The Job of a Merchant

The job of a merchant, superimportant in the evolution of western culture, is to help shoppers decide what they want. Some merchants are completely agnostic about what they sell; others have point of view but don't own anything. When you're selling your own stuff, you make a slightly different decision as a merchant because if people's careers are on the line, it's likely you're going to promote your thing more. This conflict of interest causes just about every merchant to fail.