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Thoughts on price negotiations/haggling in store?

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  • grungebobgrungebob Frets: 3346
    I only ever ask if I’m prepared to buy it today. 
    I think of a value I’d be happy paying and aim to get there, if we get close that’s when I ask about strings etc , but always be polite. 

    Dont even start haggling if you’re not going to buy it, that’s just a waste of everyone’s time. 
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  • robgilmorobgilmo Frets: 3605
    Last time I was in PMT most guitars had ask for best price on them, it was a bit off putting as I couldnt see a shop price on them .

    A Deuce , a Tele and a cup of tea.
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  • NickNick Frets: 98
    Nick said:
    Assuming cash or card payment...

    Credit cards attract something like a 3% charge to the store so if you pay debit card you can ask for that knocked off the price as well. As long as you're happy forgoing the security of paying by credit. 
    True, but many stores consider the costs and time of cash handling to be a negative. Depends where you shop! 
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  • teradaterada Frets: 5114
    edited March 2018
    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.

    I always haggle in guitar shops. Funnily enough my best effort was with my R8, which I negotiated 20.5% off of the sticker price, but that really was a one off - not sure I'd be able to do that often. Usually I'd aim for 5% off small items, and scale that % up as items get more expensive (they usually have larger margins on these).

    But it really depends, I have tried it in other shops too. I've had some success in John Lewis on sale items, in ikea on their 'bargain area', and some other retail chains, but it is much more difficult. 

     In guitar shops though it seems that they expect it. I usually just start by asking their best price, and seeing where it goes from there.

    The retailer exists to take your money, and you are under no obligation to give it to them. The power is with the buyer.

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  • midlifecrisismidlifecrisis Frets: 2343
    Nick said:
    Nick said:
    Assuming cash or card payment...

    Credit cards attract something like a 3% charge to the store so if you pay debit card you can ask for that knocked off the price as well. As long as you're happy forgoing the security of paying by credit. 
    True, but many stores consider the costs and time of cash handling to be a negative. Depends where you shop! 
    most shops these days only pay about 1.7% for credit card payment, and banks often charge close to that for handling cash payments in. so there isnt really much benefit to the shop to taking cash as opposed to cards (unless they are being naughty and not putting it through the books) which is pretty unlikely.
    By asking for a discount for cash, and the shop giving it to you, more than likely they would of given you discount anyway even with a card. after all the art of good negotiation is to let the buyer or seller believe they have a got a better deal even if they havnt.
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  • teradaterada Frets: 5114
    midlifecrisis said:
    Nick said:
    Nick said:
    Assuming cash or card payment...

    Credit cards attract something like a 3% charge to the store so if you pay debit card you can ask for that knocked off the price as well. As long as you're happy forgoing the security of paying by credit. 
    True, but many stores consider the costs and time of cash handling to be a negative. Depends where you shop! 
    most shops these days only pay about 1.7% for credit card payment, and banks often charge close to that for handling cash payments in. so there isnt really much benefit to the shop to taking cash as opposed to cards (unless they are being naughty and not putting it through the books) which is pretty unlikely.
    By asking for a discount for cash, and the shop giving it to you, more than likely they would of given you discount anyway even with a card. after all the art of good negotiation is to let the buyer or seller believe they have a got a better deal even if they havnt.

    True. Although the one area that is quite common with the larger shops is that they often offer 0% finance on items over a given value. The finance isn't really 0%, but worked into the price of the item. So if you are paying by credit/debit card or cash, they should be able to reduce the price as you are not then taking advantage of the finance portion of the items price.
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  • DougCodaDougCoda Frets: 642
    edited March 2018
    Nick said:
    Nick said:
    Assuming cash or card payment...

    Credit cards attract something like a 3% charge to the store so if you pay debit card you can ask for that knocked off the price as well. As long as you're happy forgoing the security of paying by credit. 
    True, but many stores consider the costs and time of cash handling to be a negative. Depends where you shop! 
    most shops these days only pay about 1.7% for credit card payment, and banks often charge close to that for handling cash payments in. so there isnt really much benefit to the shop to taking cash as opposed to cards (unless they are being naughty and not putting it through the books) which is pretty unlikely.
    By asking for a discount for cash, and the shop giving it to you, more than likely they would of given you discount anyway even with a card. after all the art of good negotiation is to let the buyer or seller believe they have a got a better deal even if they havnt.
    Correct,cash is actually a pain in the butt and slightly more expensive to bank than cards.
    It never hurts to ask but be polite, polite is good, pushy and aggressive is no fun, takes the joy out of the day...
    Certain brands have tiny margins so you're unlikely to get a lot off if anything as we're all down to the bone trying to match online bunfights so you're more likely to get some bits thrown in.
    We are more likely to do deals on gear that we've had for a while, stuff we've just listed, especially used items less so, in fact on freshly listed secondhand gear then the answer will invariably be no as we price this so that people feel tempted to press the buy button..
    Back in the 90's when Machinehead was just up the road in Hitchin we'd get loads of people travelling to both shops and trying to get us to beat each others prices, one day we'd shown someone a Les Paul and the customer then went over to Machinehead to try and better our deal, when the guy asked for a deal and mentioned our price Jeffs response was "well go f**k off and buy it there then" Classic Jeff...
    One last thing, don't haggle down to the "best price" without trade ins and then try and throw one in in at the end and want top money for it...That's not going to happen
    Hope that helps...Happy negotiating 
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  • meltedbuzzboxmeltedbuzzbox Frets: 10339
    DougCoda said:
    Nick said:
    Nick said:
    Assuming cash or card payment...

