Bargaining at Street Side Shops

Disclaimer a la the movies: Any perception of resemblance is purely unintended, but then, if you do think you connect, then dude..... yes, please rethink :)

                                                

                                 

                                  

If we observe, we’ll notice that a lot of us bargain with the small vendors, some do it superficially, some do it extensively, and yet others do actual haggling. It's almost like a challenge taken on to come out victorious, I either get it at my obnoxious price or I don't buy from him kinds. And you'll see this pretty often times too. Now this typically happens in the not so structured shopping places and the lower the rung you go, the more it seems to happen. You’ll see it when  buying vegetables, or flowers, or junk jewellery, or clothes, or handicrafts and all this at the really little shops. If you think about it, you’ll see that it’s not the product, it’s not the price……what triggers this is just the possibility,  the power of being able to bargain. For instance, a jewellery trinket, it would be priced at Rs.60 at this little street side store and we’ll want it at Rs.30....... I’ve even seen folks start the ask at Rs.20, which is mind you at a 70% less. Yet, the very same earring in Shoppers stop or Lifestyle or any upmarket store will be bought for Rs.200, without a single word. 

This bargaining  happens in any store which is not formal enough to have a price tag. But for the purpose of this write up, I am staying with the real small vendors , the street side hawkers, bandi vendors, traffic signal vendors, cycle or walking vendors and the like.

We know that these little shops or sellers are essentially  run by the relatively poorer populace.  What we need to realize is that when we bargain there, we are negotiating with not the value of the product, but with the need of the vendor.

This learning has gotten crystallized and validated by my recent exposure and talks with small business vendors in the slums I’ve visited. The dholak sellers, flower vendors, and fruit vendors. Alam was like, there are days when we need to sell even at a loss because there is no money to buy food. Then, these women who walk around all day with the basket on their heads selling flowers or vegetables or fruits. When I hear them shout out, I keep wondering how their voice and energy holds out all day, because that is something they just have to keep doing  all day long, come rain or shine. And there’s nothing like leave. Any leave is like leave without pay. Do we realize how that would feel to us.

May be we can do our bit for them just by buying at quoted price,  preferably without bargaining, but if not, atleast at what we think is the value of the product to us and bench marked against our affordability and not their need. We would be doing the poor a great service if we could keep this in mind. Just be aware that the Rs.20 or 40 we save has so much more value to them than it does to us. Think about it.