| The Art of the Deal |
|
|
| August 2007 | |
|
I don’t know how to bargain. And, being Asian without this
skill has made me feel quite inadequate. Deep down, I know I should be able to
haggle over the price of something, anything. After all, bargaining is a way of
life in
Scout the Market First, the Kirks advised that we “get our perimeters” by walking through the entire market, a maze-like, two floors. Robert said the lower prices would be inside the market where tourists aren’t as likely to venture. Be Polite At a purse stall, I watched as Kamala courteously talked to merchants in English, taking her time looking over goods and politely inquiring about prices. This was already one bargaining myth debunked for me. I had thought super-aggressive, fast behavior was required to bargain, especially at an Asian market. Think and Price Before asking the price, Kamala decides how much she wants to pay and then offers lower than that. For example, if she figures $15 for a purse and the vendor says $20, she’ll offer $10. This gives her enough room to bargain upwards a few dollars if necessary. I asked Kamala if she ever feels guilty offering a low starting price, and she said no because merchants won’t sell something if it doesn’t benefit them, too. Be Indecisive Merchants seem to lower prices if they see customers hesitate over something. Kamala was once contemplating a Gucci knock-off purse, and the shopkeeper incrementally lowered the price from $65 to $20 all without a peep from her. I was just staring at a purse and it went from $25, $22 to $20 without me counter offering. Do not be enthusiastic about merchandise as that indicates you might pay a higher price. Mention Other Merchants Do research and get prices from different merchants. For example, you might say: “The booth down there is selling this dress for $10. Can you do better?” The Walk Away If the merchant does not accept your price, then just walk away. If they want the sale, they’ll call after you. Carin Chea, 26, actor and co-founder of Chinatown 90210, a theatre company, remembers when her grandmother walked away after offering $25 for a “v-neck midnight blue” prom dress that Carin wanted. The merchant, who originally said $50, called after them and said, “OK, $30.”
Jim Camp, negotiating coach and author of “Start with No” says: “In all parts of Asia where market haggling is fully ingrained in the culture, the word ‘no’ is seen as an invitation to begin the process of negotiation – not the end!” So when you hear, “no,” don’t take it personally, instead use it as an entrée into bargaining. I saw “no” at a luggage shop when a woman insisted on $30 for two huge suitcases but the merchant said $38. The woman again insisted on $30. She then called to another worker in the shop: “She won’t give me this for $30, can you do $30?” The other worker said, “How about $35?” The woman insisted on $30, but the merchants still said no. The customer walked away and no one came after her. So she turned back and quietly said, “OK, $32.” Sold. The Attitude Carin describes the bargaining attitude as one of “self-assurance, confidence, not arrogance because you want the shopkeeper to like you” but it’s also good to be “a little intimidating to make them fear you a little bit.” What gave her grandmother so much power was her “strong will” to walk away. Janet Hoy, 41, a business consultant, got a crash course in bargaining during a month-long trip to Asia where merchants expected her to dicker. Regarding prices, she says: “There’s a point when you bargain where you’ll get to a point of insulting. You never want to get to that point. You want to be just slightly above insulting.” Janet became so adept at bargaining and releasing her “inner barracuda” that she later negotiated a friend’s real estate purchase down $75,000. She says the “respect factor” always has to be there during negotiations. Instead of saying: “Come on, you can do better than that,” say: “Could you do a little better?” The intonation and the way you look at the merchant are important. I unwittingly insulted a merchant over a children’s dress. She started at “$15, but for you $10.” I asked what “age” the dress was for. She thought I said “$8” and responded, “No, no, no, not $8.” She probably didn’t like that I took a cell phone picture of the dress to send to my sister. When I tried to explain, she refused to talk to me. So I left. At one store, I saw a woman admiring a peacock figurine, which was marked at $38. She offered $35. The merchant quickly countered while taking it off the shelf: “$36. OK, one more dollar for me, OK?” And the customer agreed while admiring her peacock. The merchant probably could tell from the customer’s enthusiasm that she would agree. Where and When The peacock woman bargained with a supposedly fixed-priced item, but many of the items in the market had no price tag. A merchant told me that if he puts prices on his clothing, no one stops because bargaining is the Asian way. He says he routinely gives discounts of $2 to $3 dollars for purchases of $10 and $3 to $5 dollars for purchases of $30. A customer just has to ask. He adds that Americans are his easiest customers because they’ll accept the first discounted offer and not ask further. Another merchant told me she won’t bargain on the little items, but anything more than $20 was negotiable, and that buying more than one of an item helps drive down the price. Good times to bargain are at the end of the day when merchants are eager to make sales before closing or at the beginning when they want to make a sale for good luck for the rest of the day. Dressing Down Common perception is that merchants are basing their prices on how customers look. Kamala suggests dressing down and blending in. She wore jeans and a tank top and brought a tote bag instead of a designer purse. Also, bring cash in small denominations. Fluctuating Prices We visited several shops repeatedly and were offered different prices on the same merchandise by different workers in the same store. In the morning, a picture was $12 and when we visited the shop later, a different salesperson said it was $15. In one shop, a purse was marked $14. When the shopkeeper saw us, she said “$18, for you $16” -- not realizing that the bag already had a price tag on it. Upon inspection, we saw it was a little dirty, and I decided that $10 was my highest price. Kamala pointed out the dirt to the merchant who then asked: “How much do you want to pay?” We hesitated. She said: “$10?” Sold. It’s good to bring a friend! Flaws Finding dirt and flaws is a standard practice for talking down prices. Mention even the tiniest of scratches. Also, be sure to inspect purchases thoroughly. I didn’t notice till I got home that a dress I bought had a frayed ribbon. The Lingo Speak the language or even just try to say things like, “How much?” in the merchant’s tongue. I saw several merchants soften when they heard Robert speaking Chinese. I asked one merchant if she was Chinese, and she said yes. She then asked me the same, and that brief interchange bonded us a little. It was nice. Relationships Michael Soon Lee, president of EthnoConnect, the Multicultural Sales Solution, and author of “Black Belt Negotiating” says in Asia, “being a good negotiator can sometimes make the difference between survival and starvation. Americans tend to negotiate the very largest purchases, such as houses and cars, while Asians negotiate everything all day long.” Bargaining, he notes, is how Asians build relationships to hopefully do business with the customer for a long time; “Asians tend to look at the lifetime value of the customer.” Robert, meanwhile, feels bargaining is the best way to learn the local culture. As for myself, after two days of observing (I went back) and bargaining, I felt pretty good. I’m now listening to Jim Camp’s CDs to bolster my negotiation skills for larger purchases. Today a purse, tomorrow a car! * photos of Kamala Kirk |
So, on a hot Sunday in June, I accompanied Kamala Kirk, 26,
a marketing professional, and her father Robert Kirk, 64, a retired professor
with a background in Asian studies, on a shopping trip to Los Angeles’
Chinatown. Kamala, whose mother is Filipino-Chinese, is writing a novel set in 
Start with No
