenagavis gestured broadly. "There you are! That's what I mean. If you go to these shops, assuming you've heard of them, you know what you'll find. Sometimes it's in the name, and sometimes it's because of the shop's reputation. When people think of the Immaculate Collection, what do they think?"

"If they've been there, probably that it's a mess. If they haven't, it's probably the opposite. 'Immaculate' is in the name, so they might assume it's some high end fancy shop. Or that we cater to cleaners."

Kenegavis nodded. "That is one of the problems. The shop has a name, and it isn't a bad one, but it lacks a core identity. Discovering that identity can help influence to whom you want to sell and how to best reach them."

"Yeah. When I think about the people who might come in to shop, it's mages and future mages who want to expand their power or add some utility."

"That is one possibility, but I think you've been blinded by some of Basen's biases that you might not have considered."

Reid leaned forward. "Like what? I know he doesn't like societies in general. And he seems distrustful of people in power, except maybe the king. I don't think he's said anything bad about him. Not sure how that relates to the shop, though."

"Nothing like that. This bias is about the nature of magic items and the two kinds of people who use them. Basen falls under the umbrella of people who collect power to become powerful. They expand their potential and put themselves in dangerous situations to grow and advance, collecting items to set themselves up for success.

"As you stated, one might argue that this group is exactly who the Immaculate Collection caters to, but I think you and Basen have this perception because of Basen's familiarity with that path. The second group of people who use magic are the regular folk who use magic for convienence. They have no real desire to move beyond three or more stars, and they want items not for the inherent power they provide, but for the utility they offer. If you look at what you have on offer, it makes sense that this group should be just as important as the first."

Reid didn't think he was biased because he thought catering to mages in search of power made the most sense. The shop had some useful items for regular folk, no doubt, but their inventory skewed toward three stars. Those had a variety of useful abilities for the up and coming mages of the kingdom, like Garret Sands. He wasn't sure he agreed with the orkenna.

"It isn't a bad thing to focus on a particular group," Kenagavis continued, "but it's hard to base running a business with the scale of Basen's collection on that one group. For one, the number of people who use magic for convenience likely outnumbers those in the first group by fifty to one—maybe more."

"Really?"

Reid laughed at his own question.

Listen to me. A few months ago, I was blown away that we found a few items in the swamp. Hundreds of people in town and just a handful of them were Lesser Mages. I don't even know if there was anyone in the village beyond three stars, and other than us teenage boys, no one was looking for power for power's sake. Now, I'm convinced that's what everyone is doing.

Kenagavis gave him a questioning look, but he shook his head.

"Ignore me. That's totally believable. I've just been drawn into a world I'd scarcely imagined as a kid."

"I've heard that being around Basen Koh for an extended period can have that effect on people."

Reid couldn't argue with that. "Alright, so we have a smaller customer base—or target base. That doesn't mean we can't sell to the other group, though."

"That is both true and what I wanted to bring to your attention. You came to me asking how to advertise the Immaculate Collection. You can, but you'll need to be aware of the issues that will be difficult to change. You and Basen have a perception, and you should keep that in mind when trying to attract customers."

"Yeah. I didn't think about it like that. I might have leaned into expanding power or something that excludes an entire set of customers. Any other issues?"

"That group is not only smaller, but Mages don't tend to swap out their bound items frequently. That will make repeat customers rare, possibly years apart."

"Wait. So, should we shift our focus? Just focus on the larger group?"

Kenagavis wavered, tapping the side of his jaw.

"While that group has downsides, the upside is that they will spend far more gold in any single transaction."

Reid knew that firsthand.

"So, get the big spenders in the store and let the other group know we have things they might be interested in, too?"

Kenagavis nodded. "The biggest hurdle is just getting the shop's name out there. Having a stall in the Grand Market is a good idea."

Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

"We have one. It's in the back corner and in desperate need of a better sign, but it's there. I still need to figure out what we're paying for that."

"That is good. One of the quickest ways to get interest might be attaching Basen's name to the store. I'm not sure if he's against changing the name, but at least letting people know the Immaculate Collection is owned by Basen Koh should go a long way toward getting curious folk in the door."

Reid slapped his knee. "I should have thought of that. I sold some things this morning, and I think the only reason he came in was because he'd heard the store was owned by Basen."

"That is a good sign. Did he mention where he heard it? If there's already an avenue for the knowledge to pass through, amplifying that can often be a cheap option."

"No, I didn't think to ask. That's a good idea, though. I do sort of need to do this as cheaply as possible."

"Ah, yes. The outstanding debt that has been called into immediate repayment. I assume you checked the agreement to ensure the Shadows are operating in good faith?"

Reid grimaced. He'd reviewed Kiala's fact sheets, but he hadn't looked at the contract again. He knew about the fee schedule but didn't recall reading about the enforcement clauses on that one.

"I didn't. Do you think they're bluffing?"

