Bartering

patchwork_cat

Just did a quick search and I couldn't find a thread on this.

We are re-flooring our bathroom and our chosen lino is £26 per sq.m. locally with £45 fitting, but £13 sq.m on line. Now I would rather pay a local independent business and keep the money locally, but I am averse to paying double!

It occurred to me to try and barter and at least perhaps to get free fitting thrown in.

What have you acheived bartering and any tips.

molthedoll

i always barter wherever i can

its in my blood

i got a free 3 year warranty fr my oh's printer when he went to purchase it

i got all the clothes for my wedding reduced - the whole family's and oh's family as well

i also got reductions on all the electrical equipment for my 1st house reducd by bartering

flooring also reduced

as well as the cost of my new car

if i were you i would go in with the print out from the website and ask them what the best deal would be that they could do for you

later tell them that somone else has quoted you x price would they be abl to match - flatter them a bit local co, would rather trade with them etc

if they don't budge at all then don't purchase with them

patchwork_cat

This is what we need Mol! What have you got and how did you do it? Excellent.

Always try and barter on cars, but I don't think I am very good!!

Have bartered on a TV before and got free teletext -yes that long ago!

Matt.D

I always barter where I think there's a chance of getting a discount, but you need to know when, where and how. i.e. you don't barter in a Tesco - the price you see is almost certainly the price you pay. However if you're buying a laptop and perhaps they've only got one left, but it's the last they'll have, you could always ask if they'll knock a bit off. Same with other ex-display items (although I never buy ex-display myself), as it's the last one they want to get it out of the door asap, to make room for more stock. Head office or the buying department would have built the price of the store having to have a display model into the ticket price of the ones already sold, so think of it as being paid for and worth whatever they can get for it - 100% profit to the store. They'll knock 20% easily.

Joe Blogs Ltd might be slightly different and you must realise that unlike Tesco they will operate in a very different way. Margins will more likely be tighter (or conversely they might be a lot higher in which case you will have a much better chance at knocking them down a bit). I used to work for a retailer where we'd price items up by £10 which gave us room to negotiate when customers wanted a discount. So make sure you are armed with the RRP and the best deal you've seen online or elsewhere, beforehand.

Cash isn't always king, but it can help. If it's an independent and if it's something you don't want or need a receipt for, you'll get 15% off immediately (or Vat equivalent). Morally and legally very wrong, but....

If you're planning on purchasing something using finance, forget bartering. The cost of the finance to the shop is too great to pass on a discount to you as well. If you're feeling lucky, try the haggle first and once you've settled on a price that you're happy with, then request what they'd be prepared to do on interest free option only, other finance options are too costly.

Finally, don't be afraid to walk away. Don't feel embarrassed into a deal because they've not offered what they want and now you feel like a tight wad. Do the deal because it's right for you. If you walk away at a critical phase (perhaps they're desperate for a sale) they might offer you something better again. Keep going until you've got what you want.

My father used to work for that well known PC retailer and they're only interested in selling you an extended warranty. That’s what the company survives on. If they're having a particularly bad day, you might walk away with a warranty "worth" £200 for nowt. I’m not saying the warranty is worth £200, but you need to realise that’s where the company makes it’s money and on things like TVs, Computers, iPods, Wiis ect, the margins are so low (probably less than 10% in a lot of cases) that expecting a discount is just a dream.

Try it with a retailer you have absolutely no intention of buying something from. You don’t even have to accept the deal. Tell them you’ll think about it and if they say it’s today only, well so what. You got to beat the salesman or his manager

patchwork_cat

As an ex VAT inspector Matt I didn't read part of your above post!!!

Matt.D

This is a practice I've heard about, but never knowingly used or approve of