lost
It's happened again. I go on a big overseas trip, take heaps of photos, and my memory card stuffs up. Last time it cost me around $250 to get the photos back after having to send the card to a photo recovery place in the U.S. Oh well. I think I'll worry about the card when I get home.
In the meantime, I'm in Kuala Lumpur and am spending most of my time buying stuff. I thought that I had made reasonable progress with my bargaining skills in Thailand, but the rules appear to be entirely different over here, and they change depending on where you are shopping.
In Thailand, everything was nice and simple. If you are a rookie at bargaining, the shopkeeper would begin by saying that the jousting sticks that you have displayed an interest in cost 450 Baht. You then say, "is that your best price?", which would be greeted with a response of, "OK, 300 Baht". You then offer something like 220 Baht, which would draw a feigned look of exasperation. A new, lower price is then offered and after a few easy exchanges, you both settle on a comfortable intermediate price that everyone is happy with.
If you have moved beyond the rookie stage, you can add the advanced move of "walking away". After a few exhanges of offers to suss out the degree of desperation in the shopkeeper, you can then walk away looking completely unsatisfied with the shopkeeper's final offer. If the shopkeeper is particularly desperate to make a sale, as you are walking away to another store he/she will most probably blurt out an offer which they find painfully low. You know you've done well when they frown after you give them your money, and continue frowning as you leave the shop.
That was Thailand. Here, everything's topsy turvy and I'm all confused. I'm so confused that I have only bought several items from street stores, and have instead done a significant amount of shopping in department stores, where bargaining is far less common-place (and where the goods are still much cheaper than they are in Australia).
In Kuala Lumpur's Chinatown, all of the shopkeepers are incredibly desperate to make a sale. They give the impression that if you scattered coins on the ground, they would pounce on the money like a bunch of hungry seagulls on a plate of chips, and would chew each others arms off to get at 20 cents. This air of desperation is impossible to get away from when bargaining with these people, but they still can not seem to give a reasonable deal, even if it means not selling anything. I'm sure that there is huge potential to get rediculously good deals with such mentally unstable people, but so far I've been too overwhelmed to figure out how to achieve this. For instance, the other day I decided to buy a belt. I saw a belt which was being offered for RM 10 in Little India (which I will get to later), and asked the Chinatown shopkeeper how much it was. "Fifty-five, it's real leather!", he replied. I didn't even have to fake my surprise at that rediculous price, and started to get the hell out of there. "OK, thirty!", he yelled. I kept walking, and automatically performed my walking away manouver. His final, desperate plea was RM 15, less than 30% of his initial offer but still significantly higher than the starting price of the belt in Little India. I probably could have reduced him to tears and got the belt down to RM 10, but it was all too bizarre for me.
It's completely opposite in Little India. They almost act as though they don't want your business. Over there, I asked how much a belt was.
"One belt for ten", the shopkeeper said in a deadpan tone. "Is that your best price?", I ventured. "One belt for ten", the shopkeeper said in a deadpan tone.
"What if I buy three?"
"No discount"
"But three, THREE?"
"Ok, ok. Three for twenty-nine"
That was that. I couldn't get him below RM 29. I bought the belts.
My mum bought a pair of shoes from one of the places in Chinatown the other day, and spent a fair bit of time talking to the guys in the shoe shop. They said that they work from 10am to 11pm, seven days a week. They get one rostered day off every fortnight. They get paid between $400 and $560 (Australian) a month. I almost wanted to go off and buy a belt for RM 55 after hearing that.
In the meantime, I'm in Kuala Lumpur and am spending most of my time buying stuff. I thought that I had made reasonable progress with my bargaining skills in Thailand, but the rules appear to be entirely different over here, and they change depending on where you are shopping.
In Thailand, everything was nice and simple. If you are a rookie at bargaining, the shopkeeper would begin by saying that the jousting sticks that you have displayed an interest in cost 450 Baht. You then say, "is that your best price?", which would be greeted with a response of, "OK, 300 Baht". You then offer something like 220 Baht, which would draw a feigned look of exasperation. A new, lower price is then offered and after a few easy exchanges, you both settle on a comfortable intermediate price that everyone is happy with.
If you have moved beyond the rookie stage, you can add the advanced move of "walking away". After a few exhanges of offers to suss out the degree of desperation in the shopkeeper, you can then walk away looking completely unsatisfied with the shopkeeper's final offer. If the shopkeeper is particularly desperate to make a sale, as you are walking away to another store he/she will most probably blurt out an offer which they find painfully low. You know you've done well when they frown after you give them your money, and continue frowning as you leave the shop.
That was Thailand. Here, everything's topsy turvy and I'm all confused. I'm so confused that I have only bought several items from street stores, and have instead done a significant amount of shopping in department stores, where bargaining is far less common-place (and where the goods are still much cheaper than they are in Australia).
In Kuala Lumpur's Chinatown, all of the shopkeepers are incredibly desperate to make a sale. They give the impression that if you scattered coins on the ground, they would pounce on the money like a bunch of hungry seagulls on a plate of chips, and would chew each others arms off to get at 20 cents. This air of desperation is impossible to get away from when bargaining with these people, but they still can not seem to give a reasonable deal, even if it means not selling anything. I'm sure that there is huge potential to get rediculously good deals with such mentally unstable people, but so far I've been too overwhelmed to figure out how to achieve this. For instance, the other day I decided to buy a belt. I saw a belt which was being offered for RM 10 in Little India (which I will get to later), and asked the Chinatown shopkeeper how much it was. "Fifty-five, it's real leather!", he replied. I didn't even have to fake my surprise at that rediculous price, and started to get the hell out of there. "OK, thirty!", he yelled. I kept walking, and automatically performed my walking away manouver. His final, desperate plea was RM 15, less than 30% of his initial offer but still significantly higher than the starting price of the belt in Little India. I probably could have reduced him to tears and got the belt down to RM 10, but it was all too bizarre for me.
It's completely opposite in Little India. They almost act as though they don't want your business. Over there, I asked how much a belt was.
"One belt for ten", the shopkeeper said in a deadpan tone. "Is that your best price?", I ventured. "One belt for ten", the shopkeeper said in a deadpan tone.
"What if I buy three?"
"No discount"
"But three, THREE?"
"Ok, ok. Three for twenty-nine"
That was that. I couldn't get him below RM 29. I bought the belts.
My mum bought a pair of shoes from one of the places in Chinatown the other day, and spent a fair bit of time talking to the guys in the shoe shop. They said that they work from 10am to 11pm, seven days a week. They get one rostered day off every fortnight. They get paid between $400 and $560 (Australian) a month. I almost wanted to go off and buy a belt for RM 55 after hearing that.
posted by Gene at 12:17 am
haha yup sounds like Malaysia alright.
Sounds like you got the knack of "tawar-menawar" (bargaining) ;)
10 ringgit for a belt sounds like pretty good value.
Check out FOS and Reject Stores in the bigger shopping centres, you can find factory rejects of good brands, i think they had genuine Ralph Lauren polo shirts for 50 ringgit.
selamat jalan
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