4 replies to this topic

[bonanova]

Johnny Dangerously spotted a sale on small pets for his store that he couldn't resist. Giddy with visions of profit, he bought a certain number of hamsters and half that many pairs of parakeets. He paid $2 each for the hamsters and $1 for each parakeet. On every pet he [carefully] stuck a retail price that was a 10 per cent mark-up over what he paid for it.

After all but seven of the creatures had been sold, Johnny found that he had taken in for them an amount of money exactly equal to what he had originally paid for all of them. Wow. How cool was that. His potential profit was represented by the combined retail value of the seven remaining animals. What was this value?

[Rob_G]

Spoiler for His profit will be

$9.90

[plasmid]

I got a different answer. But just to be sure about one important point

Spoiler for

Is it possible to buy half of a pair of parakeets, or would the pet salesperson have given Johnny the stinkeye for making such a request?

[superprismatic]

Spoiler for So as to avoid splitting a pair of parakeets

I think 13.20 is correct. This corresponds to buying 44 of each animal and selling 42 parakeets and 39 hamsters.

[bonanova]

Spoiler for His profit will be

$9.90

Nope, sorry.

I got a different answer. But just to be sure about one important point

Spoiler for

Is it possible to buy half of a pair of parakeets, or would the pet salesperson have given Johnny the stinkeye for making such a request?

You noted a necessary part of the puzzle. Did you get SP?'s answer below?

Spoiler for So as to avoid splitting a pair of parakeets

I think 13.20 is correct. This corresponds to buying 44 of each animal and selling 42 parakeets and 39 hamsters.

Bingo.