[janekm]

I can't help sharing one of my favourite haggling anecdotes here. I was in a jewellery market in Mexico City, waiting for a friend to return from the toilets, so I spent some time looking over the goods of a stall and looking at one silver bracelet. The stall keeper noticed and told me it was (not the actual prices) 500 pesos. I tell him I'm not really interested. He says 250, I tell him I'm still not interested. 150, still not interested. He says he needs to "check with his boss" and walks off around the corner (there may or may not have been a boss) and comes back with 100 pesos. At this point I figure, well it'll make a nice present for someone and accept...

I don't think he lost out as I legitimately had no interest in buying before he haggled himself down that low, but it was an interesting lesson in how far haggling can go in some circumstances...

[muzani]

This is what a haggling culture actually looks like. There's an assumption in this thread that in all "non-Western" cultures, haggling is the norm. But I think it's important for the seller to imply consent first.

[thebean11]

Haggling is the asking for consent part. Are you suggesting that "can I haggle with you?" is somehow more polite than "would you sell it for $x"?

I think it's honestly kind of infantilizing to assume someone who is selling goods for a living is going to be somehow tricked or manipulated into selling at a price they do not want to sell at.

[muzani]

It's not about manipulation, but manners. Where I live, you literally do ask, "Is this the final price?" Or a lengthier way might be, "This is a beautiful thing and I would love to have it! But alas, it is beyond my budget."

Most cultures are not as direct as American. In the US, it's a virtue to save time instead of dancing around the question. But in some cultures, dancing around the question is a mark of respect. You first acknowledge that the seller has been generous and then ask them for further generosity.

[thebean11]

And in some cultures, "would you do it for $x?" is totally normal and expected, including the US in some contexts (like Craigslist or a used car lot).

[pc86]

For the seller to imply consent? There's another article on here about "No" being a complete sentence. The seller is not forced to haggle at all, they just have to repeat the same price.

[sumtechguy]

If you want to re-experience this goto the mall and find one of those kiosks where they sell weird junk. If they are sort of aggressive and coming at you chances are they will play the haggle game. If it is some bored kid on their cell, probably not. When I was younger I would goto garage sales and haggle with people. It was semi fun and a interesting learning experience. It was my first hands on experience with a core CS concept of divide and conquer. I would offer half and we would bisect into the middle to find the real price we wanted.

Also the sales technique that seller used on you is called anchoring. The fun ones are the ones who disappear again and come out with a 'damaged' one that they can not sell but will cut you a deal on. That is usually the next step on that train of bargaining that seller was using.

Most things are not really worth haggling over. Big ticket items, sometimes yeah. Small things not as much. Also know where you are. Some places you are expected to do it. Others it is the sticker on the shelf move along...

[Cthulhu_]

I'm convinced that these are the kind of profit margins on products in "the west" as well, but without the haggling.

[chris_overseas]

I guess you're referring to items like these? https://www.apple.com/uk/shop/product/MX572ZM/A/apple-mac-pr...

[account42]

"Financing Available" for a set of wheels, incredible.

[warrenm]

Why not? Yokohama does it :P