Comments on: VCA’S GUIDE TO HAGGLING

By: wunderkind

wunderkind — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 02:02:32 +0000

i agree, many of us have student loans. that certainly doesn’t make one poor though, some people have a large enough income that they can just put it off all together. i’m sure you could pay them off very quickly by nixing the snowboarding and regular surfing trips to tofino. honestly, most people i know can’t even afford one of these trips per year…because they’re paying off their student loans. get it??

By: Vancity Allie

Vancity Allie — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 19:58:27 +0000

Hey bob,

I totally understand where you are coming from and I appreciate the honest comment.

I’m not looking for sympathy from everyone. I make no pretenses about who I am or what I am about… I think it is obvious from my blog that I like snowboard, surfing, golf, photography and other expensive hobbies. I’ve worked really hard to get to where I am, and I’m proud of where I’ve come from to where I am now.

To me, “west coast culture” isn’t about a tax bracket or how much money you earn or the toys that you have… it’s about enjoying nature, exploring our beautiful coastline, trying new things, living and being healthy, and ultimately finding happiness and a place between the ocean, forest and city.

By: bob

bob — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 19:06:30 +0000

Seriously, you snowboard yet haggle 3% of a purchase price? Snowboarding is the ultimate it privileged entitlement. I’m sorry, here’s a bit of sympathy for you though. No one feels bad for you because you have student loans. You chose to go to college and the rest of us also have those same loans.

Thanks for the honesty and all, your “west coast culture” suddenly just turned into a joke for this regular reader.

By: Vancity Allie

Vancity Allie — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 00:47:15 +0000

Actually, I don’t come from a wealthy family and most of my vacations have been free or sponsored… the fine dining, yes, I admit is a bad habit but I budget myself accordingly. I don’t go out drinking or spend money on booze very often, and I bring my lunches to work every day and cook dinners the rest of the week. So getting to go out to a fancy dinner once a month or so is a way to treat myself.

And actually — I am still paying off my student loans.

Regardless, I believe that people should haggle for things regardless of their lifestyle, tax bracket, etc. Why should I be ashamed of saving some money?

That’s why I made a point in my post that haggling isn’t about cheating someone… it’s about creating a win-win deal. I save a little money and get a good deal, and the retailer (or individual) gets my business over someone else. I don’t think there’s any shame in that.

I hope I was able to give you some background on myself. Thanks for stopping by to comment, I always appreciate honesty and feedback.

By: wunkerkind

wunkerkind — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 00:39:03 +0000

i’m sure the people you’re haggling with would be less sympathetic after seeing your website and your penchant for high dining and five star vacations.

leave the bling at home, indeed! you should be ashamed.

By: Tracy

Tracy — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 18:08:26 +0000

(Lurker coming out of hiding here)

These tips are great Allie! Thanks for sharing. I’m looking at getting myself a new laptop and you can bet now I’ll try to get a deal on it =)

By: Lisa

Lisa — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 03:59:20 +0000

There is really VERY LITTLE markup at all on computer hardware, so you can’t get much of a discount there. A laptop that sells for $1000 is probably $980 at cost. Seriously.

It’s the add-ons & extras where the electronics retailers make their money, like paper, cables, routers, etc., not in the big-ticket items.

So, you can sometimes get them to throw in a mouse or something too…things like that DO have quite a profit margin. ie. a mouse that sells for $40 probably had a cost of $15.

By: Vancity Allie

Vancity Allie — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 03:56:24 +0000

Hehe, actually most of these deals I’ve gotten while wearing casual clothes, no makeup, glasses, and out with my boyfriend. Or bargaining with a girl!

I definitely think there is more to haggling than flirting. In fact, I think flirting to get a deal on something is pretty transparent and doesn’t work often.

By: Dude

Dude — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 03:42:45 +0000

Rule #1 of 1: Be a pretty girl.

Haha, but seriously, I think that is the main ingredient in your haggling success. Sure being nice and having a strategy about it helps, but i doubt any of it will help very much if you are ugly, or a dude.

By: Tawcan

Tawcan — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 17:20:10 +0000

Great to hear that you get so many good deals. I think in general it’s easier for a girl to haggle but I managed to get myself a few good deals throughout the year, one being my cellphone plan. Also got some pretty good deals on camera gear too.

Awesome tips. Looks like you’re a master at haggling, must be the Asian genes in you lol. :p