Tweet
Retailers are so anxious about consumer spending that last week saw several offering pre-Christmas reductions. Even Marks & Spencer joined in, suggesting times really are hard on the high street. On a smaller scale, over the past few years enticing vouchers have started to circulate email inboxes, particularly in the run-up to the festive season, and these have been helpfully collected on various bargain hunter sites, such as Discount Codes and My Voucher Codes.
So the shops are evidently quite happy to dish out a discount when it suits them, but how easy is it to get the price reduced yourself?
Recently I managed to get 10% knocked off a purchase in a bike shop. But my haggling was done accidently - I thought I was just discussing bike security with the sales assistant, not driving a hard bargain.
To investigate how open businesses are to hagglers, we sent Tanya Gold out to endure appalled stares and sneers in the name of bargain hunting. Her mission began on her home turf of Hampstead, where most shopkeepers seemed to know her, and were reasonably willing to do her a deal.
A trip to Camden market was also fruitful, unsurprisingly since it's closer to the car boot end of the spectrum than Selfridges. But the chains and department stores of Oxford Street were less inclined to knock money off.
It's no surprise independent stores are a better bet - the people working behind the till are often the owners, or much closer to them, and as a result are empowered to take a decision on whether to accept your offer. But is it impossible to persuade larger retailers to give you a one-off bargain?
Have you ever attempted and/or succeeded in blagging yourself a bit of a deal? Soiled or damaged goods are not included – things must really bad to resort to broken biscuits. Nor are student discounts. That just isn't fair. What are your best tips for getting the things you want at a knock down price?
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
More...
