“The best technique is to give the salesperson a reason to give you a discount. A customer offering to take the floor model or willing to wait for a special order or buying multiple pieces as a package deal are examples of reasons to request a discount,” says Stephen Antisdel, a consultant who spent 20 years in the furniture business. He adds that being willing to pay cash or waive a store’s free-delivery offer also might help drive the price down.
Antisdel says you’ll have better luck haggling at an independent showroom than at a big national chain. As for how much your persistence might pay off, he says it’s possible to knock 10% to 20% off new, unblemished items. Want a bigger discount? Be willing to live with scuffs or scratches. “If the item you’re considering is discontinued, ‘odd lot,’ scratched, soiled or otherwise distressed, you could start out with an offer that might be 50% or more off the tag price,” he advises.
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12 Times to Haggle
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