The latest expansion for The Sims 4, titled *Business & Leisure*, allows players to create and manage their own small businesses in the vibrant community of Nordhaven. Players can choose business types, hire staff, and engage customers while building their reputation. New skills like Pottery and Tattooing enhance creativity, and players can also explore community activities and craft unique family recipes. The expansion promotes entrepreneurship and creativity within the game, offering a dynamic gameplay experience.
Start Your Own Small Business
Recently unveiled, the latest expansion for The Sims 4 emphasizes creativity by allowing players to establish their own small business ventures. Titled Business & Leisure, this expansion invites you to explore Nordhaven, a vibrant community bustling with entrepreneurial spirit. Every residential lot in this new world can host a small business, making it possible to operate your enterprise right from your backyard.
In the build mode, you have the flexibility to designate areas for staff, customers, or family members by selecting specific rooms within your lot. If you prefer, you can also set up your small business on a different lot. When visiting a residential lot that features a small business, you will need to choose whether to enter as a “guest” at the home or as a “customer” at the business.
Creating your small business is a straightforward process: head to the “Owned Establishments” panel located at the bottom right of the screen and select the option to Create Small Business. A creation fee of 750 simoleons is required, which must be paid upfront. Each Sim can manage only one small business at a time, but any household member aged teenage or older can start their own. So, if your household consists of eight Sims, that means eight potential small businesses can be launched!
Once you’ve set the foundation, it’s time to delve into the details of your new business. You’ll choose a catchy name, craft a brief description, select a logo from various designs, and determine whether to operate from your residential lot or elsewhere. Finally, you’ll decide on the type of business you want to establish. Options range from bars and tattoo parlors to pottery studios and nightclubs—there are more than a dozen exciting choices! After selecting the business type, you’ll outline the activities available, with over 70 options to pick from, allowing a maximum of five activities like serving drinks, playing music, or creating pottery.
From Pottery to Tattooing: Your Business Awaits
After finalizing your business plan, the next steps involve managing staff, assigning tasks, and selecting uniforms if you plan to hire employees right away. You can choose to start your business solo and bring on staff later, with a maximum of three employees allowed. A financial overview tab will help you monitor your business’s performance.
With your small business set up and ready to welcome customers, remember that each opening incurs a fee of 75 simoleons. It’s time to greet patrons, handle transactions, and grow your venture. You can also sell your small business through the same panel used for its creation. As your business flourishes, selling it could yield substantial profits.
Every interaction you have with customers will impact your business’s reputation. Strive to please them, as unlocking different reputation levels (there are five) grants you advantage points that can be redeemed for rewards to enhance your business. Choose your rewards wisely, as they directly affect your reputation and overall success.
The Entrepreneurial Journey
To assist you in your new role as a business owner, consider pursuing the aspiration Esteemed Entrepreneur, which will guide your business management journey. Alternatively, you can opt for the aspiration Master Mentor, enabling you to learn from others and impart your skills to fellow Sims. With proficiency in a particular skill, you can share your knowledge through the Leisure Whiteboard “Long Live Sharing” available in build mode, allowing you to host or attend social events that offer objectives and rewards.
Both teens and adults with a skill level of five or higher can host these workshops, and participants will experience accelerated skill growth. For certain skills, specific objects (such as an easel for painting) must be placed near the whiteboard. Define the workshop area while building, and you can earn simoleons while sharing your expertise.
Crafting and Creativity
If you have a whiteboard in your small business, you can lead workshops personally or delegate this task to employees with the necessary skills, provided you’ve set them up correctly. Speaking of skills, two exciting new additions have been introduced: the Pottery skill allows you to create unique ceramics and sell your creations, while the Tattoo skill enables you to unlock various designs and even craft your own tattoos in Create a Sim mode. You can share your designs with others through the gallery and discover new outfits and hairstyles.
The neighborhoods of Gammelvik and Iverstad are rich with group activities. Each day, you can engage in skill-building activities within the community and learn from a mentor. A dedicated panel will keep you informed about upcoming events, those currently happening, and you can even enable notifications so you won’t miss out.
Lastly, the expansion introduces family recipes. You can craft new recipes by selecting a refrigerator, stove, or Grandma’s Family Recipes cookbook and choosing Family Recipes. Start with a base recipe appropriate for the cooking skill of your Sim, select a secret ingredient from 23 options, and add a special touch that influences the mood of the Sim who enjoys the meal. For instance, this could enhance feelings of happiness or inspiration.
Be mindful that each special touch can only be used once, and if you wish to apply it to a new recipe, it will replace any previous one. Don’t forget to name your culinary creation! You can pass down these unique recipes to other Sims, provided they share a strong relationship and possess the necessary cooking skills.