Why Rich People Bargain With Vegetable Vendors?

Discussion in 'General Discussions' started by Rihana, Dec 25, 2020.

  1. Rihana

    Rihana Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    Why do people who are rich enough bargain with poor folks like vegetable vendors and other roadside sellers? :confused:

    Like with this lady in Varanasi:

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    Photo by Evgeny Nelmin on Unsplash


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  2. Rihana

    Rihana Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    NRI's visiting India will haggle with the roadside fruit vendor. They wouldn't have eaten that fruit (such as seetaphal) in years, will write in online forums such as IL about craving it, their post will get many Likes, and when they come across it in India after years, they spoil the moment by haggling to bring down the price a few Rs.

    They will shop at Tanishq on Maggarpatta Road or Singhad Road, spend thousands of $$$ in one hour, step out of the a/c showroom, and then haggle with the roadside fruit seller.

    Like with this banana seller in Pune:
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    Photo by Aditya Chinchure on Unsplash
     
    Last edited: Dec 25, 2020
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  3. Rihana

    Rihana Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    I am so ashamed to admit that I have done so myself on occasion. Years ago, we shopped for drapes fabric for the whole house at an upscale store in India. Showed off the album of interior pictures, even played short video clips on the gigantic camcorder we were lugging around, had the chilled ThumsUp offered.

    Then, they said they have an in-shop tailor with whom we can independently get the drapes stitched. "Master" as all tailors are called in India, was not in the shop just then. "Babu" or "chotu" went to look for him. Master-ji eventually came to the shop. He was clad in rather crumpled looking kurta pyjama, worn out chappals, and looked out of place in the luxurious store interior.

    But he knew his business. Quickly understood what we were looking for, and showed us photos of his past phoren customers orders. He quoted a price. We asked for him to lower it. He instead said he would throw in couple of curtains free for really small windows.

    Days later, when I went to pick up the order, and they helped load the huge well-packed packages into the autorickshaw, I luckily realized the hard work and punctual delivery etc, and put enough extra money in an envelop and gave it to my companion to discreetly give it to Master.


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    Last edited: Dec 25, 2020
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  4. Rihana

    Rihana Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    I wouldn't dream of bargaining in a store like Shoppers Stop or Lifestyle. But, with the lady who stitches the falls on sarees, I or my companion would most likely bargain. Or ask why charging double for stitching a blouse with lining.

    DH once said I seem to bargain if the store has only a fan, and do not bargain if it is air-conditioned. :facepalm:

    I tried arguing that the fan store walas start off quoting a higher price as they expect customer to bargain...
     
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  5. AppuMom

    AppuMom Gold IL'ite

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    I do not bargain , usually make the vendors to keep the small change,my uncle was a small scale vegetable vendor and I always knew they actually dont make much profit ,sometimes incurr huge losses due to tomatoes going bad or spinach lose its freshness etc .But my H bargains and it is embarassing for me .
     
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  6. deepthyanoop

    deepthyanoop Gold IL'ite

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    This is a thread for thought! When we were in India, I didn’t bargain when buying vegetables mostly because I lack that skill :) I remember my Mil and Co sis compares the the prices of Palak or Methi I buy and proudly tells me “ oh you spent 10 for this? We got 2 bunches for 7 yesterday :)

    My husband on the other hand always agree to the price they say because he feels bad for the old vendors. He used to say farmers who sells these don’t get much from these in spite of their back breaking work. Only the middle men who buy in bulk and sell are making profits. Why bargain with them for Rs.10 or 15 ? I know he is speaking the truth. But I can understand the sense behind bargaining too. I think it gives an economical sense of satisfaction that we bought food and managed to save some too!
     
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  7. MalStrom

    MalStrom IL Hall of Fame

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    My dad is the opposite. He never bargains with the street vendors or small business owners. But whenever he goes into a big shop he will make the selection and then politely ask the salesperson if they are able to give him a lower price. It works enough that he keeps doing it.
     
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  8. Rihana

    Rihana Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    This is another thing about bargaining. When out shopping with another person, and the two have different approach to bargaining. Long ago, I had friends who were better at bargaining for salwar-kameez sets that we bought in stores that allowed bargaining. I remember one such shopping trip vividly - it was in Sarojini Nagar Market in New Delhi.

    When buying cars was done in person, I used to take the kids and disappear while my H and the car salesman talked about the car price in that glass-walled room. After I came to know that the salesman's income depends on sales, I felt bad for them.
     
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  9. Rihana

    Rihana Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    I think now and then about why we bargain. Sometimes I think we don't like to pay more for something than others have paid or will soon pay. If the price was fixed, and all paid the same, maybe we wouldn't bargain and wouldn't mind paying whatever the fixed price is.

    Like they say, the regret of having paid 5% more for an item is way higher than the joy of finding a 5% discount on it. : )
     
  10. Rihana

    Rihana Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    My parents were like that. People around us used to get a bit mad at them for letting the maidservant and other man-friday or handy-man get away with non-payment of many loans and absences.
    This is an art / skill. There was an aunt in our family. During wedding shopping, if we did a lot of shopping from one store, the discount was automatically offered. But often the bride wanted just one or two items from some posh stores. The bride would select the items, and continue to 'window shop' while the aunt went and paid. : ) It was only cash payments back then. LOL we didn't mind arranging the shopping schedule around this aunt's availability.
     
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