"Maybe we can get a better deal if we bargain all together at one time." Kids if you run around the store and distract one dealer we will barter with the other one. They will be in a hurry to get rid of us thinking something in the store might get damaged. Run, run as fast as you can-Mommy is making a deal!"
"I think that everything has its price. Not the price I am willing to pay, but a price."
"Suzy said she purchased a full-size bed for $20.00. Maybe I can get one here for that price? Of course the thing is, the bed came as a donation from the local prison and was covered in gang graffiti and nasty photos, but her husband loved it!" Said it was the best buy she had ever made."
" I own half of Dallas, but I looooove a good deal!" Bargaining gets my blood pumping. Nothing smells sweeter than a steal of a deal." (Hmph! Well, for us dealers the smell resembles fresh crap!!! And for that we have a bathroom. Go and make a deal there!)Wow!!!! Venting is sure good for the soul....Thank you ladies for partaking in the doldrum therapy session. I work again tomorrow-took me all day to get over yesterday. I did manage to put a hidden camera upstairs, and I will be posting pictures of a few of the offensive shoppers. Today's lesson is how to handle those customers-and you know who you are-who set off chronic hot flashes in us poor dealers.
you know what I used to say? I would sweetly walk up to the child in question and loudly say..."sweetie you best be careful...your mommy has to pay full price for all things that you wreck or touch! If it gets dirty, your mommy needs to pay for cleaning it or...purchase it"
ReplyDeleteyou would be amazed how fast "mommy" gets her kids under control!
hey...you should meet my mom...she can tell you off...and you don't even know it until 1/2 hour later and you are already gone from her store!
I think you need a glass of wine! Hey that's a good idea! I think I will!
ReplyDeleteTheothertheresa
Hey sweetie!
ReplyDeleteI wasn't sure where this post came from...and then I read the previous post. After being in this business for 30+ years, let me say---some customers still amaze me and their comments. As a store owner, yes if I know your prices are good then I will pay them...but, I also know that I am here to "sell in my shop what the piece is worth." So, when I try to purchase from a dealer for the shop....of course I have to consider the price points (remember, I too have to mark it up at least 75% and more) Actually retailers have a "usual markup" of 125% and more. If we know our market, then we know if we can purchase something. I must say that having been on both sides of this fence....I still feel that there will always be 2 different kinds of customers...those that "get it" and those "that don't".
Here is how I handle the "don't get it" customer....they NEVER try to bargain with me, but they do make comments...why is this so expensive? :) I then say...well, ya know there is a "Walmart" a few blocks down the street and even better...there is a "Dollar Store" just around the corner. I am positive that you will find the prices you seek at one of those stores." Works everytime! :) Besides, these are customers I DON'T WANT in my store.
Now smile....and don't let these "unclassy" customers get under your skin. :0
Hopefully...I will see you at Warrenton! Hey...and ya got any bargains??? LOL (Just kiddin')
xo...deb
I don't know if I've ever commented on your blog before , but I just can't say enough about how entertained I am with both these last posts. I'm sorry you've had a rough couple days , and I'm guessing you must be truly ticked to be posting - but thank you. I'm still chuckling.
ReplyDeleteI especially liked the 'are these shoes half price because they smell like feet?'
O see it got me going all over again , lol.
I'm new to the blogging world, but must say I really enjoyed your post . . . vent on! Once my kids are grown, I'm considering my own shop, but for now, I'm happy with my treasures tucked away under someone else's watchful eyes. But those poor women who work at our shop take it from both sides -- customers and vendors. Luckily they are strong women!!
ReplyDeleteHoney pie, you certainly touched a nerve it seems. I like to call that type of shopper(and I use the term loosely) "Walking Stupid"! It is hard to be gracious when dealing with people like this. I always feel a little sorry for that last customer who asks a stupid question because that's the one who ususally takes most of the heat! I had a girl ask me why I called a pair of chairs I had for sale "Adirondack Style" to which I replied "Because they are mine. If you buy them you can put them on a chain, wear it around your neck and call them princess chairs, but for now they are andirondacks! And I never lose my temper. I thought C.D. was going to die! But we all reach the end of our rope at times. Feels good to vent, doesn't it?
ReplyDeleteDebbie
I've owned my own vintage shop for ten years now, and what really cracks me up is when they come in and say (just loud enough so they know you'll here them) "well I got that exact same thing at a garage sale for a dollar"!Some people just get there kicks from trying to put others down. I just try and take the High road and not lower my self to their tackless ways.For sure it's not always EASY!
ReplyDeleteVent on! Your a hoot!
xoxo
Amy
p.s.
love your blog, just found it about a week ago.
It sure does feel good to vent.. Just love all the pictures you took. Everything looks so pretty, as always.
ReplyDeleteStephenie
Girl, you are so hilarious!!! Thanks for the comic relief, and I adore your blog---you are very talented and I love seeing what you are up to next!
ReplyDeleteVenting is good for the soul!!:)
ReplyDeleteI am a shopper not a dealer, but I have had a bad experience like that with the kids, just on the other side of the fence so to speak~ A really good friend I used to shop with would bring her two young ~very energetic children with us ~we'd be in a antique store, & they would be running wild ~while mommy was oblivious to it, shopping away, there I would be~ getting all the dirty looks from the shop owners...thinking I needed to get the situation under control~very embarassing, I would have never allowed my son to act that way in a store, then I finally decided no matter what happens they are not my children, not my responsibility, so we are in a store~and her kids are running wild as usual,I continue shopping~oblivious to it as mommy, ~not really but putting forth my best effort to ignore, one of them knocked over a dispaly of candles..shop owner of course was kinda on the huffy side,& understandably so, my friend purchased some of the damaged candles, & we left, she was very put off, she has since moved to Texas, her children are now teenagers, & now when I go shopping~its child free, not only so I can enjoy my shopping & not get the dirty stares, but for the respect of the shop owner! :)
Please have a better day tomorrow! I look forward to seeing the pics from your hidden camera..:D
Enjoy your day!
Cat