Haggling when buying a sofa set?

AFF8879

Hey everyone,

Hope you all had a great Christmas and new year.

I bought my first flat 7 months ago now and have been in the process of refurbishing it. I have had a cheap DFS sofa (>£250) in that time which I now plan to either sell on gumtree or give away to a friend. I wasn't planning to do this, but I've realised that you get what you pay for and also the colour doesn't quite go with the decor I've chosen - my fault for not taking carpet sample etc with me when buying!!

I've found the perfect high-back 3-seater sofa / armchair combination I'd like at ScS - trouble is, the advertised price even taking into account the current sale is about £1700 total for both pieces.

My question is: is it possible to haggle / negotiate the price at big chains such as ScS in-store? I live near central London and the closest store is in Beckton which is really inconvenient to get to on public transport, so I would ideally like to buy online (I did physically sit on the sofa at a store near my family when I was back for xmas) - but could I possibly miss out on any significant / material discount by doing this?

Thanks all! :beer:

societys_child

Not sure how you'd haggle with a web page . . . :huh:

ic

There's no point asking for a discount for cash - as they offer 0% APR they must allow the same discounts regardless of payment method. Remember if you buy via the website or over the phone, you get improved rights around returns thanks to the consumer rights regulations (that now contain what was previously granted by the distance selling regulations) - so if its delivered and isn't right, you will find it easier to return as technically its the first time you've seen the sofa in the flesh.

no1catman

But if you are tempted to look elsewhere, I (and others here) would not recommend Harveys!!

austonic

Yes, it is worth haggling for cash. I considered buying Lazyboy sofas and chairs from ScS just a few weeks ago. After I made it very clear I had no interest in their interest free plans, the store manager did say we could come to a deal and offered me a good price - less than the 0% APR price.

I rarely pay the ticket price for anything in major chain stores. You do have to pick your time though and ask the right people.

robatwork

Not many people on here would recommend buying anything from these sheds - £1700 isn't cheap and they're all made down to a price/spec, and generally of poor quality.

As to your question - I always haggle in shops for any major purchase, and generally always get either a discount or something thrown in (cushions for instance).

Also as it's in the shop's interest to get you to take out finance, why not offer to pay on finance if they can knock 10% off. Then (actually before buying) check the T&Cs carefully and pay it all off within a couple of weeks.

trailingspouse

Haggling involves some give and take - so, you might be able to get a discount for cash if they want to avoid credit card charges, or you might get a discount if you're buying more than most people would normally buy, etc etc.

But any discount isn't going to make a huge difference to the £1700 - if you can't afford £1700, can you really afford £1700 less 5%?

Why not hang on to the old sofa until you CAN afford the one you really want? The DFS sofa is only 7 months old - cover it with a throw that matches the room, and start saving.

[Deleted User]

I think IKEA would be worth a look for value for money and maybe even John Lewis. I don't trust scs\dfs type of stores.

VoucherMan

Take up their offer of stain protection, or whatever it's called. Extra £ for the salesman may encourage them to offer a bigger discount. Then you can cancel the protection when you get home.