E-commerce Reducing Bargaining Habits

Mom : 20 rupees I will give, no one takes 40 rupees for this ride to that place.

Auto Driver : last I will go at 35 rupees

Mom : I will give 30 rupees and without hearing him back, sits in the rickshaw and the driver used to start it by then

Mom : how much for a half kg tomatoes?

Vendor : 40 rupees

Mom : tell me rate of kilos

Vendor : 80 rupees

Mom : I will give 60 rupees

Vendor : not possible, finally agreeing at 65/70 rupees

Mom : okay give me half kg at that price now.

These are few of the instances we used to see every now and then. And the above discussion universally represents to all the moms till the few decades in early 21^st century.

While bargaining, there was not a smallest guilt they feel. They have this in mind saying, he gives only its feasible for him. Deal is done only when its win-win for both.

The way moms used to shamelessly bargain and negotiate, it will give a run to the whole purchase department in MNCs.

But the subject today is not about how moms are great in this. This is about how it used to get ingrained in the generations ahead and continued and how it stopped now.

This bargaining still goes in many places but it seems coming down in the era of taxis on demand [Uber / Ola] or the e-com and quick commerce.

The pricing available there on the app, with few % discount here and there, which lately not seen also on many products.

The fares of home to station, all different depending on the peak/surge charges and many other parameters.

Everything is pre-decided and we have no say in that. Somehow making us forget the habit of bargaining/negotiating.

Then there are so called discussions we hear – “we don’t bargain at the malls then why to bargain with poor vegetable vendors”.

Agree, we shouldn’t, but we shouldn’t look at it from just that angle only. Don’t we rush to the malls during the SALE, and that’s the correct, bargained price they put on the merchandise.

When I plan to give a poor try bargaining with the road side vendor, my son looks at me like, how the poor Hero in Bollywood looks at the SAVKAR in the old Bollywood movies.

He thinks, giving 10-20 rupees extra won’t make us poor. But I pity him on how he is missing on one of the biggest learnings, we had through this.