Having negotiating power with your local brick & mortar train store.

[OnTheBranchline]

I was just curious on how much you generally have to buy before you can negotiate with your local retailer to knock a few dollars/quid off prices for you (if you get what I mean).

[chris p bacon]

There is no such thing as discount anymore.

 

Best bet is make a list of what you want and try 2-3 simultaneous and see who comes out with the best price.

 

Bricks are very difficult to get a good price on, when you are buying approx 5000+ the first retailer (TP, Jewson etc) to get a price from the manufacturer, registers the site, any other retailers that then ask for a price from the manufacturer is given a higher price than the first and so it goes on.......does my head in....

[Tony_S]

I assume the OP was asking about shops made of bricks rather than shops that sell bricks. I have no idea, one of the fairly local model railway shops gives a discount for belonging to certain model railway clubs but it doesn't seem to require a certain amount spent.

[chris p bacon]

I assume the OP was asking about shops made of bricks rather than shops that sell bricks. I have no idea, one of the fairly local model railway shops gives a discount for belonging to certain model railway clubs but it doesn't seem to require a certain amount spent.

 

Repeat after me.....I must remember not to answer posts after pricing work ..........Duh

 

It's been one of those days...

[kandc_au]

The thought of getting discounts is great....BUT....it is the store's profit that the discount comes out of. Remembering that, I think if you have a regular store you shop at they would be more inclined to give a discount as a regular, rather than as a one off buy.

Just something to think about.

 

khris

[Happy Hippo]

I suppose you ought to look at it from the other direction!

 

If you have personal friends who use your shop, do you give them a discount for the stuff they buy from you?

 

If you have a lot of friends, that could make a serious inroad into your profit from which you pay yourself.

 

Most traders I know are quite prepared to give a discount to you if you buy a sufficient or significant amount.

 

For instance, my local gun shop gives me 10% off most of my purchases, but I have known the family for years, make all my shooting purchases from them and give them a free link off my website.

 

But sometimes it has to work the other way: When did you last go into a shop get something for £9.89 and say to the shop keeper; 'Oh call it a tenner!'?

 

I bet you don't!

 

I started doing it in a local model shop, and lo and behold after a couple of times the gesture was returned. Now when we deal, it is always in round pounds!

 

Regards

 

Richard

[Pennine MC]

I wonder how many 'bricks and mortar' model shops are located under bridges...

[Bernard Lamb]

I wonder how many 'bricks and mortar' model shops are located under bridges...

 

With a bus parked on top ?

A story from my working days.

We once dealt with the worlds leading supplier of ultrasonic testing equipment. They were very expensive but would willingly give their time to sort out any customers specific problem.

Then we had a new finance director who would try to renegotiate t&c with all suppliers.

One day when I needed help I got a brusk response to my question. I later found out that the finance director had stuck his nose into things. It took me a long time to rebuild that particular bridge.

It's a case of knowing the difference between the price and the value of what you re buying.

Building up a relationship with the dealer might help before starting to discuss money off.

If I want to buy a new bike for example the dealer, known to me for many years, will offer his best deal without me having to ask.

Bernard

[Coldgunner]

When I bought the track for Greslington, I emailed my local. I basically said what I wanted, the online price and if they were willing to match it. Lo and behold, I ended up getting what I needed at the 'online' price, which was a good 15-20% less than shelf price. I tend to use the same store as much as possible now.

 

Also, local B&M stores have great second hand sales that never see the light of day online, often cheaper than ebay sellers too.

 

I personally don't think its rude to ask for a deal on multiple items, so long as you're polite about it.

[MJI]

Well I have the problem of

 

Local model shop specialising in rail closed (family health).

 

Antics HiFi section went bump, so Antic models shutting down.

 

Only have a toy shop with some models left, no incentive to use.

 

Why shouldn't I now just buy mail order?

 

I could go to Cheltenham but that is not that easy and need to find the right person to get discount (Trevor)

 

PITA though for brass wire and plastic sections.

[Bob Reid]

When I bought the track for Greslington, I emailed my local. I basically said what I wanted, the online price and if they were willing to match it. Lo and behold, I ended up getting what I needed at the 'online' price, which was a good 15-20% less than shelf price. I tend to use the same store as much as possible now.

 

Also, local B&M stores have great second hand sales that never see the light of day online, often cheaper than ebay sellers too.

 

I personally don't think its rude to ask for a deal on multiple items, so long as you're polite about it.

 

And as long as you don't take the hump when they (politely)! refuse...

[Black Sheep]

I've seen my usual model shop shuffle prices a little when someone wanted to buy a trainset and a couple of large locos, or someone buy a number of locos, often not much, but enough to get a piece of rolling stock.

 

I won't say where my usual shop is however.

[60026to]

I went to the model railway exhibition last Friday in Thornbury which had a few model shop traders' present and two locos caught my eye after asking the owners of the shops 'their best price' I managed to save £22 and two new locos.

 

If you don't ask you don't get.

[Karhedron]

I think discounting depends entirely on the relationship you have with a store and why you choose to shop there. I chose to support my local model shop because I like the convenience of being able to pop in and buy stuff at 5 minutes notice. When I am buying multiple small purchases, (as I frequently do) the savings on postage far outweigh any discount I might argue for.

 

I would consider it rude to ask my friendly "local" for a discount. On the other hand if I were dealing with a big shop and a 1-off transaction, I would have no hesitation in haggling. There is no threshold value at which haggling may or may not be acceptable. It depends on how you view your relationship with the shop.

 

Is it a long term, steady relationship or a case wham-bam, thank you box-shifter.

[SNCF stephen]

The French are quite open to bartering and their prices are adjusted accordingly. I have purchased a number of items from a stall at a Toy Fair and the person was kind enough to offer a discount. Since then I have seen deals brokered where you might not get much if any discount but they throw in the odd extra item (in one instance a double loop of Fleischmann N Gauge track which I was able to sell on eBay when I realised I didn;t need it).

 

So my point is to be a bit savvy when making purchases and if you are a regular customer and have seen a second hand wagon that has been sitting in the window for 2 years then perhaps a bit of negotiation can get it thrown in with a few other items.