The Great 'Shops You Can Haggle In' Hunt

sophie12_2

Rules,
1 be nice,
2 speak to the manager,
3 give them a reason to discount it(display item, faulty, cheaper else where, paying cash, buying multiple items)
4 be persistent, in the end they will just give you discount to get rid of you or call security.
Always haggle on holidays, say it cheaper on the internet, teletext etc ask for room upgrades

New Cars Start at £2000 off as the basic and work your way down from there, go in at middle of the month when its quieter or just before christmas.
Offer to pay the manager a backhander to cover the loss of commission he will lose and tell him to give you the real best price.(this may be illegal).

Jessops do massive discounts

sallyholt

A month ago I went to the electrical department of the John Lewis Store in Solihull West Midlands ready to get a discount - after finding the item I required I asked what discount I would get for cash and was refused point blank "I'm not allowed to give any discount its not allowed" - I queried this as the employees are 'partners' in this private ltd co but he confirmed they do not do this. My question is having seen your website saying some one got £200 off a stove at John Lewis - is it that haggling is at the discretion of each individual store or department? If anyone knows this would be helpful.

Warrick

It's possible to get huge discounts in high street travel agents.

For my honeymoon, I had two travel agents quoting against each other, then went into Thomas Cook and showed them the lowest price, and they ended up (after a bit of friendly banter) taking another few hundred off and threw in a room upgrade..

I wound up getting the £8000 honeymoon (Kuoni's original price) for just over £6000.

blackr222

After reading Martin's advice recently about haggling for cash,I went to my local Co-op store for a new TV at £400. I spoke to the manager and asked her if she would give any discount for cash which I had in my pocket - she said no, which I wasn't too surprised at, but the reason she gave was 'If she put the item through the till at a lower price than marked, it would constitute THEFT. I still can't figure that out.

james_c90

I worked at Bhs as my first job and spent about 18 months there on most of the departments. Staff in most shops are usually happy to at least try and help you out. I would say my top tips would be:

1) Be NICE- the line "Oh! It hasn't got a price on, it must be free!" or "You HAVE to sell it to me at that price, its the LAW!" isn't the best way to start. And if you are saying it is the law- make sure you are right. We know the rules as well

2) Try and notice things wrong with an item- no matter how small. It is better for the shop to get rid of the item at a discount than to have it just sitting around unsold (look for pulls in clothes, missing buttons etc)

3) Take your mum/nan shopping. I turned into a right softie when someone old came in- "yeah have the bulbs for free, want me to take some money off that shade..."

4) Be a bit awkward. Say you went to another store who promised to order a pair of lamps in and only one arrived. You NEED a matching set, you designed your whole house around this lamp! Ask if there is a possibilty of a discount for the convenience.

5) Try and get served by someone who is a manger, or at least a bit switched on. At Bhs "Key Associates" and above can authorise discounts and price over-rides. Managers wear their own clothes but associates all wear the same uniform. They will probably start looking over when a customer starts making a fuss with another associate so ask to speak to them instead.

6) Go at quiet times (i.e. 7pm on a late night shopping evening, or early on a Saturday) when the staff are likely to be in a better mood, and also less experienced. For example between 5-8pm on a Thursday night at the age of 17 there was myself as a "key associate" and a manager to cover a 3 floor store.

7) If you are making a big purchase (i.e. furniture) consider opening a storecard (if you can afford it etc etc- I dont need to patronise you all lol). Not only will you probably earn at least 5-10% discount the staff are highly pressured to hit targets so if you open one they are more likely to throw something else in/ do you a bit of a deal.

Hope that helps but top tip is be nice. Some of them are only earning £3.90 an hour

mippy

sophie12 wrote: »

Jessops do massive discounts

Really? Do tell - am going to be buying a DSLR soon, and when I bought my compact from there did ask whether anything could be knocked off as I was buying the display model. They said no

Sloganjerry

Most places will always say No the first time you ask for a discount. I find I have to ask three times and then if they still say No I leave it there but 99% of the places I've haggled in will try to find a compromise or agree to a discount after three politely phrased requests. I don't know if anyone else has suggested this also but sometimes asking them to throw in something like leads or accessories for free if they still wont consider a discount works even when they've refused three times to discount something. Persistence is really the key in haggling.

Good luck all!:beer: and a Merry Christmas everyone! :santa2:

Ruud

ive seen a nice panasonic tv in john lewis for £479 with a 5 year warrenty, however in dixons its £429.99 but without the 5 year warrenty.

Is there any room for hagglig in john lewis to price match?

bmbayless

I went into Beaverbrooks to buy a watch priced at £1950, told them Goldsmiths offered to sell at £1550 (although they didnt), i said could they BEAT IT, not just match it. They said they could do it for £1500, so i went back to Goldsmiths and they told me to buy it from beaverbrooks! because they couldnt match it.
I then went back to beaverbrooks and asked if i paid by debit card would they knock anything else off, they knocked another £30 because with credit card they have to pay a fee.

Have to be persistant!

deefadog

I had the last Bratz bike in Halfords - display model, but brand new, and got free elbow and knee pads and stabalisers thrown in (worth £22.99) + £10 voucher for accessories