Pay for vendor meeting?

jenna8984

One of my vendors does his work as a side/ weekend job so doesn't have an office, which is totally normal. He suggested we meet for dinner to go over the details, talk about what we want, expectations, sign the contract, give the deposit, etc. I love an excuse to eat sushi so I said sure. Just want to make sure- I am not expected or obligated to pay for his meal right? 

singinchick13

You shouldn't be. Your contract should outline any and all payments you are responsible for. I would assume you are not paying by the hour so the time he takes to meet with you should not cost you anything.

ETA: If he suggested you meet for dinner, then it is as if he is hosting a business meeting, which means if anyone is expected to pay it would be him, though I would be prepared to just pay your own bill anyway.

AddieCake

No, you're not.

phira

We met with two photographers, and we met them over coffee and dinner respectively. Both insisted on paying.

doeydo

I think he might pay, but at the most I think you would pay for your own meal and he pay for his own.

jenna8984

Great thank you!!

blabla89

I've read that etiquette generally dictates that business meals should be paid for by the party who stands to gain most from the meeting (in this case, that would be your vendor) - has anyone else heard this?

pinkshorts27

lalalaurita said:

I've read that etiquette generally dictates that business meals should be paid for by the party who stands to gain most from the meeting (in this case, that would be your vendor) - has anyone else heard this?

That is what my dad used to always say. The exception always being interviews. If the company that is interviewing you doesn't cover your meal, they aren't worth your time.

mysticl

phira said:

We met with two photographers, and we met them over coffee and dinner respectively. Both insisted on paying.

And then promptly wrote it off as a business expense.  

Cookie Pusher

mysticl said:

phira said:

We met with two photographers, and we met them over coffee and dinner respectively. Both insisted on paying.

And then promptly wrote it off as a business expense.  

Hell, that's exactly what I would do! My company often invites prospective clients out for lunch meetings and then writes off the cost. It's one of the perks of being a business - you get to subtract the operating costs from your revenue for tax purposes!

lc07

Cookie Pusher said:

mysticl said:

phira said:

We met with two photographers, and we met them over coffee and dinner respectively. Both insisted on paying.

And then promptly wrote it off as a business expense.  

Hell, that's exactly what I would do! My company often invites prospective clients out for lunch meetings and then writes off the cost. It's one of the perks of being a business - you get to subtract the operating costs from your revenue for tax purposes!

Yea, but it's only 50% of the bill, right? And you still have to have the money to shell out!

Cookie Pusher

Yea, it's just a percentage, but for a small business it can make a big difference. My company does plenty of lunch meetings and maybe half of them pan out into us getting business so it ends up evening out in the end. If we weren't able to write off any part of the meetings, we'd have a harder time justifying the spending to our parent company. For people running their own businesses, being able to offset costs can make an impact since you're not necessarily profitable in the first several years.

lc07

Cookie Pusher said:

Yea, it's just a percentage, but for a small business it can make a big difference. My company does plenty of lunch meetings and maybe half of them pan out into us getting business so it ends up evening out in the end. If we weren't able to write off any part of the meetings, we'd have a harder time justifying the spending to our parent company. For people running their own businesses, being able to offset costs can make an impact since you're not necessarily profitable in the first several years.

I hear you. It's a good thing any of it can be a tax write off for sure. And you're right that depending on the type of industry you're in wining and dining can be necessary. It's a good thing they can write even part of it off at all.