The display case is a customer filter, not decoration: what you put in it decides the type of customer who walks in that day. Stage it before you raise the shutter, because stock is committed at that moment and any change you make afterwards only takes effect tomorrow.
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Probably Stolen display case guide: buyer bait vs seller bait
Merchandise in the case acts as buyer bait and steers the clientele. Neon-style props instead act as seller bait, drawing vendors who can supply the shop.
| What you stage | Who it pulls in |
|---|---|
Food or berries | Food buyers, plus restocking sellers |
Household goods | Household traffic |
Water-related goods such as jugs | Customers looking for water |
Hardware | People seeking arming or repair goods |
Cigarettes | Cigarette sellers, including chances to meet dock fakes |
Wine, verified water, ingots | Buyers for turning existing inventory into cash |
Neon signs and similar props | Sellers bringing grapes, jugs or junk |
The point is to choose a clientele the shop can actually serve. Match the bait to your inspection capability: cigarette bait produces fakes, rare goods may cause you to overpay without the right handbook, and unverified water creates liability.
The case is a filter, not your only shelf
Keep food on the grocery shelf even when the case carries something else, because empty food shelves still wound attractiveness. The case filters traffic while the shelves maintain overall appeal — one without the other leaves you either busy or popular but not solvent.
Raising the shutter and calling the next customer are two separate controls, and the display case is on your left. Every morning: stage, open, then serve.
The rest of your stock is not in the case. The shop inventory page covers the surfaces it does live on and which of them are vulnerable overnight.
Keep stolen goods concealed
Stolen and contraband goods should stay hidden, because displaying them invites Security scrutiny and weapons are particularly likely to trigger inspections. Patch 48.3.12 closed the old tactic of briefly displaying contraband, transferring it into a smuggler bay before an inspection and banking the Security reputation that came with it — so concealment no longer buys standing.
Move contraband into the smuggler bay before you open if Security could inspect. The underground market guide covers licences, the hiding rules and what a raid actually costs.
Two patch changes worth knowing
Patch 48.3.10 disabled the case on day one when the tutorial is enabled, so that it cannot desync the Mentor sequence; normal use begins on day two. Patch 48.3.12 is the contraband change above. Treat any capacity, slot count or expansion cost you meet as build-specific and read it off your own HUD.