Can You Negotiate/Haggle in Music Shops?

TheFiveLamps

Hey guys,

Just wondering is it possible/common for people to try negotiate on price in music instrument shops?

Keyzer

Of course...

If I'm making a purchase and I know I can get it online for cheaper then first thing to come out of my mouth after I've decided to buy is: "Is that the best price you can do?"

If the answer is yes, I can't go any lower, my next question is: "I can get it for x amount on www.blahblahblah.com"

But you have to be prepared to walk away otherwise you'll look like a chump...

That applies to all major purchases not just music equipment...

gerarda

On a slightly different note - it pays to shop around. I picked up a guitar yesterday for just over 400 yoyo's. The shop next door to it was selling it at nearly double that!

TheFiveLamps

cool! what sort of percentage would be reasonable to get knocked off the price if possible?

feylya

Aim for them to get within 10% of online prices or so. If they refuse, or don't sweeten the deal with accessories, go home and buy online.

Squidgy Black

Yeah most stores will haggle down to internet prices. And if there's no internet price, there's an 8% discount allowance for them to come down on price, they just never tell you

t1mm

Possibly unrelated, but in the scuba diving community a lot of people tend to buy gear in brick and mortar shops rather than go online.

You are talking about going to a music shop, playing a guitar as much as you want, asking any questions you want about said guitar, then going and buying it somewhere else. If you can haggle them down a bit then fair enough, but a lot of people would agree that the extra few euro is well spent on service and after-sales service.

Imagine going to the shop, playing the guitar, going home and buying it online, and then bringing it in for some sort of service? They won't be happy campers

Squidgy Black

t1mm wrote: »

Possibly unrelated, but in the scuba diving community a lot of people tend to buy gear in brick and mortar shops rather than go online.

You are talking about going to a music shop, playing a guitar as much as you want, asking any questions you want about said guitar, then going and buying it somewhere else. If you can haggle them down a bit then fair enough, but a lot of people would agree that the extra few euro is well spent on service and after-sales service.

Imagine going to the shop, playing the guitar, going home and buying it online, and then bringing it in for some sort of service? They won't be happy campers

See, when it comes to guitars, there can be quite a difference in online and store prices sometimes, and if the store refuses to come down in price it could be a matter of a few hundred quid. And from experience, there isn't really and after-sales service unless something is truely faulty and even then you would only really get a warantee of a month or so.

TheFiveLamps

stetyrrell wrote: »

See, when it comes to guitars, there can be quite a difference in online and store prices sometimes, and if the store refuses to come down in price it could be a matter of a few hundred quid. And from experience, there isn't really and after-sales service unless something is truely faulty and even then you would only really get a warantee of a month or so.

agreed,normally i would buy online,but i cant seem to find any places that are selling it online. so i have to buy from a shop in town. so i was just wondering what the general attitude is towards haggling.

damonjewel

I think yes, yes you can , Right now Its a buyers market. So be brave, you should at least be able to negotiate a discount, a lead, spare strings, picks and a bag. Quote the online price and start there

Gaspode

Absolutely. I never pay list price for anything big if I can help it, and if they wont budge on price I look for extras thrown in. If they still dont budge I go elsewhere.

TheFiveLamps

Cheers,the item in question is 1599,that was before that VAT increase.

how much exactly would be reasonable to be knocked off the price??

i've never really haggled in a shop so i wouldnt be too sure on how to approach the situation.

cheers for the help!

feylya

How much is it online?

TheFiveLamps

Can't seem to find it online for sale!

quicklickpaddy

TheFiveLamps wrote: »

Can't seem to find it online for sale!

Then it's gonna be a little harder! At this stage, seen as everybody is competing with online super markets, the shop will more than likely know the price off thomann and will genuinely do their best to come down if you try to haggle with them. A lot of the time they just can't buy anything as cheap as the online stores can though.

With guitars as opposed to pedals or accessories there can be a huge difference between the one you play in the shop and fall in love with and the one that is delivered to you. I rarely buy anything off thomann but I always haggle as much as possible. For me, it's worth paying a little (not too much mind you) extra to know what I'm getting and to have the peace of mind knowing if anything goes wrong I can bring it back no problem. and then you get that warm fuzzy feeling from supporting the local economy.

saa

Yes! in larger chain stores the price is on the system and many companies just don't give discounts, less common in chains but still happens.

Buying jewelry, large electronics furniture or musical instruments you should be able to get a 10-25% discount on it
Research the prices and base your budget on that, have a top level of spending to tell to the clerk which is mid way between the more expensive item and the cheaper one and they should meet you in the middle as long as you make it clear if there is no discount you can go somewhere else oh and to build up a connection with the clerk

wellboys

Had to stand my ground and walk from a music shop in Dublin yesterday. Went in to buy a new electric, I had done my research and knew the online price and had my heart really set on it. He wasn't budging one cent from the store price. When I asked if he could throw anything in like a soft case or new strings or even a lead, I would have had to pay full price for them too. When I told him I could get it a lot cheaper off of Thomann, I was told "Off to Thomann with ya so". Pity because I would have liked to have kept my business in Ireland.

Squidgy Black

wellboys wrote: »

Had to stand my ground and walk from a music shop in Dublin yesterday. Went in to buy a new electric, I had done my research and knew the online price and had my heart really set on it. He wasn't budging one cent from the store price. When I asked if he could throw anything in like a soft case or new strings or even a lead, I would have had to pay full price for them too. When I told him I could get it a lot cheaper off of Thomann, I was told "Off to Thomann with ya so". Pity because I would have liked to have kept my business in Ireland.

Did this certain shop start with a W? I've had similar problems there, went in looking at some preamps as they were the only store that stocked them, extremely overpriced, yet they refused to move on the price.

wellboys

stetyrrell wrote: »

Did this certain shop start with a W? I've had similar problems there, went in looking at some preamps as they were the only store that stocked them, extremely overpriced, yet they refused to move on the price.

That's the one.

roast

That particular store is ridiculously overpriced.
Luckily, here in Limerick, the three main music equipment stores are really nice to deal with. They try and match prices to Thomann as much as possible. If an item there comes close to the online price, I'd probably take it, to try and keep my purchases local.

kevin65

I have had good experiences buying instruments locally in Galway. I'll always ask ''what's the best you can do?" and will always get some sort of discount and/or some free stuff thrown in. Last purchase was a Gibson Les Paul and got it for €20 less than the Thomann price plus some strings thrown, so I was a happy customer.

I'm a bit shocked at the Dublin shop mentioned earlier refusing to budge on their prices by even a cent. How can you run a business like that?

ednwireland

just ordered an epiphone les paul standard plus from my local music shop 20 euro more than thomann, I didnt haggle

Ravelleman

I´ve got to admit that I´ve never bought from Thomann or Music Store as I´ve always found what I´ve been looking for for a lot less on ebay USA. I´ve also never bought a used guitar and have always paid taxes.