Thoughts on price negotiations/haggling in store?

badlydrawnbanjo

I love a good haggle (I've actually trained in it in my work). Always be realistic and be prepared to walk away if it's not the deal you want. 

equalsql

AlexO said:

Cash is king! Especially with the indies I've found! With the bigger stores they all pay a fee for the interest free finance which is often built into the price so if your paying there and then you can normally save a few quick on the higher value items.

When I used to manage a music store many moons ago it was quite common for punters to expect.. and get 10% discount when paying with cash. I myself once purchased a used Tascam 8080 for considerably less than what the shop owner wanted.
If I recall correctly the recorder was £1000 at the time and I offered him £800 cash for it. He refused outright, so I got the cash out of my pocket and laid it out on the counter in front of him. He called me a bastard (in a nice sort of way), grabbed the dosh and said 'OK money talks' and let me have the unit! 
Mind you this was before the days of the internet.

SteveRobinson

Freebird said:

axisus said: 

I can't haggle. It's not in my DNA. 

Try living in Asia or anywhere similar, you would get destroyed everytime you went shopping You even have to ask the price before you eat or drink anything, as the bill could miraculously triple in size!

I once haggled with a market stall trader in Shanghai and managed to talk the price up.

Octafish

I do always try a haggle, but doesn't seem to be so much room for reductions these days unless you're spending big bucks. The three guitar shops near me all have similar or identical prices which often match the cheapest online so I guess there's not much more they can discount. I've also had it mentioned that (supposedly) the profit margins on Fender gear is so tight there's no room for discount.

The two best haggles I've done were when I was 17 and I managed to get a new Squier Silver Series Strat down from £215 (already reduced a bit) to £185 by waving cash at the shop owner - I thought I was 'the boss' all day for that one. I also picked up a 2nd 1/2 size electric for my daughter last year. Was priced at £29, I thought I'd cheekily see if they'd knock a bit off as it had been in the shop for a bit. Got it for £20, plus a free set of strings

Funkfingers

AlexO said:

Cash is king!

This.

Many retailers, detecting that a customer might buy today in exchange for a shift on the price, are willing to strike a deal. A slightly reduced profit margin is preferable to no sale at all. 

Octafish said:

I thought I'd cheekily see if they'd knock a bit off as it had been in the shop for a bit.

Stock that is not shifting is where the bargains often lurk.

My nearest Fender dealer has a soft spot for their "short run" limited edition items. Unfortunately, the local clientele does not always share the dealer's tastes. My AVRI '62 Jaguar had been on the wall for approximately four years before I snaffled it up. 

rossi

Often I cant get a lower price on the main item but iIcan get throw ins like cases cheaper and cables,discount on a pedal  bought at the same time .Thats how I work it now .Buy an cheapish  amp or some thing ,get a cable thrown in ,Guitar maybe a  proper case cheaper or a decent strap thrown in .A more expensive item throw in pedal etc..It seems to work and they usually say yes .

Kebabkid

I always ask for their lowest/best price and if they can't lower the price for strict reasons, for example, I was told Fender and Gibson prices tend be firmly set amongst all stores with no movement on them (? if true), then they'll thrown in leads, strings etc

All they can say is 'No' but on one occasion, I got a very snooty answer which was "In this affable area, Sir, and based on the calibre of our clientele, we feel we do not need to lower our prices or price match as it's insulting".  A totally brilliant shop that I'd spent a lot of money in over the years and where the owners had been absolutely fantastic to me (and gave me fabulous deals) just got totally spoilt in its latter years but a couple of fucking cock-wombles that worked in there.

I digress - try it as shops often have margins they can play with and still make a profit. It all depends on how big a profit they want to make or if a sale is more important.

VimFuego

I take Luca Brasi in with me and make them an offer they can't refuse 

vincechu89

Thanks all, there are some really good tips here, I’m kind of glad that there seems to be a willingness of some stores to budge on price a little, now I just need to man up and try it! 

I hadn’t thought about asking for decent cases or pedals, but I suppose it makes sense on some higher priced guitars - thanks again everyone

Roland

Gagaryn said:

... be polite and be reasonable. 

badlydrawnbanjo said:

... be realistic and be prepared to walk away if it's not the deal you want. 

There’s nothing lost by asking for a lower price. Particularly if you can offer something in return, like buying a second copy or an additional item as well. Towards the end of an exhibition people would rather sell than pack it back into the van.

In some cultures haggling is a mark of respect. 

Gagaryn

Kebabkid said:

.., I was told Fender and Gibson prices tend be firmly set amongst all stores with no movement on them ...

No, I got a few hundred quid off of a Johnny Marr Jag not long after they were released.

Philly_Q

If I feel like I have a reasonably good rapport with the sales person I usually ask if there's any room for movement on the price, especially if it's expensive and there are similar things in the shop a bit cheaper.  It can't do any harm.

It's funny because I'd never dream of haggling anywhere other than a guitar shop.

RandallFlagg

I negotiate professionally and find business to business negotiations much more successful than the customer to business negotiations that I attempt. It's more likely that you can negotiate on used items as opposed to new.

I recently negotiated a £50,000 price reduction on a £248,000 proposal for some plant maintenance works we are planning with Siemens. I am not confident that I could get that percentage reduction on a new Gibson Custom Shop Les Paul.

prowla

Well, if you don't ask then you probably won't get.
You also have to be prepared to walk away if they won't negotiate.

TonyR

Philly_Q said:

It's funny because I'd never dream of haggling anywhere other than a guitar shop.

Not even on a new car?

I’ll haggle on second hand stuff and that’s generally where I buy most of my stuff these days but I have tried it at shops in the past with some success - sometimes discount, but more often than not extras thrown in - Currys have been good for this.

For some reason bartering doesn’t seem to go down too well at the supermarket checkout strangely...

midlifecrisis

in currys/pc world, if you ask the right person in there, they look on their computer teminal and all items have a second price column which is the max discount they can give if asked for. my experience recently, a £120 monitor for £104.

pmbomb

You can always ask. Business is business and everything is negotiable.

And as said, you can always ask for extras as well/instead. Retailers like that because a (theoretical) £20 value to you based on ticket price is more like a £10 cost to them based on their buy price.

Bigsby

Asking for discounts seems to be increasingly normal in lots of areas, not just guitars.

I've nearly always got a discount between £50 and £100, even on discounted guitars. The one that really surprised me last year was GG, selling a small batch of Yamaha SGs, down from £2,750 to £1,499. I called up, asked for the 'best price' on a P90 model, and got another £50 off. The sales assistant had to create and e-mail me a web link so I could place the order. They'd sold out the next day, so they can't have been desperate to shift them! These days it almost seems rude not to ask.

Voxman

midlifecrisis said:9

in currys/pc world, if you ask the right person in there, they look on their computer teminal and all items have a second price column which is the max discount they can give if asked for. my experience recently, a £120 monitor for £104.

+1. When my youngest daughter and I went to PC world to buy her a high spec Dell laptop I negotiated 5% off the laptop price, a half price external drive, a free laptop carry pouch, plus a free extended warranty - £899 for everything instead of £1049 saving £150. 

VimFuego

I once tried to pay my tax bill with cash and asked for a discount. Turns out HMRC don't haggle, but you can get plea bargain with CPS.