I have been to several dealers looking at B&W, PSB, Dynaudio, Spendor, JMlab, and MartinLogan speakers all around 3K price range, and about half have indicated they would give me about 5% discounts, while the others won't even budge.
Just curious, should I be expecting most dealers to give a small discounts on gears, and if so what should I be looking for as a fair percentage?
Tough q, Arkimus. Bargaining in good faith is a fair place to start, on your side and theirs. For instance, I saw a guy take an hour of a salespersons time auditioning Psb speakers(one pair only) with 2 amps. After the 'customer' left in a rude huff, I asked the salesman about the speaker. We got around to him telling me that after an hour, the fellow offered 60% of the asking price, period. A complete waste of everyones time.
Comparing same products in the same town can also be counterproductive. Similar dealers all know each other, are supplied by the same rep and may talk often. They won't play good cop bad cop.
If I am nearly decided on listening to a piece for purchase, I start by asking about potential price. If no or littlw discount seems likely, I may or may not bear that in mind when auditioning, and this is reflected in the amount of time I request of the seller. This also depends on how busy the store is, go on a Tuesday.
Some store work on commision, some don't. The owner/manager may have to make the discount call, if you can talk with that person, it may smooth things out.
Dealers will often give a small (5-10%) system discount but little if any when you are buying just one or two items. Some companies such as Magnepan won't allow dealers to discount their products.
Arkimus
Unregistered guest
Posted on
Thanks guys.
Seems like 5% is a reasonable discount to expect.
It would help me pay for taxes and they will gain a loyal customer.
Arkimus, you may consider a two tier purchase. If you buy one item and enjoy the experience, you might consider returning to the same store for another, be it big or small. This practise, as well as honest referrals to friend, builds loyalty, which is often rewarded in two ways. One, a better discount, for obvious reasons. Two, a better rappoir with the dealer, which can be rewarded with invites to special events and auditions, whether buying or not. I have met some really interesting and knowledgeable people recently, by these very means.
You shouldn't be afraid to ask what type of discount they give. You shouldn't dwell on it either. Many places will give a 5-10% discount if you ask the right way and don't demand it. Some places will give even more of a discount if you're buying a few things at a time or if you're a long term and loyal customer. I've seen people demand discounts and they are almost always shown the door in a nice way.
Also keep in mind that different products have different mark ups. A family friend owns an Apple store. He only makes $18 on the ipod. How much of a discount should he give? It's a product designed to get people into the store. They come in for the ipod, play with the Mac's, and hopefully will buy a Mac when it's time to buy a new computer. Ever wonder why you never see the ipod on sale except maybe refurbs or bundle deals?
Don't dwell on a discount. If 5 or 10% off is going to make or break your decision, it generally isn't a great product. I have no problem paying full price for a quality product that I plan on having for a long time. If you're looking for a big discount, check out demo's, discontinued items, or the used market.
"I have no problem paying full price for a quality product that I plan on having for a long time. If you're looking for a big discount, check out demo's, discontinued items, or the used market."
I couldn't agree more.
Arkimus
Unregistered guest
Posted on
Thanks guys,
I'm new at all this audio shopping stuff, and wanted to gauge the dealers who is willing to help me out.
"I have no problem paying full price for a quality product that I plan on having for a long time. If you're looking for a big discount, check out demo's, discontinued items, or the used market." (Stu)
I agree, and I'm not looking for a big discount. I do want to support my local dealers with his newer stuff, but I also like to know that the dealer appreciate my business and my time, present and future, and help me burden the cost of tax. At 3k+ for a pair of speakers, and eventually 7k+ for the complete system, the taxes add up fast!
Let say that I can get a 8% discount on the Dynaudio Focus 220 and zero on the Spendor S8e, I think I will go with the dealer who shows me some appreciation.
Get a feel for the salesperson also, see what they offer without your asking. To me that gives an idea of what their real motive is (besides the sale) If you just ask up front, whats the best you can do on this, you should get an immediate response as they know what can be done before you even walked in. I say expect a deal of at least 5%, no less. With less of a discount be sure that the "after the sale" service is what you would be satisfied with, otherwise you will probably be unhappy with purchase, even if you really like what you bought. Remember some of the mark ups in price are (or should be) for customer service after the sale. And dont be afraid to ask for more than what they say "is the best they can do" because its better for them to have the product off the shelf than it is to just sit there. And they have room to play with whether or not its admitted. Some salesmen are just like used car salesmen and I think you will spot them pretty easily. Good Luck, and with persistance you can find that happy medium. JMO Dave
If you have a product in mind, be direct. If you are price driven, be direct also. If you have a target price in mind, start there, and look for the store boss.
Get the best price you can from an internet legit dealer source or even a different city Brick and Mortar source; print it and present it to the local store. ASk them waht they can do and tell them you understand that you have to pay sales tax locally and that thats not the big deal.
Some products are NOT sold over the internet at all however. Do check audiogon.com as the used stuff there is often like new and the ratings are very conservative as people dont want to lose their reps there who sell stuff often as they continually "upgrade."
I just looked at audiogon.com and there is just a huge stock of used Martin Logans in the classified section- I had no idea. I'd certainly take the model you are interested in, if M-L is on the short list- and see what the audiogoners can do for you. Wow.
Yup, Frank, after eating up a bunch of the salesguy's time. Nice, eh?
'don't darken my door' pops to mind
guest poster
Unregistered guest
Posted on
At least 10% for speakers at a retail store and 25% from a "wholesaler" is the minimum I will accept. There is a huge markup in speakers but for whatever reason speakers are not discounted nearly as much as receivers and dvd players. Retailers have overhead to deal with but 10% off still gives them plenty of profit.
Then again there are dealers like the snooty salon place in my city which sells the Vandersteen Model 1 at $150 *over* the MSRP posted at the Vandersteen website...
Yes, but Eddie you're still not talking anything like the markups on clothing, furniture, spectacles, cards - all those things are in multiples of cost price!
guest poster
Unregistered guest
Posted on
I guess we need to define "huge". I recently bought a pair of small speakers for my kitchen and paid $179 for the pair at a retailer to then find I could have gotten them from several mail order houses for under $100! That includes the very reputable J&R Music World. [free shipping and no tax]. In my book that is one HUGE markup. I did not suggest that the retailers should or could sell for such low prices, only that 10% or so should be expected. Frank, Maybe the margins are different in the UK than in the US.