CAR BOOT SALE

I was at a car boot, selling, the other Sunday (a general build up of domestic and workshop stuff). I hadn’t ‘done’ a car boot for about 10 years so it was great fun catching up with the experience. It did give me the chance to sharpen up my haggling skills. Normally I use them to buy, but I was on the other side of the fence, this time.

Trouble is, I don’t haggle in the shop so I think I may have offended a few buyers with my ‘robust’ style!
One guy asked “how much for the desk, mate?”
“Tenner” I said.
“Would you take 8?” he replied.
“No, a tenner’s fair”.
“Yeah, but I want a deal” he said.
So I replied “Right, I want 15 for the desk”.
He went quiet and then said “What about a tenner?”
“Done.”

This was my general philosophy the whole day. A rather irritated lady wanted to buy a child’s chair.
“How much?” she said.
“Tenner” I replied.
“What about 7?”
“No.”
“What about 8?”
“No.”
“Oh, come on, last offer – how about 9?”
“No.”
“You’re not very nice, are you?”
“10 quid is a bargain for that”, I said.
“Well, I’m going to think about it” she replied.
“You’re going to think about a quid?” I said.

She thought about it for five seconds and gave me the tenner. She broke the basic haggling rule. She kept her feet pointing at the chair the whole time, which means she wants it.... Still, she could have done a handstand and sung the national anthem – it was still going to cost her a tenner!

And, by the way, last offer should always be your last offer. If it isn’t – don’t say it!