The art of haggling!

by Rachel Robson on 11 June 2009  |  6 comments
Tweet

I have to confess that I’m not terribly good at haggling. But I’m starting to take baby steps and I’m confident I will get better...

I have to confess that I'm not terribly good at haggling. Of course, being a money saving guru, I should be. But I'm not.

That said, I'm starting to take baby steps and I'm confident I will get better!

Not so long ago I managed to do a spot of haggling with my mobile phone provider, O2, after simply telling them how much I was prepared to pay each month and how many texts/minutes I required. And, much to my surprise, my tiny bit of haggling was successful!

So when I went into River Island a couple of weeks ago I decided to try my luck again.

(Before I go on, I should point out that the only reason I opted to haggle was because I wasn't completely satisfied with my planned purchase. I'm not yet brave enough to haggle for the sake of haggling.)

You see, I was after a white shirt and I'd found the perfect one, only to discover there was a noticeable black pen mark on it. Unfortunately it was the only one in my size. So, as I needed it there and then, I decided it was time to put my haggling skills to the test and see whether I could get a discount.

So as I approached the sales assistant, I put on my best smile and politely asked whether I could get any money off.

Unfortunately he wasn't senior enough to allow this. So I had to wait patiently (something I'm not very good at) while the sales assistant set off on what seemed like a 20 minute hike around the shop to speak to his manager.

But the good news was, my patience paid off. When the sales assistant returned from his expedition he told me I could have a 10% discount.

I was pretty chuffed with my success, despite this only working out to be £2.49 - but every little counts, right?

Of course, had I been a true haggler I could have pushed my luck further to see if I could get an even bigger discount. But I really couldn't stand the idea of asking the sales assistant to trek off on his mammoth trip to his manager for a second time. (In hindsight, perhaps it would have been better for me to speak to the manager in person.)

But as I said, I'm taking baby steps right now and I certainly didn't have anything to lose by asking!

What's more, once I washed the shirt, much to my disbelief, the pen stain actually came out - bonus!

So I encourage everyone out there to keep an eye out for haggling opportunities! After all, while the economic outlook remains gloomy, I think it's the perfect time for trying your luck to see whether you can get a bargain! Far more retailers are likely to be willing to give you a discounted price. So why not give it a go?

If have any great haggling experiences or tips to share, and if you're a little bit braver than me, let me know in the comment boxes below!