    Credit cards attract something like a 3% charge to the store so if you pay debit card you can ask for that knocked off the price as well. As long as you're happy forgoing the security of paying by credit. 
    True, but many stores consider the costs and time of cash handling to be a negative. Depends where you shop! 
    most shops these days only pay about 1.7% for credit card payment, and banks often charge close to that for handling cash payments in. so there isnt really much benefit to the shop to taking cash as opposed to cards (unless they are being naughty and not putting it through the books) which is pretty unlikely.
    By asking for a discount for cash, and the shop giving it to you, more than likely they would of given you discount anyway even with a card. after all the art of good negotiation is to let the buyer or seller believe they have a got a better deal even if they havnt.
    Correct,cash is actually a pain in the butt and slightly more expensive to bank than cards.
    It never hurts to ask but be polite, polite is good, pushy and aggressive is no fun, takes the joy out of the day...
    Certain brands have tiny margins so you're unlikely to get a lot off if anything as we're all down to the bone trying to match online bunfights so you're more likely to get some bits thrown in.
    We are more likely to do deals on gear that we've had for a while, stuff we've just listed, especially used items less so, in fact on freshly listed secondhand gear then the answer will invariably be no as we price this so that people feel tempted to press the buy button..
    Back in the 90's when Machinehead was just up the road in Hitchin we'd get loads of people travelling to both shops and trying to get us to beat each others prices, one day we'd shown someone a Les Paul and the customer then went over to Machinehead to try and better our deal, when the guy asked for a deal and mentioned our price Jeffs response was "well go f**k off and buy it there then" Classic Jeff...
    One last thing, don't haggle down to the "best price" without trade ins and then try and throw one in in at the end and want top money for it...That's not going to happen
    Hope that helps...Happy negotiating 
    to be fair the last time I was in your store you was an absolute gent to deal with when it came to payment. I think you even knocked money off before I asked. 
    The Bigsby was the first successful design of what is now called a whammy bar or tremolo arm, although vibrato is the technically correct term for the musical effect it produces. In standard usage, tremolo is a rapid fluctuation of the volume of a note, while vibrato is a fluctuation in pitch. The origin of this nonstandard usage of the term by electric guitarists is attributed to Leo Fender, who also used the term “vibrato” to refer to what is really a tremolo effect.
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  • siremoonsiremoon Frets: 1524
    crunchman said:
    siremoon said:
    Fuengi said:
    The bigger retailers like Andertons or PMT I'll always try to get a bit of discount. Always check other web prices as they will match them, also if the item is offered online with free delivery I'll get delivery cost taken off.

    Andertons have never price matched for me when I've asked them.  I guess they must hate me :'(
    When I've dealt with them in the past, they have refused to match non-UK retailers like Thomann.  I think they will match normal UK prices, but not promotional prices.
    I've never asked them to match Thomann.  The two most recent refusals I experienced were for prices at GAK and Guitar Guitar.
    “He is like a man with a fork in a world of soup.” - Noel Gallagher
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  • meltedbuzzboxmeltedbuzzbox Frets: 10339
    Gak have always matched Thomann and bax whenever I have asked. Sometimes they have made me aware of cheaper prices at other places too that they will then match.
    Always found them to be top notch
    The Bigsby was the first successful design of what is now called a whammy bar or tremolo arm, although vibrato is the technically correct term for the musical effect it produces. In standard usage, tremolo is a rapid fluctuation of the volume of a note, while vibrato is a fluctuation in pitch. The origin of this nonstandard usage of the term by electric guitarists is attributed to Leo Fender, who also used the term “vibrato” to refer to what is really a tremolo effect.
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  • DougCodaDougCoda Frets: 642
    edited March 2018
    DougCoda said:
    Nick said:
    Nick said:
    Assuming cash or card payment...

    Credit cards attract something like a 3% charge to the store so if you pay debit card you can ask for that knocked off the price as well. As long as you're happy forgoing the security of paying by credit. 
    True, but many stores consider the costs and time of cash handling to be a negative. Depends where you shop! 
    most shops these days only pay about 1.7% for credit card payment, and banks often charge close to that for handling cash payments in. so there isnt really much benefit to the shop to taking cash as opposed to cards (unless they are being naughty and not putting it through the books) which is pretty unlikely.
    By asking for a discount for cash, and the shop giving it to you, more than likely they would of given you discount anyway even with a card. after all the art of good negotiation is to let the buyer or seller believe they have a got a better deal even if they havnt.
    Correct,cash is actually a pain in the butt and slightly more expensive to bank than cards.
    It never hurts to ask but be polite, polite is good, pushy and aggressive is no fun, takes the joy out of the day...
    Certain brands have tiny margins so you're unlikely to get a lot off if anything as we're all down to the bone trying to match online bunfights so you're more likely to get some bits thrown in.
    We are more likely to do deals on gear that we've had for a while, stuff we've just listed, especially used items less so, in fact on freshly listed secondhand gear then the answer will invariably be no as we price this so that people feel tempted to press the buy button..
    Back in the 90's when Machinehead was just up the road in Hitchin we'd get loads of people travelling to both shops and trying to get us to beat each others prices, one day we'd shown someone a Les Paul and the customer then went over to Machinehead to try and better our deal, when the guy asked for a deal and mentioned our price Jeffs response was "well go f**k off and buy it there then" Classic Jeff...
    One last thing, don't haggle down to the "best price" without trade ins and then try and throw one in in at the end and want top money for it...That's not going to happen
    Hope that helps...Happy negotiating 
    to be fair the last time I was in your store you was an absolute gent to deal with when it came to payment. I think you even knocked money off before I asked. 


    Must have been going on holiday the next day..Or one of those days when someone didn't try to draw me into an argument about relics...
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