"Unlikely. It's something to always keep in mind. As a young merchant, there are those who would take advantage of your inexperience. You should always read contracts completely, ask questions when you don't understand them, and strike out portions for renegotiation when you do not like the terms. While the Greymoon Shadows certainly thought about taking advantage of you, they have a True Mage to worry about. They will push for anything they can get, but they won't cheat Basen or his representatives outside the bounds of their contract."

"Hmm. Well, I guess that's something. But back to Basen's name—that reminded me of Basen's stunt at the Dusk Guild."

Reid explained what Basen had done after Leah's assessment. Kenagavis was much more interested in the story than Reid assumed he would be.

"Fascinating," the orkenna said. "I've never seen Magic Authority. I didn't know it could do something like that."

"Really? You should come by the shop. I can break something and make Basen fix it."

Kenagavis looked aghast at the idea of breaking something. Or the idea of making a True Mage use their power. Reid wasn't sure.

"That doesn't seem...appropriate."

"Basen wouldn't mind, I'm sure. Anyway, when he stepped into the ring, it seemed like everyone knew him. I wasn't sure how well known he was in the city before that, but I don't know if Dusk Guild members would be more familiar with him. How well known is he to the public at large?"

Kenagavis shrugged. "It is unlikely that you would find anyone who grew up in the city who does not know his name. He has been an influential figure in the politics here for forty years. Between that and his rank, most people will know his name, but it may very well be that only the older generations recognize him on sight. He doesn't make many official public appearances. People who watched him in the arena decades ago might still remember his face."

"That's good to know. So, if we use Basen's name when advertising, we'll get a better response?"

"Almost assuredly. The name recognition will span groups. That might mean you get a few gawkers who only wish to see Basen and not buy anything, but traffic drives sales, regardless of the source. It's one of the reasons the stalls in the Grand Market are valuable."

The conversation planted the seed of an idea in Reid's mind. He would need to figure out if it was remotely possible, but first, he had to figure out some real plans.

"Alright. We'll use Basen's name to try to draw a bigger customer base—well, any customer base at this point. What kind of advertising can we do?"

"I have a few suggestions."

Kenagavis walked Reid through a couple traditional advertising routes. Purchasing advertising space in the New Avennia Chronicles was an option. The prices weren't outrageous, but the paper only went to print twice a week. By the time they arranged the advertisement, it would be days before it even showed up in the paper. Reid filed that one away for later.

The cheapest advertising path was using public notice boards. These boards weren't like the ones in the society buildings that asked for people to complete tasks for pay and required the poster to pay the society to post them. The public notice boards were free to use, and anyone could post anything on them. Reid would try his hand at creating some advertisements to post around the city, but he planned on waiting until the morning to try. He guessed his fortitude would be sufficiently recovered by then, and he wanted to duplicate the postings instead of hand writing a dozen flyers.

Kenagavis looked through some nearby filing drawers and returned with a list of public notice boards. Together, Reid and Kenagavis drew a map of the city, using Quinn's detailed map as the basis. They marked the location of every board on the list. If Reid used all of them, he'd need over twenty copies of his flyer. He would probably need to recruit Kris to help hang them.

The orkenna's final suggestion for advertising was something they could view on the second floor. Reid collected his new map and small list of ideas before following Kenagavis back into the lift.

"As I mentioned, the second floor is where most of the member activity happens. However, it's early in the week and late in the day, so the floor should be relatively quiet."

When the lift stopped, Reid and Kenagavis stepped out into a chaotic scene. Dozens of people moved around the room chatting, writing things down, and trading various papers. Two huge boards updated occasionally. When one of the boards changed to something new, the whole room froze while everyone read the latest information.

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Commodity Notice

Hardwood/Totemwood

By: Port of Aquar

Origin: Tenka in Anazal

Quantity: 30 Random Lots

Custom Bids: 20%

Comments: Full trunks 4 feet long. Partial trunks up to 20 feet.

Bids Open

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The room returned to frenetic noise once people finished reading.

"What is happening here?"

"This is the trade floor. You've seen something like this down below. In the lobby, contracts come from all over Avennia and are typically straightforward to fill. The contracts on this floor come from partner merchant guilds around the continent. That one is listing some wood from Anazal for sale in lots. Essentially, a shipment arrives in Aquar, and the traders from Anazal sell it at port. Someone buys the shipment and uses the merchant guild network to sell the goods far and wide. If any of the traders here like what is on offer, they'll submit a bid for the commodity to purchase all or part of the lots available."

A woman yelled something that Reid didn't catch, and a group of four people cheered.

"The woman who just called out is a guild official. She has long distance communication magical items that she uses to contact the other merchant guilds. People tell her their bids, and she relays them. That particular group she called to are big suppliers to the Dusk Guild. I don't know what they were buying, but the call was that their bid was accepted."

The group moved out of the swarm of people and sat down with an official on the other side of the room.

"Now they'll work out shipping arrangements for the goods. Depending on what they purchased, they may arrange to ship directly to the Dusklands or here."

"They can do all of that in here?"

"Oh, yes. The Royal Merchant's Guild has everything you could need to facilitate any trade you can imagine."

"I think I'm going to come back here on my day off and just watch..."

