Bartering, Kuala Lumpur

O.K., let me spend some time now to share a little TIP with you about the ancient art of HAGGLING (read: bargaining). Hey, do try and master this art BEFORE leaving for Malaysia... You'd be amazed at the amount of $$$$ that you can save at the end of the day. Of course, this ONLY applies to shops that are NOT located in huge shopping malls. So, here it goes:

1. Pick a store.... zero in and enter!


2. IGNORE store staff to the best of your ability for the first few minutes.


3. Avoid eye contact with store staff as that invites discussion and makes them think that you are prepared to bargain on the price of something. If they make you an offer and you move on to something else, confusion is the result. See what I mean?


4. Pick a piece of merchandise you'd like to buy and come up with some idea of what you'd like to pay for it.


5. Convert your price: First, figure out how much that would cost in the local currency i.e. How much Malaysian Ringgit are you interested in spending for this item.


6. Then (and only THEN), do you make eye contact. This usually initiates the bargaining process.


7. Now, ask the all-important question i.e. 'How much for this?' The clerk will usually answer with a price -- and they often like to rub it in by saying - this is a 'special price' just for you. Sigh. Yeah, like we were born only yesterday.


8. Try and act a little shocked. It helps to practice this in the mirror a little before you go shopping. You get better at it with practice.


9. Now, decide how far the offer is from what you wanted to pay. Make a counter offer that is an equal amount lower than the price you hope to reach. (If you want to pay $10 and the store clerk offered $15, come back with $5).


10. Listen to the store cleck respond (now it is his turn to act shocked, or insulted, or hurt). DO NOT let the emotions of the clerk get to you. Eventually he will make you a second and lower offer. Trust me on this! Hey, people don't call me THE 'Bargaining Queen' for nothing.


11. Compromise: Move the price toward what you hope for. The cleck started with $15. You then countered with $5. If he now says $12.50, you offer $7.50. Easy?


12. Repeat steps 11 and 12 as many times as necessary.


13. If you cannot get the clerk to come down to your price, WALK AWAY. This is the ULTIMATE test. If the clerk believes you have decided not to buy, he will most certainly bring the price down. If he doesn't, it's because your price was unreasonable.


14. In any case, go to the next store and start over with another item (or the same item). If you couldn't get what you wanted @ the last store at a price you had hope to pay for, you may need to reevaluate your asking price.


IMPORTANT TIPS:

~ Once you've agreed on a price, you are expected to stick to it. Going back on an agreed deal is considered a strict NO-NO!

~ Composure and an alert mind will determine how successful you really are at haggling. Whatever it is, don't get easily rattled. O.K.?

~ Hesitation is taken to mean that you are considering an agreement and that you are close to accepting the offered price.

Happy Haggling!