Join the new world

-== CONTENTS ==-
- Introduction
- Industries
- Requirements
- Research Research Research
- Running / Managing your company
- Pitfalls
- Helpful Tools and Links
- Tips from some of the BEST!
- Recap

-== INTRODUCTION ==-
Most of us have wondered about starting up a company in eRepublik, but do not have the knowledge to do so. We are afraid to invest gold in something we are unsure of, but just like in RL, with the proper research you can feel more at ease. I've taken the hassle out of most of the work by talking to three of our country's entrepreneurs. Hamilton Moore, Mashaka Kulala and Rexdeus. Please note that most of the work below is information I collected from them by questionnaire. I have only summarized the info, so all thumbs up goes to them.

-== INDUSTRIES ==-
In eRepublik, there are currently 2 types of company categories available, RAW Companies and MANUFACTURING Companies. eRepublik is in the process of adding more industries which can affect the economy, but in this guide, I am only focusing on the current industries. As a guideline, Grain is easiest to start up and run, then Iron, then Food, and Weapons being the most difficult.

Raw Companies
Raw companies are generally easier to work with and requires less work. They are the companies that produce raw material that MANUFACTURING Companies use to produce their products. There are currently 2 companies to choose from in this category:



GRAIN - Produces grain used by FOOD Companies
IRON - Produces iron used by WEAPONS Companies

Manufacturing Companies
These companies are a bit harder to manage and also requires more time/work. They use RAW materials to produce their products. There are currently 2 companies to choose from in this category:



FOOD - Produces food used to increase wellness
WEAPONS - Produces weapons used by soldiers

-== REQUIREMENTS ==-
To start a company you need to be at least level 12 and have at least 40 Gold available. 20 Gold is to buy the company, and the other 20 Gold is used for capital. Although its possible to get by and start doing good business with the minimum, its advised to have enough money on hand to pay 3 days' wages and enough to take care of your own daily needs. Also, more should be invested if its a MANUFACTURING company because of its raw requirements. This is the reason RAW Companies are easier to run since it does not require any input other than labor.

As a general guideline to start a:
RAW Company - at least 46 Gold
MANUFACTURING Company - at least 60 Gold

-== RESEARCH RESEARCH RESEARCH ==-
Before jumping into the fire, do the necessary research to avoid burning your fingers. For example, some companies, like WEAPONS Companies are dependent on wars, so knowing what is going to happen or keeping track of whats going on will be necessary to successfully run a weapons company. While doing your research, do some number crunching and simulate your company that you will be running to have an idea of how it will run. Also remember to bring in the Q Level you want to produce. There are a couple of things you can do research about:



Market
Do research on the market by monitoring the demand of the product you want to produce in your chosen country. Monitor product prices as well as wages.

TAX and Import TAX
Make sure you know what the current tax percentage is so you can bring it into your calculations. If you plan on extending your business internationally by buying an export license, do research on the country of interest's prices, import taxes etc.

Productivity
Do calculations on what productivity your company will require in order to make a profit. There are lots of tools to help you do this, but most of the time, the numbers are outdated, so double check when using one. You may even want to create your own.

-== RUNNING / MANAGING YOUR COMPANY ==-
Once you have started your company, there are a couple of things you need to do to run it. Some you need to do daily others you only need to do once in a while. First thing to do is to buy raw material. This only applies if you started a MANUFACTURING Company. If you started a RAW Material company, you can just start posting job offers. Be sure to calculate your wages, required employee skill, wellness and selling price before hand. Advertising can also be used to post job openings.

You may also want to write a letter(PM) to new employees welcoming them and telling them about the company. You can even give links to beginner guides / Department of Mentorship if you notice the citizen is relatively new to eRepublik. Another thing you can do is to give them an idea of their salary adjustments in coming days if they work at high wellness everyday. Also on the subject of increases, be sure to adjust a employees wage if they have leveled up.

To stay competitive, keep an eye on the market daily by checking the selling price of other, and adjust accordingly. Same applies to employee wages. An employee will not hesitate to quit and move to another company with higher wages, so check and adjust wages daily too. In the same sense, do not hesitate to fire and employee who constantly works at low wellness. Its just proper to PM them asking them to work at higher wellness, but if they keep on working at low wellness, fire them. There are lots of other who would be willing to work at higher wellness. Reward those that work at high wellness constantly.

Keep current with your country's and the worlds events. Wars and peace may influence prices.

-== PITFALLS ==-



Starting up a company can be risky, and if you haven't done proper research, you may invest in an industry that turns out to be less profitable, or your funds could be tied up. Most companies open and close because the person starting it up didn't think the numbers through. They didn't consider that the country has a labor shortage, or that their company is in an industry where because of low import tax, foreign goods are undercutting local goods, or any one of a 100 other things.

Make sure that you have sufficient funds and raw materials to keep your workers working till you next log on. Otherwise your workers will move to other companies and you will have to struggle to win them back.

Placing job offers too high on the labor market just to get the employees might result badly because you can not sell your product low enough to be competitive. Do not sell for lower than you absolutely have to either, you will soon find out you are working so hard and your products are selling, but you simply do not make money, thats when your price has fallen too low and your costs are hurting you. Rather close down the company and sell your products in stock than to stay open and you simply accumulate more and more while you still have to pay your staff but not selling enough to cover your costs.

-== HELPFUL TOOLS AND LINKS ==-
There are a couple of tools out there that can help you on your way. Keep in mind that sometimes they are outdated so double check.

Company Simulator
Exchange Rates

If you want to wait for the new industries, you might want to keep up with latest changes. The following links have more info:

Changes Changes Changes
New Types of Raw Materials Discovered

-== TIPS FROM SOME OF THE BEST! ==-



Hamilton Moore
The economy module is an ever changing beast. I've lost probably over a 1000 gold on it, and will lose more when they get rid of defense system companies (1000 gold wrapped up in 1 company). But unlike a lot of the other parts of this game, at least it stays interesting. You'll be in for a great challenge to keep up with this fast paced, intellectually challenging market. But if you have the CEO in you, then go out there and prosper! eSA needs clever and strong willed business leaders to really enrich not just themselves, but also their country and their fellow citizens. Just as a final point. I am able to pay the best wages in the country, offer the best product, and yet still make a profit. Not all the time, but it is possible. So think things through at the start and my hopes for your success!

Mashaka Kulala
Do some research, and know what you’re getting yourself in to. PM’ing people for advice – even strangers (say, whoever owns the company you work for) – can be very helpful.

Rexdeus
You do not need to be a business fundi to start your own company. The best way to learn is to play, so start a company and take it slow. You will find that soon you will be experimenting with different options to give you the competitive edge. Most of all enjoy it! It has to be fun. If you do not succeed in running your own company, think of helping someone else or start a partnership, you might supply the start up funds and have the other player manage the company.

-== RECAP ==-
So lets put everything into a short list of things to do when starting up a company:

1. Make sure you have enough Gold
2. Choose Industry and Market
3. Research Them
4. Create Company
5. Convert Extra Gold into Currency
6. Buy raw materials if needed
7. Add Jobs
8. Constantly Monitor market and employees
9. Adjust wages/prices where needed

Now that you have a starting point, and much needed info, get out your notepad and start researching. You might find you are eRepublik's next billionaire.



Thanks again to Hamilton Moore, Mashaka Kulala and Rexdeus for their valuable input.

SuperSlax
Director of Education