Kenagavis laughed. "Come back earlier in the day if you want to really see something. This is a relatively calm time of day."

Another guild official called out near Reid. "Tassis! Bid rejected. Counter offer of four hundred gold per lot!"

Kenagavis pointed at a thin person sitting on a bench near the wall. Reid recognized the person as a Corva, thanks to the bright gemstone embedded in the Corva's forehead. The Corva were the native race of Corvas, across the sea to the east. They had some magic that allowed them to connect with animals. He'd heard it was incredibly useful, but they could only make the connection once and took on the traits of the animals they connected with. Sometimes, the changes were slight, and the Corva looked more or less human.

In the case of the Corva leaning against the wall, they were covered with light blue feathers from head to toe and had a beak instead of a mouth. They wore clothing that covered their torso but were unclothed below the waist, feathers covering any areas that might upset the sensibilities of modest humans. Instead of shoes, the Corva had scaled feet that ended in wicked talons.

The Corva raised their hand and made an intricate gesture.

"That's Tassis. You are familiar with the Corva?" Kenagavis asked.

"That one I knew," Reid said. He'd never met a Corva, but there were countless stories about their people, even in an out of the way mining town.

"Tassis is one of the most powerful merchants in the city. They're here most days. If you want to learn all of this someday, they're one to watch."

"What are they buying? Four hundred gold per lot?"

"I don't know. Four hundred for a lot of any commodity is unusually expensive. I would guess rare ore or gemstones."

Reid allowed Kenagavis to guide him past the mayhem and back into a calmer section of the second floor. Here, few people looked over a series of boards but without the urgency of the commodities boards on this floor or downstairs.

"Here is what you might be interested in," Kenagavis said, pointing out the boards.

Reid glanced at a notice on the board nearest to them.

----------------------------------------

Item Request Notice

3+ Star Magic Item

Aspect: Shearing

Searching for an item with 3+ stars of potential and the Shearing aspect. Broken items are acceptable, as are three and four star items. 5 star items accepted with an ability assessment and negotiable premium.

Paying 15 gold for the aspect at 3 stars.

----------------------------------------

"Wow, that's pretty good for three stars. Shearing. I don't think I saw anything with that aspect in the shop..."

A quick check of Reid's ledger told him he remembered correctly.

"Item requests are typically very specific about what is being asked for. This will be someone who needs that aspect for some specific purpose and is willing to pay a premium for it. I'm not sure how rare Shearing is, but magic items and the study of magic are not my specialty."

"But I can check all these and see if we have anything that matches?"

"You can. There is no limit on the number you fulfill. Item requests are less specific about payments on any given notice, and there are some hidden details. Fulfilling any notice on this floor pays a flat twenty guild merits, in addition to anything offered in the notice."

"Nice. What about the other direction. Can I list things for sale? Didn't you say Mr. Foursprout did that?"

"You can; however, every sale listing on this floor costs fifty merits."

"That's steep."

"It discourages people from filling the boards with their shop's entire inventory," Kenagavis said with a slight smile.

"You got me there."

"In reality, you may want to list an exceptionally rare or valuable item or a short list of items. What is allowed in a notice and what the limits to that are is left to the discretion of the guild official creating the notice."

Reid didn't think Kenagavis would give him a lot of leeway there. Mr. Foursprout was probably a unique case.

"Alright, this is great to know about, but you mentioned advertising? Did you just mean listing valuable items?"

Kenagavis directed Reid to the final board in the room. It was smaller, and no one was looking at it.

"This is the merchant's guild shop registry. It shows a list of shops in the scope of the merchant's guild influence. Basen will never join our guild, but you can list the Immaculate Collection yourself. The only caveat is that to be on this list, you must accept a minimum of twenty percent of any sale to a merchant's guild member, payable with guild merits. You can optionally offer additional discounts, but given the nature of what you are selling, such discounts would mean little."

Reid wasn't sure what Basen would think about taking credits. Reid had the power to make that decision himself—Basen had made that clear—but this felt like the kind of thing he should run by the True Mage first.

"I'll have to check on that. I assume the credits would get added to my balance?"

"The shop would have its own account. You would need to have Basen give you authorization to manage the account, then you could move the funds around however you like, and cash out directly."

Reid rubbed his chin. It seemed like it wasn't a terrible idea, but he didn't see too much benefit. Basen's vision was to help people find things they could use to improve themselves or fulfill their dreams. Reid wasn't sure selling items to other merchants matched that ideal. Then again, they were desperate.

"You think this will help us with sales?"

Kenagavis tilted a hand back and forth. "It may help, but it might be more indirect. You want people to know what the Immaculate Collection is. Early on, the more people who know, the better. Word of mouth is an excellent way to get business, and many merchants are fond of talking."

With that, Kenagavis excused himself, needing to get home to "tend to his rambunctious cat," in his words. After looking over the wanted item notices and finding none he could help with, Reid headed home. He had plans to make. He hoped what he had in mind would be enough, but the next few days would determine the fate of the Immaculate Collection.