Businesses & Hobbies – Second Time’s The Charm For The Sims Team’s Deep Dive!

Last Friday was supposed to be our first in-depth look at The Sims 4 Businesses & Hobbies Expansion Pack in the form of a developer livestream. However, due to a power outage at Maxis’ studio in Redwood City California (Or was it the Landgraab Power Company?) the live stream was rescheduled to today, Monday, March 3rd. Let’s take a look at the developer’s insights into the pack, its creation, and inspiration! If you haven’t already watched it you can find the Livestream below.

Nordhaven – A Scandinavian Business Hub

At the start of February, we were treated to the first look at the new Scandinavian-inspired world coming with Businesses & Hobbies: Nordhaven. Mersea and Scott have helpfully clarified that it is pronounced “Nord-H-aah-ven” with an emphasis on the ‘ahh; sound. However, this is just the local pronunciation so don’t worry content creators if you feel like you may be getting it wrong. Nordhaven is home to 12 new lots – one particular lot has had the community excited since the first reveal, ‘New Harbor Park’ created by Danish creator Laireen35! Check out the build below!

Inspiration

Art Director Eva gave us some insight into the inspiration behind Nordhaven. The world is primarily based on Scandinavian cities such as Stockholm in Sweden, Copenhagen in Denmark, and Oslo in Norway. Eva also went on to say that there are also small elements of London, Berlin, and Amsterdam thrown into the mix. The Scandinavian inspiration does not stop at the world design as Eva went on to explain later in the stream that much of the Build-Buy catalogue, as well as the Create a Sim items, are inspired by the region too!

New Collections

With a new world comes new collectables. That’s right, there are two new collections with Businesses & Hobbies: Nordhaven Bike Parts and Trashley Certified Art. The latter connects to the new Shady NPC Trashley (Who is definitely not three racoons in a trenchcoat!) More on him in a bit.

Meetups

Similar to past worlds, Nordhaven includes its own set of world events called Meetups! These meetups focus on different hobbies ranging from writing to food and painting to exercise. At these meetups you will be able to meet Sims with relevant traits to the hobby, as well as matching skills in those activities. These meetups seem to be the perfect place to find new employees for your business!

Running a Business – Turning Passion Into Cash

The senior game designer Scott started the stream by dropping a mind-blowing figure! With every possible business activity available (with just base game and Businesses & Hobbies) the total number of configurations is 2.2 Billion! Yes, that is Billion with a ‘B’! These combinations are made up of 76 different activities, and even more if you own other Expansion, Game, and Stuff packs!

Classes & Lectures

Classes and Lectures are two types of events you can run as a business owner, or attend as a customer. Classes are goal-based, and you can attain bronze, silver, or gold depending on how well your Sim has done in class, or how well you have taught one. Lectures on the other hand are free for Sims to attend and allow your business-minded Sims to pass their skills on to others. These lectures can be held on your home lot for those you know, at your business, or on other community lots.

Visiting Neighbours

If you wish to visit another household that lives on a Small Business Residential lot then you are given a choice. You can choose between visiting the household as you would with a regular residential lot, or visiting their business!

Burglar Integration

Let’s not forget the latest NPC to be added to The Sims 4 via an update: The Burglar! Burglars will visit your Small Business Residential lots as your Sims sleep, similar to how they would a regular Residential lot. Be sure to place the Alertz Burglar Alarm on your business property to catch these sneaky thieves in the act!

Business Earnings

At the end of a business day when you close your business you will be given an end-of-day report. This will detail all of your cash flow and your net profit. The Net profit is calculated by adding your ticket sales (if applicable), retail sales, service revenue, and tip jar, and will subtract the business opening fee (§75 for all businesses), and employee wages. You will also be given customer feedback which can give you an insight into what you are doing right, and what you could do to improve your business.

Build-Buy – Move Over Ikea

Art Director Eva gave us an overview of the Build and Buy mod options available with Businesses & Hobbies. She tells us that they wanted to strike a balance between traditional and modern designs that are often found throughout Scandinavia. The Nordic inspiration really shines through with the sleek minimalism blending perfectly with the traditional brick and wood designs.

There is a wide variety of objects to choose from to decorate your businesses. The team wanted to give players the choice between neutral tones, and colourful patterns with almost every item from curtain to sofa to wardrobe! An addition to Businesses & Hobbies that we have previously seen with packs such as Dine Out and Cats & Dogs is business signage. This can be mixed and matched and includes logos that match the logos you can choose in the business configuration menus. These decals can be placed on a variety of signage to advertise your storefront.

Set Up Shop Digital Content

Mersea and Scott also showcased some of the new Digital Content that is available if you purchase The Sims 4 Businesses & Hobbies Expansion Pack before April 16th. This set includes a new statue, a display that can be used to sell crafted goods, and a kintsugi-inspired lamp.

CAS – New Clothes, Hair, and Tattoos!

Lead Designer Xènia gave us a look at some of the new Create-A-Sim options coming with Business & Hobbies. Similarly to the Build-Buy Catalogue, the CAS selection is heavily inspired by Scandinavian fashion, including lots of hats, coats, and warm sweaters to help your Sims survive the cold Northern European climate!

There has been a focus in recent packs to give us both clean and dirty variants of clothing, and Businesses & Hobbies is no different. The team wanted the catalogue to feel lived in and like it is being worn by hard-working potters, candy makers, and crafts people.

Tattoos

With the recent update, all players were given the ability to sort tattoos by location, and Businesses & Hobbies go a step further by allowing you to layer tattoos on top of one another. The new tattoos included have taken inspiration from a variety of backgrounds including Celtic cultures from Ireland and Scotland. The stencil tool can allow you to have a guide when painting tattoos on Sims, or you can go it alone with freehand drawing tools allowing you to pick from a selection of brushes and colours. Mersea mentioned how players with early access have been using the tool to add custom birthmarks and beauty marks to their Sims.

The Sims 4 Business and Hobbies Expansion Pack launches on March 6, 2025, for PC, Mac, and consoles. Follow the Sims Community for more updates on the upcoming Businesses & Hobbies release!